DRF auto-generates API schemas and documentation. I use drf-spectacular for OpenAPI 3.0 schemas. The schema describes endpoints, parameters, and responses. I customize with decorators like @extend_schema. Interactive docs via Swagger UI or ReDoc let d

Database routers enable read-write splitting for scaling. I direct reads to replicas and writes to primary. The router examines hints and model to make routing decisions. For read-heavy apps, this distributes load across multiple databases. I use usin

Extending Django's user model should be done early in projects. I use AbstractBaseUser for full control or AbstractUser to extend the default. Setting AUTH_USER_MODEL points Django to my custom model. I add fields like phone, avatar, or preferences. F

Django's email system supports attachments and HTML templates. I use EmailMessage for full control or EmailMultiAlternatives for HTML+text versions. For attachments, I use attach_file() or attach() methods. I render email content from templates for co

DRF permissions control access to API endpoints. I use built-in permissions like IsAuthenticated, IsAdminUser, or IsAuthenticatedOrReadOnly. For custom logic, I create permission classes implementing has_permission() and has_object_permission(). I com

Signals and save overrides both handle model events, but have different use cases. I override save() for logic intrinsic to the model. Signals decouple logic across apps—I use them when multiple apps need to respond to model changes. Signals can make

Database indexes dramatically speed up queries. I add indexes to frequently-filtered fields via db_index=True or Meta.indexes. Compound indexes help queries filtering on multiple fields together. For text search on PostgreSQL, I use GinIndex with Sear

The atomic decorator/context manager ensures all-or-nothing database operations. I wrap related operations in @transaction.atomic or with transaction.atomic() blocks. If any operation fails, the entire transaction rolls back. This prevents partial dat

Custom error pages improve user experience and brand consistency. I create templates named 404.html, 500.html, 403.html, and 400.html in the templates root. Django serves these automatically when DEBUG=False. For custom logic, I can override error han

The only() method loads specified fields only, while defer() excludes specified fields. This reduces data transfer and memory usage. I use only() when I need just a few fields from large models. For read-only displays, this prevents loading unnecessar

Migrations track database schema changes. I use makemigrations after model changes and review generated migrations. For data migrations, I create empty migrations with makemigrations --empty and write RunPython operations. I test migrations on dev dat

Custom middleware intercepts all requests and responses. I implement __init__ and __call__ methods. Middleware can modify requests before views, modify responses after views, or short-circuit entirely. Common uses include authentication, logging, CORS