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Installation Guide

SecureDevOps Dashboard - Unified DevSecOps Pipeline Visualization with SAST, DAST, and CI/CD Security

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Complete Guide

Complete Installation Guide for SecureDevOps Dashboard

Getting the SecureDevOps Dashboard up and running takes about 10 to 15 minutes. Follow these steps carefully and you will have a fully working DevSecOps platform on your local machine. Even if you have never set up a Django project before, do not worry, this guide explains everything in simple language.

Prerequisites You Need Before Starting

Make sure your system has the following installed and ready before you begin the setup process:

  • Python version 3.10 or higher installed on your system
  • pip package manager which usually comes bundled with Python
  • A code editor like VS Code, PyCharm, or Sublime Text
  • Terminal or Command Prompt access
  • At least 500 MB of free disk space
  • An active internet connection for downloading dependencies

Step 1: Extract the Project Files

After downloading the project zip file from CodeAj Marketplace, extract it to a location of your choice. We recommend creating a dedicated folder like Documents/Projects or Desktop/FinalYearProject for easy access. Right click the zip file and select Extract All on Windows, or use the Archive Manager on Linux and Mac systems.

Step 2: Open the Project in Terminal

Open your terminal or command prompt and navigate to the extracted project folder using the cd command. The folder you want to be in is the one containing the manage.py file. For example, if you extracted to Desktop, the command would be cd Desktop/securedevops on Mac and Linux, or cd Desktop\securedevops on Windows.

Step 3: Verify Python Installation

Before proceeding, confirm that Python 3.10 or higher is properly installed by running the command python --version in your terminal. You should see output similar to Python 3.10.5 or higher. If you see Python 2.7 or get a command not found error, install Python from the official python.org website first.

Step 4: Create a Virtual Environment

Virtual environments keep your project dependencies isolated from other Python projects on your system. This prevents version conflicts and is a standard professional practice. Create one by running the command python -m venv venv. This creates a new folder called venv inside your project directory containing a clean Python installation just for this project.

Step 5: Activate the Virtual Environment

You need to activate the virtual environment before installing packages. On Windows systems, run the command venv\Scripts\activate in your command prompt. On Mac and Linux systems, run source venv/bin/activate in your terminal. After successful activation, you will see (venv) appear at the start of your command prompt indicating the environment is active.

Step 6: Install Project Dependencies

With the virtual environment active, install all required packages by running pip install -r requirements.txt. This command reads the requirements file and installs Django 4.2.13, Celery 5.3.6, Redis client, Gunicorn, ReportLab for PDF generation, Docker SDK, OWASP ZAP client, and all other dependencies. The installation usually takes 2 to 5 minutes depending on your internet speed.

Step 7: Configure Environment Variables

The project comes with a .env.example template file that contains all configuration options. Copy this file to create your actual configuration by running cp .env.example .env on Mac and Linux, or copy .env.example .env on Windows. The default settings use SQLite database which requires no additional setup, so you can proceed without making any changes.

Step 8: Run Database Migrations

Django needs to create database tables based on the project models. Run two commands in sequence: first python manage.py makemigrations to generate migration files, then python manage.py migrate to actually create the tables. You will see output showing tables being created for projects, vulnerabilities, builds, audit logs, and other entities.

Step 9: Load Demo Data

The project includes a custom management command that populates the database with realistic demo data so you can see everything working immediately. Run python manage.py seed_data to execute it. This creates an admin user with username admin and password admin123, three demo projects (College Admission Portal, Library Management System, Student Result Portal), and populates security findings, pipeline builds, and container records across all modules.

Step 10: Start the Development Server

You are now ready to launch the application. Run python manage.py runserver to start the Django development server. By default it runs on port 8000. If you see a message saying Starting development server at http://127.0.0.1:8000/ then everything is working correctly. Keep this terminal window open while using the application.

Step 11: Access the Application

Open your favorite web browser and visit http://localhost:8000 to see the main SecureDevOps Dashboard. You will be greeted with the unified security overview showing vulnerability statistics, severity charts, and OWASP Top 10 distribution. To access the admin panel, visit http://localhost:8000/admin and login with username admin and password admin123.

Step 12: Optional Docker Setup

If you prefer running the project with Docker for a production-like environment with PostgreSQL and Redis, simply run docker-compose up --build from the project root directory. This single command builds the Docker image and starts Django, PostgreSQL 15, Redis, and Celery worker containers together. Access the application at http://localhost:8000 once all containers are healthy.

Step 13: Optional Celery Worker Setup

To enable background task automation like automatic Jenkins polling and daily security scans, you need to start a Celery worker. Open a new terminal window, navigate to the project directory, activate the virtual environment, and run celery -A securedevops worker -l info. The worker will connect to Redis and start processing background tasks.

Common Issues and Solutions

If you encounter problems during installation, here are the most common issues and how to fix them quickly:

  • If you see ModuleNotFoundError, the virtual environment is not activated. Run the activation command again.
  • If port 8000 is already in use, run python manage.py runserver 8080 to use a different port.
  • If migrations fail with errors, delete the db.sqlite3 file and rerun the makemigrations and migrate commands.
  • If pip install fails, try upgrading pip first using python -m pip install --upgrade pip then retry.
  • If Docker commands fail, ensure Docker Desktop is running on your system.

What to Do Next

Once installation is complete, explore each module to familiarize yourself with the project. Trigger a SonarQube scan from the Development page, run a ZAP scan from the Security page, generate a PDF report from the Reports page, and check the admin panel to see all the underlying data. If you need help understanding any module or want a personalized walkthrough, the CodeAj team provides free setup support sessions for all marketplace customers.

Need Help?

Our team is here to assist you with installation and setup.

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