REST APIs with Django Djoser
Tags: django, programming
Published: 2023-02-16 18:26:08

## Introduction

An API(Application Programming Interface), is a set of protocols and methods that allow software applications to communicate with each other. An API specifies how software components should interact with each other, providing a means of communication between different applications or systems. 

A REST API is a type of web API that follows a specific set of architectural principles and constraints to enable communication between software applications. 

## Django Djoser

Django Djoser is a Django package that provides a set of API endpoints and views for handling user authentication and registration. It simplifies the process of building a user authentication system in Django by providing a set of pre-built views and API endpoints for common authentication use cases, such as user registration, email verification, password reset, and more.

## Lets Get started

To get started with Django Djoser, you'll need to install it using pip:
`pip install djoser`.

Once installed, you can add Djoser to your Django project by adding it to your INSTALLED_APPS setting in your settings.py file:

```python
INSTALLED_APPS = [
    # ...
    'djoser',
    # ...
]

```
Djoser provides a set of API endpoints and views that you can use to handle common user authentication tasks. Here's an overview of some of the most commonly used endpoints:

`/auth/users/`: This endpoint is used for user registration. It expects a POST request with a JSON payload containing the new user's username, email, and password. Once the user is created, a verification email is sent to the user's email address.

`/auth/users/confirm/`: This endpoint is used to confirm a user's email address after registration. It expects a POST request with a JSON payload containing the user's email and the verification code sent in the verification email.

`/auth/token/login/`: This endpoint is used for user login. It expects a POST request with a JSON payload containing the user's username and password. If the credentials are valid, it returns an access token and a refresh token.

`/auth/token/refresh/`: This endpoint is used to refresh an access token. It expects a POST request with a JSON payload containing the refresh token. If the refresh token is valid, it returns a new access token.

`/auth/password/reset/`: This endpoint is used to initiate a password reset request. It expects a POST request with a JSON payload containing the user's email. If the email address is associated with a user account, a password reset email is sent to the user's email address.

`/auth/password/reset/confirm/`: This endpoint is used to confirm a password reset request. It expects a POST request with a JSON payload containing the user's email, the reset token sent in the password reset email, and the new password.

```python
from django.urls import path, include
from djoser.views import (
    UserCreateView,
    UserActivateView,
    TokenCreateView,
    TokenRefreshView,
    PasswordResetView,
    PasswordResetConfirmView,
)

urlpatterns = [
    # ...
    path('auth/', include('djoser.urls')),
    path('auth/', include('djoser.urls.authtoken')),
    # ...
]

```
This will add all the default Djoser URL patterns to your project, including the ones for the endpoints listed above.

### Conclusion

In conclusion, Django Djoser is a powerful and flexible authentication package for Django that can save you a lot of time and effort when building a user authentication system. It provides a set of pre-built views and API endpoints for handling common authentication tasks, and is easy to integrate into your existing Django project. Whether you're building a simple web application or a complex enterprise-level system, Djoser can help you get up and running quickly and easily.

### Resources
- You can get more information on the [Djoser Documentation](https://djoser.readthedocs.io/en/latest/).
- Also, I'll be following up with another article that we'll create an application and use Djoser practically.

### Connect With Me

Thank you for taking the time to read this article on Django Djoser. I hope you found the information helpful and informative! If you have any comments or feedback on the article, please feel free to leave them below. I'd love to hear your thoughts and insights on the topic.

In addition, you can connect with me on [Linkedin](https://www.linkedin.com/in/waithaka-waweru/) and follow me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ItsWeshy), I regularly share what I am learning and resources on how improve and skill up on Django.

Happy Coding!