What is Django middleware and how do I use it?

What is Django middleware and how do I use it?

Django middleware is a framework of hooks into Django's request/response processing. It’s a way to process requests globally before they reach the view or after the view has processed them.

Can you give me an example of a custom middleware?

Sure! Here's a simple example of a custom middleware that logs the time taken to process a request:

import time

class TimingMiddleware:
    def __init__(self, get_response):
        self.get_response = get_response

    def __call__(self, request):
        start_time = time.time()
        response = self.get_response(request)
        duration = time.time() - start_time
        print(f'Time taken: {duration} seconds')
        return response

How do I add this middleware to my Django project?

To add your custom middleware, include it in the MIDDLEWARE setting in your settings.py file like this:

MIDDLEWARE = [
    ...,
    'yourapp.middleware.TimingMiddleware',
    ...,
]

What are some common use cases for middleware?

Common use cases for middleware include request logging, user authentication, session management, and modifying responses.