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Change: Harden credentials and guarantee file persistence across updates

Date: 2026-09-11

Goal

Ensure an app update (rebuild / redeploy / docker compose up -d) cannot lose or detach persistent data, and cannot silently break the credentials the app uses to reach it.

What changed

Area Change
Postgres password docker-compose.yml now uses a single required POSTGRES_PASSWORD for both the db service and the web DATABASE_URL, replacing Coolify's auto-generated SERVICE_PASSWORD_* Postgres magic variable. Missing value fails fast at docker compose config/up.
Database docs .env.sample and README.md state that POSTGRES_PASSWORD is captured at first initialization of the pgdata volume and must stay stable; changing it later requires ALTER USER ... WITH PASSWORD ... inside the DB.
File volumes README.md documents that the named volumes (pgdata, media_data, static_data, docs_data, fastembed_cache) survive updates and are removed only by down -v, docker volume rm, or docker volume prune; notes which are non-regenerable and the Coolify redeploy toggle to keep off.
docs_data seeding README.md notes the volume is seeded from the image's docs/ only when first created, so image updates do not refresh already-seeded content (use sync_docs/re-import or a bind mount).
S3 credentials config/settings.py raises ImproperlyConfigured when DOCS_S3_BUCKET is set but exactly one of DOCS_S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID / DOCS_S3_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY is set. Both blank or both set remain valid. .env.sample documents the rule.

Notes

  • Persistence itself was already correct (pgdata named volume, pinned compose project name); this change hardens credentials and documents the operational safeguards.
  • The S3 guard preserves boto3's default credential chain (e.g. an IAM role) for deployments that leave both credential variables blank.
  • No model, migration, or schema changes; the repo model-field convention is unaffected.

User validation

  1. docker compose config with POSTGRES_PASSWORD set — db and web show the same password.
  2. Unset POSTGRES_PASSWORD — docker compose config errors with the fail-fast message.
  3. docker compose up -d on the existing stack — web connects to db; existing rows are intact.
  4. docker compose exec db psql -U <user> -d <db> -c "\dt" lists Django tables.
  5. docker compose restart web (without -v) — files under /app/docs and uploaded media remain present.
  6. With DOCS_S3_BUCKET set and only DOCS_S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID set, Django startup raises ImproperlyConfigured; with both or neither set, startup is unchanged.