docs: improve setup instructions, add .env.sample and basic test

.env.sample

@@ -1,47 +1,71 @@
-DEBUG=False
+# Core Django settings
+# Use "development" for local work. Production/staging deployments should override this.
 ENVIRONMENT=development
-SECRET_KEY=your-secret-key-here
-DATABASE_URL=sqlite:///db.sqlite3
-EMAIL_FROM=admin@example.com
-SENDGRID_API_KEY=your-sendgrid-api-key
-SENDGRID_PASSWORD=your-sendgrid-password
-SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL=your-slack-webhook-url
+
+# Replace this in shared or deployed environments.
+SECRET_KEY=django-insecure-change-me
+
+# Must be a valid Fernet key. Generate one with: python web/master_key.py
 MESSAGE_ENCRYPTION_KEY=5ezrkqK2lhifqBRt9f8_dZhFQF_f5ipSQDV8Vzv9Dek=
-# Generate a key by running: python web/master_key.py
 
-# Stripe Configuration
-STRIPE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=your-stripe-publishable-key
-STRIPE_SECRET_KEY=your-stripe-secret-key
-STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET=your-stripe-webhook-secret
-DJANGO_DEBUG=True
+# Comma-separated hostnames/origins used by Django security checks.
+ALLOWED_HOSTS=127.0.0.1,localhost
+CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS=http://127.0.0.1:8000,http://localhost:8000
 
-# Admin Configuration
+# The admin is mounted at /en/<ADMIN_URL>/.
 ADMIN_URL=a-dmin-url123
 
-# Google Cloud Storage Configuration
-GS_BUCKET_NAME=your-bucket-name
-GS_PROJECT_ID=your-project-id
-SERVICE_ACCOUNT_FILE=your-service-account-file-path
-
-#Twitter Configuration
-TWITTER_API_KEY=your_api_key_here
-TWITTER_API_SECRET_KEY=your_api_secret_here
-TWITTER_ACCESS_TOKEN=your_access_token_here
-TWITTER_ACCESS_TOKEN_SECRET=your_access_token_secret_here
-
-#Deployment Configuration
-APP_PORT=8000
-DOMAIN_NAME=yourdomain.com
-ENABLE_HTTPS_REDIRECT=True
-PROJECT_NAME=education-website
-PYTHON_VERSION=3.11
-VPS_IP=your-vps-ip
-VPS_PASSWORD=your-vps-password
-VPS_USER=root
-DB_NAME=education_website
-DB_USER=root
-DB_PASSWORD=your_secure_database_password
-GIT_REPO=your_git_repo_to_deploy
-GIT_BRANCH=your_repo_branch
-ALLOWED_HOSTS=example.com,www.example.com,127.0.0.1,localhost
-CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS=http://domain.com
+# Local services
+# Keep the SQLite value for the simplest local setup.
+DATABASE_URL=sqlite:///db.sqlite3
+REDIS_URL=redis://127.0.0.1:6379/0
+MEDIA_ROOT=media
+CACHE_MIDDLEWARE_SECONDS=300
+CACHE_MIDDLEWARE_KEY_PREFIX=aol
+CSRF_COOKIE_SECURE=False
+SESSION_COOKIE_SECURE=False
+
+# Email and notifications
+EMAIL_FROM=noreply@example.com
+SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL=
+EMAIL_SLACK_WEBHOOK=
+MAILGUN_SENDING_KEY=
+MAILGUN_DOMAIN=
+
+# Legacy system status check; only needed if you still use SendGrid.
+SENDGRID_PASSWORD=
+
+# Billing
+STRIPE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=
+STRIPE_SECRET_KEY=
+STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET=
+
+# Monitoring
+SENTRY_DSN=
+SENTRY_LOG_LEVEL=INFO
+SENTRY_TRACES_SAMPLE_RATE=0.0
+
+# Content and social integrations
+MAILCHIMP_API_KEY=
+MAILCHIMP_LIST_ID=
+INSTAGRAM_ACCESS_TOKEN=
+FACEBOOK_ACCESS_TOKEN=
+TWITTER_USERNAME=alphaonelabs
+TWITTER_API_KEY=
+TWITTER_API_SECRET_KEY=
+TWITTER_ACCESS_TOKEN=
+TWITTER_ACCESS_TOKEN_SECRET=
+YOUTUBE_API_KEY=
+YOUTUBE_CHANNEL_ID=
+
+# GitHub integrations
+GITHUB_ACCESS_TOKEN=
+GITHUB_TOKEN=
+GITHUB_REPO=AlphaOneLabs/education-website
+GITHUB_WEBHOOK_SECRET=
+
+# Google Cloud Storage
+# Leave these blank unless you are testing cloud media storage.
+GS_BUCKET_NAME=
+GS_PROJECT_ID=
+SERVICE_ACCOUNT_FILE=google_credentials.json

.github/copilot-setup-steps.yml

@@ -127,10 +127,11 @@ setup_steps:
     name: "Run Development Server"
     description: "Start the Django development server"
     commands:
-      - "python manage.py runserver"
+      - "poetry run uvicorn web.asgi:application --host 127.0.0.1 --port 8000 --reload"
     notes:
-      - "Server runs at http://localhost:8000"
-      - "Admin panel available at http://localhost:8000/admin"
+      - "Server runs at http://127.0.0.1:8000/en/"
+      - "Use Uvicorn for local WebSocket support"
+      - "Admin panel path is controlled by ADMIN_URL in .env"
       - "Press Ctrl+C to stop the server"
 
 docker_setup:
@@ -211,7 +212,7 @@ tech_stack:
     - "Nginx"
     - "Uvicorn (ASGI)"
     - "Django Channels (WebSockets)"
-    - "SendGrid for emails"
+    - "Mailgun with Slack notification fallback"
     - "Stripe for payments"
 
 important_notes:
@@ -225,7 +226,7 @@ important_notes:
 
 useful_commands:
   development:
-    run_server: "python manage.py runserver"
+    run_server: "poetry run uvicorn web.asgi:application --host 127.0.0.1 --port 8000 --reload"
     make_migrations: "python manage.py makemigrations"
     migrate: "python manage.py migrate"
     create_superuser: "python manage.py createsuperuser"