ManagementUtility.execute() does not handle ImportError for invalid settings module

[Marten Kenbeek]

In ​ManagementUtility.execute(), the code tries to load the settings, and catches ImproperlyConfigured in case the settings aren't configured. However, if DJANGO_SETTINGS_MODULE is set to an invalid module (e.g. from the previous project you were working on), an uncaught ImportError is raised. This causes commands that don't need the settings, such as startproject, to fail.

It seems to me that the ImportError can safely be caught so that core commands that don't need settings can be executed. If the settings are accessed later on (either because the command ​can't be found or the command uses the settings), the ImportError will be reraised.

[Hrishikesh Barman]

Hi Marten,
This seems like a valid enhancement to me. I reproduced the bug and is valid.
Can I start contributing to this?
I have a question, how do I test if my changes work? Do I have to install the cloned and modified django everytime I make a modification?
Also, how to go about writing tests for this?

[Hrishikesh Barman]

I've sent a pull request for this ticket,
​https://github.com/django/django/pull/9367

It's failing a flake8 test, I ran the tests locally.

Please let me know about any further changes.

[Hrishikesh Barman]

The improved patch for this ticket is here: ​https://github.com/django/django/pull/9367

[Tim Graham <timograham@…>]

In c6864a01:

Fixed #28791 -- Allowed commands that don't require settings to work if the DJANGO_SETTINGS_MODULE doesn't exist.