Django Admin Login Issue Analysis

Based on your description, there appears to be an issue with user authentication when users are created via your API versus directly through the Django admin interface. This is likely related to how user permissions are being set during creation.

Possible Causes

1. User Permission Flags: The most likely cause is that users created through your API don't have the correct permission flags set. For Django admin access, users need:

   • is_active = True
   • is_staff = True (for admin access)

2. Session Cookie Domain Issues: If you're experiencing login problems where valid credentials don't work on subsequent attempts, there might be an issue with your session cookie domain configuration.

Recommended Solutions

1. Check User Creation Logic

Ensure your API's user creation logic properly sets the required flags:

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def create_user(username, password, email=None):
    user = User.objects.create_user(
        username=username,
        password=password,
        email=email
    )
    user.is_active = True  # Make sure this is set
    user.is_staff = True   # If admin access is needed
    user.save()
    return user

2. Check Session Cookie Configuration

If the issue is related to session cookies not persisting between requests, check your SESSION_COOKIE_DOMAIN setting:

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# In settings.py
SESSION_COOKIE_DOMAIN = 'your-domain.com'  # Match your actual domain

3. Authentication Backend

If you're using a custom authentication backend, ensure it properly handles user creation and validation:

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def authenticate(self, request, username=None, password=None):
    # Your authentication logic
    # ...
    
    # If creating a user, ensure proper flags are set
    if create_new_user:
        user = User(username=username)
        user.is_active = True
        user.is_staff = True  # If admin access is needed
        user.save()

4. Debug Authentication Process

Add logging to your authentication process to see what's happening during the failed login attempts:

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import logging
logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)

def login_view(request):
    username = request.POST.get('username')
    password = request.POST.get('password')
    
    logger.debug(f"Attempting login for user: {username}")
    
    user = authenticate(request, username=username, password=password)
    
    if user is not None:
        logger.debug(f"User authenticated: {user.is_active=}, {user.is_staff=}")
        login(request, user)
        # Return success response
    else:
        logger.debug("Authentication failed")
        # Return error response

This issue is likely related to how user permissions are being set when creating users through different methods. The Django admin interface automatically handles these permissions correctly, while your API might need adjustments to ensure consistent behavior.