Resolving the 403 Forbidden Error in Django Rest Framework POST APIs After User Login

Learn how to troubleshoot and fix the `403 Forbidden` error in your Django Rest Framework POST APIs when a user logs in. Get step-by-step guidance to configure CORS and CSRF settings correctly.
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This video is based on the question https://stackoverflow.com/q/76427316/ asked by the user 'Thabb' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/12956121/ ) and on the answer https://stackoverflow.com/a/76428684/ provided by the user 'Mahammadhusain kadiwala' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/19205926/ ) at 'Stack Overflow' website. Thanks to these great users and Stackexchange community for their contributions.

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Troubleshooting the 403 Forbidden Error in Django Rest Framework POST APIs

If you are working with Django Rest Framework and have integrated it with a ReactJS frontend, you might run into a frustrating issue where all POST requests respond with a "403 Forbidden" error after a user logs in. In this guide, we will explore the possible causes of this problem and provide you with a comprehensive solution to resolve it.

Understanding the Problem

After setting up authentication in your Django backend, it seems that all POST requests are failing upon user login, while GET requests continue to work. You've already configured CORS and CSRF, but the issue persists. Your debugging effort led you to find that there is a discrepancy between CSRF token values in requests being made through React and those made through the Django frontend.

This issue is typically caused by improper CSRF token handling, especially when using libraries like Axios to perform HTTP requests. When CSRF tokens are not correctly synchronized or configured, Django interprets the request as potentially malicious, leading to the "403 Forbidden" response.

Detailed Solution: Step-by-Step Configuration

Here’s how you can configure your Django settings to ensure proper handling of CSRF tokens and to fix the POST request issue.

1. Update Django Settings

To start, make sure your Django settings.py file is properly configured as follows:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

2. Configure Axios for CSRF Handling

Since you're using Axios for your HTTP requests, make sure to include the following configuration to ensure that CSRF tokens are sent correctly with each request:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

This will ensure that Axios picks up the CSRF token from the cookie and sends it in the header appropriately when making POST requests.

3. Verify Token Synchronization

Make sure that you are correctly obtaining and setting the CSRF token at the time of user login. You may want to check that your frontend code correctly fetches and applies the CSRF token for all subsequent requests after the user logs in.

4. Test Your APIs Again

Once you've made these changes, test your POST APIs again after logging a user in. You should now receive the expected response rather than a "403 Forbidden" error.

Conclusion

The 403 Forbidden error when working with Django Rest Framework and React is often due to misconfigured CSRF settings. By ensuring that your Django settings are configured correctly for CORS and CSRF, and by using Axios properly in your frontend, you can solve this common problem and pave the way for a smoother development experience.

Make sure to re-test thoroughly after applying these configurations. Good luck, and happy coding!