Can django compile the client assets then serve them?

[timwis]

Looks like settings.py has a setting for a static directory. I wonder if it can execute a command like npm run build at startup to compile it?

[mjumbewu]

This isn't something that core Django does, but there are a number of packages that do it. It has been a couple years since I've explored the options. I used to use django-compressor, and looking over the field quickly, that might still be what I'd choose today (it does more than compressing, but precompiling too).

[mjumbewu]

Also, there's some decent analysis of and commentary on the current state of the art at http://owaislone.org/blog/modern-frontends-with-django/, and an alternative possibility at http://owaislone.org/blog/webpack-plus-reactjs-and-django/