Replacing a Django image doesn't delete original

Question

In Django, if you have a ImageFile in a model, deleting will remove the associated file from disk as well as removing the record from the database.

Shouldn\'t replac

Answer 1

Here is a code that can work with or without upload_to=... or blank=True, and when the submitted file has the same name as the old one.

(py3 syntax, tested on Django 1.7)

class Attachment(models.Model):

    document = models.FileField(...)  # or ImageField

    def delete(self, *args, **kwargs):
        self.document.delete(save=False)
        super().delete(*args, **kwargs)

    def save(self, *args, **kwargs):
        if self.pk:
            old = self.__class__._default_manager.get(pk=self.pk)
            if old.document.name and (not self.document._committed or not self.document.name):
                old.document.delete(save=False)
        super().save(*args, **kwargs)

Remember that this kind of solution is only applicable if you are in a non transactional context (no rollback, because the file is definitively lost)