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Serving Media files in cPanel Shared Hosting for Django Web App

I am not able to display media files on Cpanel shared hosting Django web app. I receive a Error 404 URL Not Found whenever I try to access the media file.
I have specified + static(settings.MEDIA_URL, document_root=settings.MEDIA_ROOT) in my urls.py file.
This error only occurs whenever DEBUG = False. I am using whitenoise to serve the static files without any issue it is only the media directory that causes the 404 web error.
settings.py
"""
Django settings for app project.
Generated by 'django-admin startproject' using Django 3.2.9.
For more information on this file, see
https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.2/topics/settings/
For the full list of settings and their values, see
https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.2/ref/settings/
"""
import os
from pathlib import Path
# Build paths inside the project like this: BASE_DIR / 'subdir'.
BASE_DIR = Path(__file__).resolve().parent.parent
# Quick-start development settings - unsuitable for production
# See https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.2/howto/deployment/checklist/
# SECURITY WARNING: keep the secret key used in production secret!
# Replace with your secret key. Secret key is set as an env variable in Python
# Web Application Page
SECRET_KEY = os.environ['SECRET_KEY']
# SECURITY WARNING: don't run with debug turned on in production!
DEBUG = False
ALLOWED_HOSTS = ['*', 'subdomain.myapp.com']
# Application definition
INSTALLED_APPS = [
'myapp',
'django.contrib.admin',
'django.contrib.auth',
'django.contrib.contenttypes',
'django.contrib.sessions',
'django.contrib.messages',
'django.contrib.staticfiles',
]
MIDDLEWARE = [
'django.middleware.security.SecurityMiddleware',
'whitenoise.middleware.WhiteNoiseMiddleware',
'django.contrib.sessions.middleware.SessionMiddleware',
'django.middleware.common.CommonMiddleware',
'django.middleware.csrf.CsrfViewMiddleware',
'django.contrib.auth.middleware.AuthenticationMiddleware',
'django.contrib.messages.middleware.MessageMiddleware',
'django.middleware.clickjacking.XFrameOptionsMiddleware',
]
ROOT_URLCONF = 'app.urls'
TEMPLATES = [
{
'BACKEND': 'django.template.backends.django.DjangoTemplates',
'DIRS': [os.path.join(BASE_DIR, "templates/")],
'APP_DIRS': True,
'OPTIONS': {
'context_processors': [
'django.template.context_processors.debug',
'django.template.context_processors.request',
'django.contrib.auth.context_processors.auth',
'django.contrib.messages.context_processors.messages',
],
},
},
]
WSGI_APPLICATION = 'app.wsgi.application'
# Database
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.2/ref/settings/#databases
DATABASES = {
'default': {
'ENGINE': 'django.db.backends.sqlite3',
'NAME': BASE_DIR / 'db.sqlite3',
}
}
# Password validation
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.2/ref/settings/#auth-password-validators
AUTH_PASSWORD_VALIDATORS = [
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.UserAttributeSimilarityValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.MinimumLengthValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.CommonPasswordValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.NumericPasswordValidator',
},
]
# Internationalization
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.2/topics/i18n/
LANGUAGE_CODE = 'en-us'
TIME_ZONE = 'UTC'
USE_I18N = True
USE_L10N = True
USE_TZ = True
# Static files (CSS, JavaScript, Images)
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.2/howto/static-files/
# Static files are served via whitenoise
STATIC_URL = '/staticfiles/'
STATIC_ROOT = os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'staticfiles/')
STATICFILES_DIRS = (
os.path.join(BASE_DIR, "static/"),
)
MEDIA_URL = '/media/'
MEDIA_ROOT = os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'media/')
# Default primary key field type
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.2/ref/settings/#default-auto-field
DEFAULT_AUTO_FIELD = 'django.db.models.BigAutoField'
passenger_wsgi.py
import os
import sys
#########Accessing the App's Default WSGI##############
import app.wsgi
application = app.wsgi.application
######## PASSENGER PATH INFO-FIX INITIALISATIONS#######
cwd = os.getcwd()
sys.path.append(cwd)
#sys.path.append(os.getcwd())
sys.path.append(cwd + '/app') #You must add your project here
# Set this to your root
SCRIPT_NAME = os.getcwd()
######## MIDDLEWARE CLASS TO FIX PASSENGER'S URI ISSUES #############
class PassengerPathInfoFix(object):
"""
Sets PATH_INFO from REQUEST_URI since Passenger doesn't provide it.
"""
def __init__(self, app):
self.app = app
def __call__(self, environ, start_response):
#IF YOU ARE IN PYTHON 2.7 USE: from urllib import unquote
from urllib.parse import unquote
environ['SCRIPT_NAME'] = SCRIPT_NAME
request_uri = unquote(environ['REQUEST_URI'])
script_name = unquote(environ.get('SCRIPT_NAME', ''))
offset = request_uri.startswith(script_name) and len(environ['SCRIPT_NAME']) or 0
environ['PATH_INFO'] = request_uri[offset:].split('?', 1)[0]
return self.app(environ, start_response)
###########the redirecting Middleware
application = PassengerPathInfoFix(application)
I am using Python v3.8.6, Django=2.1 and CPanel Shared Hosting via NameCheap.
I know it's recommended to have a webserver to store and serve media files in Production Environment but I am unable to edit the Apache httpd.conf file as mentioned in the Django documentation.

Django static files working from template but not from CSS file

I am just getting back into Django, and I have a new project set up here in the development server. I set up static files and I have been able to load the files from the templates however when the files are accessed via CSS there is a 404 error. Here is how the image is accessed in CSS:
background-image: linear-gradient(rgba(206, 27, 40, 0.25), rgba(206, 27, 40, 0.25)), url(../images/cta01.jpg);
The 404 error in the browser is looking in the staic/images/ folder but his location is not being served. I know this static file thing is always tricky butt I don't remember it being such as issue before. What am I doing wrong? Here is the settings file and main URL file.
Also I tried to use whitenoise and it seems to be working but same behavior: static files load in templates but not from CSS.
settings.py
"""
Django settings for tmx_intranet project.
Generated by 'django-admin startproject' using Django 3.1.6.
For more information on this file, see
https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/topics/settings/
For the full list of settings and their values, see
https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/ref/settings/
"""
from pathlib import Path
import os
# Build paths inside the project like this: BASE_DIR / 'subdir'.
BASE_DIR = Path(__file__).resolve().parent.parent
# Quick-start development settings - unsuitable for production
# See https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/howto/deployment/checklist/
# SECURITY WARNING: keep the secret key used in production secret!
SECRET_KEY = ''
# SECURITY WARNING: don't run with debug turned on in production!
DEBUG = True
ALLOWED_HOSTS = []
# Application definition
INSTALLED_APPS = [
'data_viz.apps.DataVizConfig',
'mainsite.apps.MainsiteConfig',
'django.contrib.admin',
'django.contrib.auth',
'django.contrib.contenttypes',
'django.contrib.sessions',
'django.contrib.messages',
'django.contrib.staticfiles',
]
MIDDLEWARE = [
'django.middleware.security.SecurityMiddleware',
'whitenoise.middleware.WhiteNoiseMiddleware',
'django.contrib.sessions.middleware.SessionMiddleware',
'django.middleware.common.CommonMiddleware',
'django.middleware.csrf.CsrfViewMiddleware',
'django.contrib.auth.middleware.AuthenticationMiddleware',
'django.contrib.messages.middleware.MessageMiddleware',
'django.middleware.clickjacking.XFrameOptionsMiddleware',
]
ROOT_URLCONF = 'tmx_intranet.urls'
TEMPLATES = [
{
'BACKEND': 'django.template.backends.django.DjangoTemplates',
'DIRS': [],
'APP_DIRS': True,
'OPTIONS': {
'context_processors': [
'django.template.context_processors.debug',
'django.template.context_processors.request',
'django.contrib.auth.context_processors.auth',
'django.contrib.messages.context_processors.messages',
],
},
},
]
WSGI_APPLICATION = 'tmx_intranet.wsgi.application'
# Database
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/ref/settings/#databases
DATABASES = {
'default': {
'ENGINE': 'django.db.backends.sqlite3',
'NAME': BASE_DIR / 'db.sqlite3',
}
}
# Password validation
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/ref/settings/#auth-password-validators
AUTH_PASSWORD_VALIDATORS = [
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.UserAttributeSimilarityValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.MinimumLengthValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.CommonPasswordValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.NumericPasswordValidator',
},
]
# Internationalization
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/topics/i18n/
LANGUAGE_CODE = 'en-us'
TIME_ZONE = 'UTC'
USE_I18N = True
USE_L10N = True
USE_TZ = True
# Static files (CSS, JavaScript, Images)
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/howto/static-files/
STATIC_URL = '/static/'
# STATICFILES_DIRS = [ os.path.join(BASE_DIR,'static') ]
STATIC_ROOT = os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'static')
STATICFILES_STORAGE = 'whitenoise.storage.CompressedManifestStaticFilesStorage'
urls.py
from django.contrib import admin
from django.urls import include, path
from django.contrib.staticfiles.urls import staticfiles_urlpatterns
urlpatterns = [
path('data_viz/', include('data_viz.urls')),
path('admin/', admin.site.urls),
path('', include('mainsite.urls')),
]
urlpatterns += staticfiles_urlpatterns()

use the absolute URL to point to any static file in app.
settings.py
...
STATIC_URL = '/static/'
while you have STATIC_URL = '/static/' in your settings.
so you can something like this is css
style.css
url('/static/images/cta01.jpg');

Had the same issue, try adding in settings.py
STATICFILES_DIRS = ["C:/Users/user/mysite/djangoapp/static"]
(the path of the static file in your pc).
Worked for me!
https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/ref/settings/#std:setting-STATICFILES_DIRS

Deploying Django App to Heroku Cant load Staticfiles

I have successfully deployed my django app to heroku. but for some reason, they cant load the templates and staticfiles.
my directories are as such:
eximia (project directory)
eximia: init.py asgi.py settings.py wsgi.pyurls.py
web: templates, static: web: style.css, images: (all the images are in this folder)
and the rest of the files are normal typical django app files.
my settings.py are as follows:
Django settings for eximia project.
Generated by 'django-admin startproject' using Django 3.1.
For more information on this file, see
https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/topics/settings/
For the full list of settings and their values, see
https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/ref/settings/
"""
from pathlib import Path
import os
# Build paths inside the project like this: BASE_DIR / 'subdir'.
BASE_DIR = Path(__file__).resolve(strict=True).parent.parent
# Quick-start development settings - unsuitable for production
# See https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/howto/deployment/checklist/
# SECURITY WARNING: keep the secret key used in production secret!
SECRET_KEY = 'sy4a^dk+1%2!g2#4s$2ihk0^9%!9or&+ycy2#0a^*qqhdksk#t'
# SECURITY WARNING: don't run with debug turned on in production!
DEBUG = True
ALLOWED_HOSTS = [
"eximia-denim.herokuapp.com"
]
# Application definition
INSTALLED_APPS = [
'web',
'django.contrib.admin',
'django.contrib.auth',
'django.contrib.contenttypes',
'django.contrib.sessions',
'django.contrib.messages',
'django.contrib.staticfiles',
]
MIDDLEWARE = [
'django.middleware.security.SecurityMiddleware',
'django.contrib.sessions.middleware.SessionMiddleware',
'django.middleware.common.CommonMiddleware',
'django.middleware.csrf.CsrfViewMiddleware',
'django.contrib.auth.middleware.AuthenticationMiddleware',
'django.contrib.messages.middleware.MessageMiddleware',
'django.middleware.clickjacking.XFrameOptionsMiddleware',
]
ROOT_URLCONF = 'eximia.urls'
TEMPLATES = [
{
'BACKEND': 'django.template.backends.django.DjangoTemplates',
'DIRS': [],
'APP_DIRS': True,
'OPTIONS': {
'context_processors': [
'django.template.context_processors.debug',
'django.template.context_processors.request',
'django.contrib.auth.context_processors.auth',
'django.contrib.messages.context_processors.messages',
],
},
},
]
WSGI_APPLICATION = 'eximia.wsgi.application'
# Database
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/ref/settings/#databases
DATABASES = {
'default': {
'ENGINE': 'django.db.backends.sqlite3',
'NAME': BASE_DIR / 'db.sqlite3',
}
}
# Password validation
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/ref/settings/#auth-password-validators
AUTH_PASSWORD_VALIDATORS = [
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.UserAttributeSimilarityValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.MinimumLengthValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.CommonPasswordValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.NumericPasswordValidator',
},
]
# Internationalization
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/topics/i18n/
LANGUAGE_CODE = 'en-us'
TIME_ZONE = 'UTC'
USE_I18N = True
USE_L10N = True
USE_TZ = True
# Static files (CSS, JavaScript, Images)
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.1/howto/static-files/
STATIC_ROOT = os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'staticfiles')
STATIC_URL = '/static/'
Im very new to django and this is sorta my first website. So if theres any help i would really appreciate it!! thank you! :D

To serve static files in Heroku you must use Whitenoise.
if you don't know how to use that check Heroku documentation Here

I think you have a global static folder that are not tied to any particular app.
if you have static folder inside each app, django will not have a problem to collect static files and put them inside staticfiles, but in your case you need to tell django that there is global static folder that is not tied to particular app to collect static files from it:
STATICFILES_DIRS = (
os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'static'),
)

Images disappears from django web app deployed to heroku

I am working on a django project, writing rest APIs with django rest framework to use them in android application, my main idea is develop back end in django and front end in android, project is deployed on heroku. My application contains some inventory with the item pictures, issue is while i am uploading the image it successfully upload the image but after some time or more specifically after some hours the image disappears by it self.
Here is my setting.py file
"""
Django settings for forBirds project.
Generated by 'django-admin startproject' using Django 3.0.6.
For more information on this file, see
https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.0/topics/settings/
For the full list of settings and their values, see
https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.0/ref/settings/
"""
import os
import dj_database_url
# Build paths inside the project like this: os.path.join(BASE_DIR, ...)
BASE_DIR = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))
# Quick-start development settings - unsuitable for production
# See https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.0/howto/deployment/checklist/
# SECURITY WARNING: keep the secret key used in production secret!
SECRET_KEY = ''
# SECURITY WARNING: don't run with debug turned on in production!
DEBUG = True
ALLOWED_HOSTS = ['*']
# Application definition
INSTALLED_APPS = [
'django.contrib.admin',
'django.contrib.auth',
'django.contrib.contenttypes',
'django.contrib.sessions',
'django.contrib.messages',
'django.contrib.staticfiles',
'account',
'rest_framework',
'rest_framework.authtoken',
'Birds',
]
MIDDLEWARE = [
'django.middleware.security.SecurityMiddleware',
'django.contrib.sessions.middleware.SessionMiddleware',
'django.middleware.common.CommonMiddleware',
'django.middleware.csrf.CsrfViewMiddleware',
'django.contrib.auth.middleware.AuthenticationMiddleware',
'django.contrib.messages.middleware.MessageMiddleware',
'django.middleware.clickjacking.XFrameOptionsMiddleware',
'whitenoise.middleware.WhiteNoiseMiddleware',
]
ROOT_URLCONF = 'forBirds.urls'
TEMPLATES = [
{
'BACKEND': 'django.template.backends.django.DjangoTemplates',
'DIRS': [],
'APP_DIRS': True,
'OPTIONS': {
'context_processors': [
'django.template.context_processors.debug',
'django.template.context_processors.request',
'django.contrib.auth.context_processors.auth',
'django.contrib.messages.context_processors.messages',
],
},
},
]
WSGI_APPLICATION = 'forBirds.wsgi.application'
# Database
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.0/ref/settings/#databases
DATABASES = {
'default': {
'ENGINE': 'django.db.backends.postgresql_psycopg2',
'NAME': '',
"USER": "",
"PASSWORD": "",
"HOST": "",
"PORT": "",
}
}
# Password validation
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.0/ref/settings/#auth-password-validators
REST_FRAMEWORK = {
"DEFAULT_AUTHENTICATION_CLASSES": (
"rest_framework.authentication.BasicAuthentication",
"rest_framework.authentication.SessionAuthentication",
"rest_framework.authentication.TokenAuthentication"
),
"DEFAULT_PERMISSIONS_CLASSES": (
"rest_framework.permissions.IsAuthenticated"
),
"DEFAULT_PAGINATION_CLASS": "rest_framework.pagination.PageNumberPagination",
"PAGE_SIZE": 1,
}
AUTH_USER_MODEL = 'account.Account'
AUTH_PASSWORD_VALIDATORS = [
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.UserAttributeSimilarityValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.MinimumLengthValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.CommonPasswordValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.NumericPasswordValidator',
},
]
# Internationalization
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/3.0/topics/i18n/
LANGUAGE_CODE = 'en-us'
TIME_ZONE = 'UTC'
USE_I18N = True
USE_L10N = True
USE_TZ = True
# Static files (CSS, JavaScript, Images)
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/1.11/howto/static-files/
PROJECT_ROOT = os.path.join(os.path.abspath(__file__))
STATIC_ROOT = os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'staticfiles')
STATIC_URL = '/static/'
MEDIA_URL = '/media/'
MEDIA_ROOT = os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'media')
# Extra lookup directories for collectstatic to find static files
STATICFILES_DIRS = (
os.path.join(PROJECT_ROOT, 'static'),
)
# Add configuration for static files storage using whitenoise
STATICFILES_STORAGE = 'whitenoise.storage.CompressedManifestStaticFilesStorage'
prod_db = dj_database_url.config(conn_max_age=500)
DATABASES['default'].update(prod_db)

The Heroku filesystem is ephemeral - that means that any changes to
the filesystem whilst the dyno is running only last until that dyno is
shut down or restarted. Each dyno boots with a clean copy of the
filesystem from the most recent deploy.
Instead of storing uploaded files to disk, the best practice is to
leverage a cloud file storage service such as Amazon’s S3.

When you upload a file to the Django admin, it looks at the DEFAULT_FILE_STORAGE settings configuration to determine how to store that file. By default, it uses django.core.files.storage.FileSystemStorage, which means that it is writing those uploaded files to the dyno's filesystem at the location defined by MEDIA_ROOT.
The issue is, dynos are ephemeral, and they can be destroyed, restarted, and moved without any warning, which replaces your filesystem. This means that those uploaded files are just deleted without a trace, but the ImageField reference still thinks they are there.
The solution to this issue is to update the project's DEFAULT_FILE_STORAGE to use something permanent, such as an s3-compatible object store. In Heroku & Django land, a common solution is to use django-storages alongside Heroku's Bucketeer add-on. This solution uploads your files to a persistent data store that survives dyno restarts, instead of writing to the dyno file system which gets deleted frequently.
I know that this can be daunting, so I wrote up this article with a pretty good write-up of the Heroku + Bucketeer process.

How to deploy django with media files?

I am trying to find a simple solution to deploy a django rest api which uses media files which are added via the admin panel. The rest api will be receiving very low traffic and so the simplest cheapest option is preferable.
Currently, I am using heroku, however when I add media files through the admin panel and come back to it later the files are no longer there.
Here is my settings.py:
import os
# Build paths inside the project like this: os.path.join(BASE_DIR, ...)
BASE_DIR = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))
# Quick-start development settings - unsuitable for production
# See https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/1.11/howto/deployment/checklist/
# SECURITY WARNING: keep the secret key used in production secret!
SECRET_KEY = '****'
# SECURITY WARNING: don't run with debug turned on in production!
DEBUG = True
ALLOWED_HOSTS = ['example.herokuapp.com']
# Application definition
INSTALLED_APPS = [
'django.contrib.admin',
'django.contrib.auth',
'django.contrib.contenttypes',
'django.contrib.sessions',
'django.contrib.messages',
'django.contrib.staticfiles',
'rest_framework',
'clothing',
]
MIDDLEWARE = [
'django.middleware.security.SecurityMiddleware',
'django.contrib.sessions.middleware.SessionMiddleware',
'django.middleware.common.CommonMiddleware',
'django.middleware.csrf.CsrfViewMiddleware',
'django.contrib.auth.middleware.AuthenticationMiddleware',
'django.contrib.messages.middleware.MessageMiddleware',
'django.middleware.clickjacking.XFrameOptionsMiddleware',
]
REST_FRAMEWORK = {
'DEFAULT_PERMISSION_CLASSES': [
'rest_framework.permissions.IsAdminUser',
],
'DEFAULT_THROTTLE_CLASSES': (
'rest_framework.throttling.AnonRateThrottle',
'rest_framework.throttling.UserRateThrottle'
),
'DEFAULT_THROTTLE_RATES': {
'anon': '400/day',
'user': '500/day'
}
}
ROOT_URLCONF = 'good_deal.urls'
TEMPLATES = [
{
'BACKEND': 'django.template.backends.django.DjangoTemplates',
'DIRS': [],
'APP_DIRS': True,
'OPTIONS': {
'context_processors': [
'django.template.context_processors.debug',
'django.template.context_processors.request',
'django.contrib.auth.context_processors.auth',
'django.contrib.messages.context_processors.messages',
],
},
},
]
WSGI_APPLICATION = 'good_deal.wsgi.application'
# Database
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/1.11/ref/settings/#databases
DATABASES = {
'default': {
'ENGINE': 'django.db.backends.sqlite3',
'NAME': os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'db.sqlite3'),
}
}
# Password validation
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/1.11/ref/settings/#auth-password-validators
AUTH_PASSWORD_VALIDATORS = [
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.UserAttributeSimilarityValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.MinimumLengthValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.CommonPasswordValidator',
},
{
'NAME': 'django.contrib.auth.password_validation.NumericPasswordValidator',
},
]
# Internationalization
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/1.11/topics/i18n/
LANGUAGE_CODE = 'en-us'
TIME_ZONE = 'UTC'
USE_I18N = True
USE_L10N = True
USE_TZ = True
# Static files (CSS, JavaScript, Images)
# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/1.11/howto/static-files/
STATIC_URL = '/static/'
STATIC_ROOT = os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'staticfiles')
MEDIA_URL = '/media/'
MEDIA_ROOT = os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'media')
Can django serve media files and do I need to change my database from SQLite to a PostgreSQL database to fix the problem or do I need to use something like Amazon S3?

You do need to switch to Postgres, but this is a different problem to the one you ask about here, although they have the same underlying cause.
Heroku's file system is ephemeral and not shared between dynos. Anything stored there will be lost when you redeploy, or spin up extra processes. An sqlite db is stored as a file, so would be lost, which is why you need to use Postgres which is an external server.
But changing this won't help with your media files, as these have nothing to do with the database. Since they are also stored on the file system you need to use a different method of storage. Amazon's S3 is a good choice, as it is cheap and there are several third party libraries which integrate into Django.