Deploy Flask App on AWS EC2 Windows

Last Updated : 24 Apr, 2024

Do you want to host a Windows-based Python Flask application on Amazon Web Services (AWS) Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)? Flask is a frequently utilized framework for building web apps, APIs, and prototypes because of its ease of use and versatility. AWS EC2 provides virtual machines that are scalable, allowing you complete control over your deployment environment. Using Windows and Internet Information Services (IIS) as the web server, we’ll take you step-by-step through the process of deploying a Flask application on AWS EC2.

What is Flask?

Flask is a Python-based web framework that is lightweight and adaptable. It offers necessary components like routing and templating in place of a cumbersome, opinionated solution. It is popular for smaller applications, quick prototyping, and developing RESTful APIs because of its simplicity.

Common Applications for Flask:

Simple Websites: Create portfolio sites, blogs, and landing pages without adding unnecessary framework overhead.
APIs: Provide interfaces via which programs can communicate with data.
Prototyping: Test concepts for web applications quickly.
Learning Tool: Flask is an excellent tool for learning web development topics due to its simplicity.

With the versatile virtual servers offered by Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2), you have complete control over your deployment environment. For developers accustomed to working with the Windows ecosystem, deploying a Flask project on AWS EC2 with Windows provides a comfortable setting.

This tutorial takes you step-by-step through the entire process.

Key Concepts Of Flask App And AWS EC2 Windows

The following are the key concepts of Flask App And AWS EC2 Windows:

Flask is a Python web framework that offers necessary resources for creating online applications.
EC2: Resizable virtual machines are available in the cloud through Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) Elastic Compute Cloud, or AWS EC2.
Windows Server: Microsoft operating system Windows Server is intended for use in server environments.
IIS: Windows Server comes with a web server called IIS (Internet Information Services).
wfastcgi: A module that makes use of the WSGI interface to allow IIS to execute Python applications.

How To Deploy Flask App On AWS EC2 Windows: A Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Create an EC2 Instance

Create An EC2 Instance

Click “Launch instance” and choose a Windows Server AMI (Amazon Machine Image). Popular options include Windows Server 2019 or 2022.

Launching An Instance

Select an instance type suitable for your app’s workload.
Configure security groups to allow inbound traffic on ports 80 (HTTP) and any other ports your application needs.
Launch your instance and wait for it to start.

Step 2: Connect to Your Instance

Use Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) to connect to your Windows instance. Get the public IP address or DNS name from the EC2 console and use your chosen RDP client (Remmina on Ubuntu).

Step 3: Install Python and Flask

Download and install the Python installer from the official website https://www.python.org/downloads/windows/
Open a PowerShell window on the EC2 instance.
Install Flask using pip: ‘pip install Flask’

Install Python And Flask

Step 4: Setup Your Flask Application

Create a directory for your application (e.g., ‘C:\myflaskapp’).
Inside the directory, create a file named ‘main.py’ with your Flask application code:

Python3

from flask import Flask

app = Flask(__name__)

@app.route('/')
def hello_world():
    return 'Hello, from Flask on Windows EC2!'

if __name__ == '__main__':
    app.run()

Step 5: Install and Configure IIS

Open Server Manager.

Install And Configure IIS

The below screenshot illustrates about the server manager Dashbaord With Loal server configuration.

Server Manger Dashboard

Add Roles and Features

Adding Roles And Features

Click Next>Next and go to Server Selection
Install “Web Server (IIS)” and include the “CGI” role service.

Selecting Server Roles

Next go to Role Services

Selecting Role Services

Select CGI

Adding Features required To IIS

Click Add Features and Install

Step 6: Install wfastcgi

From PowerShell, install it: ‘pip install wfastcgi’

Install wfastcgi

Then run the following command to enable it in the current environment.

wfastcgi-enable

Output:

screenshot_20240412022519

Copy the path from the output

Step 7: Create Web Configuration File

Create a file web.config next to your main flask app file “app.py”.

XML

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
     <configuration>
     <system.webServer>
       <handlers>
        <add name="Python FastCGI"
           path="*"
           verb="*"
           modules="FastCgiModule"
           scriptProcessor="c:\users\Adminstrator\desktop\demoflask\env\scripts\python.exe|c:\users\Adminstrator\desktop\demoflask\env\lib\site-packages\wfastcgi.py"
          
           resourceType="Unspecified"
           requireAccess="Script" />
       </handlers>
     </system.webServer>
     <appSettings>
       <!-- Required settings -->
       <add key="WSGI_HANDLER" value="main.app" />
       <add key="PYTHONPATH" value="C:\Users\Adminstrator\Desktop\DemoFlask\myProject" />
     </appSettings>
     </configuration>

Step 8: Configure IIS Handler

Open IIS Manager.
Expand your ‘Sites’, right-click on “Default Web Site”, and select “Add Application.”
Set an alias (e.g., ‘myflaskapp’) and the physical path to your application’s directory.
Go to “Handler Mappings,” and add a Module Mapping:

Request Path: '*'
Module: 'FastCgiModule'
Executable: 'C:\Python3x\python.exe|C:\Adminstrator\root\scripts\wfastcgi.py' (Adjust for your Python installation path)

Step 9: Test Your Application

Click browse from the right pane to browse your site locally.
Access your app’s URL using your EC2 instance’s public IP address and the alias you set (e.g., ‘http://ec2-public-ip/myflaskapp’)