Docker and Containers¶
Docker is a platform for developing, shipping, and running applications in isolated environments called containers. It revolutionized software deployment by ensuring that an application runs the same way regardless of the host environment.
Guides¶
Docker architecture, images, containers, Dockerfiles, volumes, and networking basics.
Define and run multi-container applications with compose.yml, service discovery, and single-command lifecycle management.
Multi-stage builds, layer caching, security hardening, image minimization, and production-ready Dockerfile patterns.
Introduction¶
Containers allow you to package an application with all of its dependencies — libraries, configuration files, and runtime — into a single unit. Unlike Virtual Machines (VMs), containers share the host's OS kernel, making them lightweight, fast to start, and efficient in resource usage.
Key Concepts¶
- Image: A read-only template with instructions for creating a Docker container.
- Container: A runnable instance of an image.
- Dockerfile: A text document that contains all the commands a user could call on the command line to assemble an image.
- Registry: A stateless, highly scalable server side application that stores and lets you distribute Docker images (e.g., Docker Hub).