Product & software

Docker

Tools for packaging applications into container images and running those images as containers across development and deployment environments.

At a glance

Distribution unit
Container image
Runtime unit
Container

Overview

Docker organizes application delivery around images and containers. An image is a template used to create a container; a container is its runnable instance. The Docker client communicates with a daemon that manages containers and related objects such as networks and volumes.

Images and registries

Images can be built from instructions in a Dockerfile and stored in registries. Pulling retrieves an image, while pushing publishes an image to a registry. This gives teams a common artifact to test and deploy.

Keeping application data

A container's writable state is separate from its image. Removing a container discards changes that were not placed in persistent storage. Applications that must retain data therefore need an intentional storage arrangement, such as a volume.

Sources and review

MOOR's explanatory text is supported by the following source links.

  1. What is Docker? — Docker
  2. Docker: supporting documentation — Docker

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