Open source platform that automatesmthe deployment, scaling and management of applications using containerization technology.

Containers

• Lightweight, standalone, executable packages that include everything needed to run a piece of software
• Include the code, runtime, system tools, libraries and settings
• Consistent environment across different development and production systems

Images

• Read only templates used to create containers
• Often based on other images with additional customization
• Defined in a Dockerfile

Dockerfile

• Text file that contains instructions to build a docker image
• specifies base image, adds files, installs dependencies, sets environment variables

Basic Docker Commands

# Build an image
docker build -t myimage .

# Run a container
docker run -d -p 8080:80 myimage

# List running containers
docker ps

# Stop a container
docker stop container_id

# Remove a container
docker rm container_id

# List images
docker images

# Remove an image
docker rmi image_id

Benefits of Using Docker

1. Consitency across environments
2. Isolation and security
3. Quick deployment and scaling
4. Version control and component reuse
5. Simplified configuration