Containerization Technology
Overview
Containerization Packages all application’s code, dependent files, framework, configuration files and libraries in an isolated container that can run on any environment.
Enterprises are adopting containerization for application development and deployment. Containers are easy to build, manage, update and scale.
Why we need Containers?
- Traditional method of coding involves developers to code in a specific platform, when this code is transferred to new location on different OS & Devices faces compatibility issues. Containerization eliminates this problem by bundling the application code and all its related configuration files, libraries, and dependencies required as a single software package or container.
- Organizations are using containerization to create new applications as they are easy to build, portable and efficient in resource utilization.
- Containers are used to modernize existing legacy applications for the cloud.
- Microservice Applications built using Containerization Technology are efficient as Containers can host the individual microservices form a microservices application
- Containers are resource-efficient than VM and require less start-up time & Compute Capacity.
How Does Containerization Work?
Containers package all the library and dependent files and run on the Container Engine.
Container Image: The Container image file contain the necessary information to run a containerized application. Container images are immutable and create containers in any environment.
Container Engine: The container engine is a software program that creates containers based on the container images. Container engines run on top of host operating system.
For Example: Docker is a containerization solution that allows creation of containers quickly and easily on Linux, Windows and macOS. we can create multiple containers from a Docker image.
Containerized App: This is the topmost layer of the containerization architecture. Containerized apps are units of code that include all the libraries, binaries, and configuration an application requires to run
What is container orchestration?
Container orchestration is a software technology that allows the automatic management of containers. Developers use container orchestration tools to automate scheduling, start, stop, deployment, networking, scaling, Configure, health monitoring, Load balancing and container management.
Container Orchestration Platform Key Features:
- Configuration: Configure and manage application clusters and policy
- Provisioning: Automates the execution of a workflow.
- Availability: HA environment is setup using multi master clusters so there is no single point of failure.
- Scaling: Auto Scaling of Containers and Nodes.
- Health Monitoring: If the container fails, they are automatically moved to the desired state to restore Operation.Healthcheck probes are setup for monitoring (Readiness probes, Liveness Probes, TCP probes etc)
- Resource Allocation: Allocates CPU and RAM based on consumption and scaling
- Storage Management: automatically mount storage resources for containers.
- Load Balancing: Kubernetes can automatically perform load balancing containers among hosts.
Containerization Tool
Docker and Kubernetes are most popular container tools.
Kubernetes is a popular open-source container orchestrator that software developers use to deploy, scale, and manage Containerized applications.
Docker, or Docker Engine, is a popular open-source container runtime that allows software developers to build, deploy, and test containerized applications on various platforms.
Docker Swarm is a lightweight cluster management tool for Docker-based containers.
Benefits
- Portability: A container creates an executable package which can run across any platform.
- Agility: Rapid application development and enhancement. For example, a Docker Container can create a master image for faster deployment.
- Isolation: Container-based application design involves one process running in Container. Each containerized application is isolated and operates independently.
- Efficiency: containers are lightweight compared to VM. Hence requires less start-up time.
- Ease of management using Orchestration Platform.
- Security: Security permissions can be defined to automatically block unwanted components from entering containers.
- Scalability: containerization makes it much easier to scale your deployments.
Containerization Use Cases
Here are some popular containerizations use cases:
- Microservices: A microservices architecture is built around the concept of splitting the application info small independent services. These microservice components can be deployed and scaled using Containers.
- CI/CD: containerization solution is ideal for CI/CD pipelines. With Containers we can build, test, deploy new features frequently.
- Migration: Containerization helps the migration Team to perform lift and shift operation at ease.
- IoT devices: As Containers are portable and light weight they are used to install and update applications on IoT devices.
- Containerize Legacy monolithic application.
Container Security
- Containers are isolated but still it has to be protected from threats. Containers has to be monitored continuously for new vulnerabilities on all the stages of container lifecycle from creation to maintenance.
- Secure Container Registry where all the Container Images are stored
- Implement Secured Deployment process
- Apply least privilege principle to secure Container Runtime
- Use Container Security Tools and Monitor Container Activity
container security tools protect container images, registry, application and network systems. These tools are used to set policies, prevent vulnerabilities, unauthorized access, and ensure regulatory compliance and standards.
Conclusion:
Containerization provides portable, agile, secure, reliable, and lightweight runtime environment for applications which helps Developers to develop and deploy code faster. Organizations are adopting containerization Technology to accelerate the speed of application development, improved efficiency, portability and cost savings.
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