Docker

We've been saying for a while... To anyone awake enough to listen... That VMs are just a workaround and developers are too lazy (or not bright enough!) to code for multiple processors and cores, so instead the answer was to scale #os to utilise the advances in processor and machine size - in our opinion it has filled a gap talent wasn't there to fill, our included.

So, along comes #Docker... With an excellent talk by Adrian Mouat at the Trifork meetup.

Now you might say this #tech has existed for a while, but has it?

We hear so many organisations say they are "#virtualised", but really are they? Have they just moved there sloth-like infrastructure management onto virtual machines? Does that really offer a step change difference? No.

#Docker is by no means mature or #enterprise ready, but it is the best step in the direction, being the Monty Python funny walk amongst the dullness that catches the eye.

Right now a fledgling container come environment, less than #VM, but more more macho than a process, it allows a similar host (Linux only right now, as all the best server tech) to host a set of #Docker containers that have their own layer of file and process (may or may not be persisted). The contains holds any dependencies it needs, so is guaranteed to run, without no nasty dependency gotchas - but remember as this is thin, it must have the same host/kernel.

The packages themselves are build in layers, you utilise and existing OS from the Docker community (some official, others not) starting with OS, then DB before services, so your WorkdPress image is just a small deta on top of those - the Container Engine handles all of this, including one-time loading of libraries, sharing these between containers.

Processes are native to the host, but limited in context, the community has a fresh approach and is open about the potential vulnerabilities obvious here. For further access, capabilites can be enabled to provide a more exciting experience to the container, say GPU access.

So far just 64-bit #linux the geek in me says yay, but the corporate slave ask for #windows, I'm told a way off, but I recall there was some #vms mysticism built into #windowNT that set it aside from #windows3, so maybe it might just be doable, after all @citrix managed it.

In a way it's what #Apple have with the #iOS app-ecosystem, but grown up and not monetised based on lock-in.

Oh, and it's quick, very. Being so light weight there is no tear-down, while there is nothing much to create beyond invocation and the setting of a limited context.

Community additions are coming t hick and fast, subuser.org is like a secured package manager, but rather than traditional binary installs, it gives containers that provide functionality you need segregated from the host.

Supporting systems is a lighter story just now, persistent storage is there, even the ability to share storage between running containers, but working with virtualised networking will be up to you,me specially as networking is achieved by port mapping in the main.

Now #AWS and #Azure are doing container hosting, price-wise it will be fun to see how the costing compares with traditional VM and computer resource, as Docker should make this cheaper.

No news on #Windows and #Mac versions, but no big surprise there, though the benefits of installing say #MicrosoftOffice without a VM, or and registry bashing seems massive, plus the new .NET DLL hell  (the revenge) would be wiped out.

Big circles again in #IT, isn't this like the days of mainframes, which had thin hypervisors and sandboxed process space - well yes, but these circles in tech are always a good thing...