Docker is an open-source software platform that is designed to make it easier to create, deploy, and run applications by using containers. Containers allow a developer to package up an application with all of the parts it needs, such as libraries and other dependencies, and ship it all out as one package. To create a Docker container we need a docker image and to create a docker image we need a Dockerfile and artifacts with the help of Dockerfile we create the docker image.
Docker can build images automatically by reading the instructions from a Dockerfile. A Dockerfile is simply a text file named as Dockerfile(without any extensions) with some commands and rules that Docker uses to create an image. It contains the steps Docker is supposed to follow to package your app. In this blog, we are going to learn more about the Dockerfile commands.
Create your first Dockerfile:
Step-1: touch Dockerfile
Step-2: vi Dockerfile
Step-3:
FROM ubuntuMAINTAINER azmat azmathasan92@gmail.comRUN apt-get update && apt-get install curl
Step-4: Save and close Dockerfile
Now, you have successfully created your first docker file.
After creating a docker file you got familiar with the syntax of the Dockerfile
Note: Do not store the Dockerfile in your root directory. Create a separate directory for the Dockerfile and place all necessary files within the same directory as the Dockerfile.experienceNote: Do not store the Dockerfile in your root directory. Create a separate directory for the Dockerfile and place all necessary files within the same directory as the Dockerfile.
Now, we are going to learn about all the commands of the Dockerfile
Dockerfile Commands:
FROM ENV WORKDIR ENTRYPOINT CMD COPY ADD RUN EXPOSE
FROM
FROM <image> [AS <name>]FROM is used to define the base image to start the build process. Every Dockerfile must start with the FROM instruction. The idea behind this is that you need a starting point to build your image.
FROM ubuntu
It means our project require ubuntu as a parent image.
ENV
ENV <key> <value>This command used to set the environment variables that is required to run the project.
ENV sets the environment variables, which can be used in the Dockerfile and any scripts that it calls. These are persistent with the container too and they can be referenced at any time.
ENV HTTP_PORT="9000"
We provided HTTP_PORT as an environment variable.
WORKDIR
WORKDIR /path/to/workdirWORKDIR tells Docker that the rest of the commands will be run in the context of the /app folder inside the image.
WORKDIR /app
It will create the app directory in the container.
RUN
RUN has 2 forms:
RUN <command>(shell form, the command is run in a shell, which by default is/bin/sh -con Linux orcmd /S /Con Windows)RUN ["executable", "param1", "param2"](exec form)
The RUN instruction will execute any commands in a new layer on top of the current image and commit the results. The resulting committed image will be used for the next step in the Dockerfile.
The RUN command runs within the container at build time.
RUN /bin/bash -c 'source $HOME/.bashrc; echo $HOME'ENTRYPOINT
ENTRYPOINT has two forms:
ENTRYPOINT ["executable", "param1", "param2"](exec form, preferred)ENTRYPOINT command param1 param2(shell form)
An ENTRYPOINT allows you to configure a container that will run as an executable.
ENTRYPOINT sets the command and parameters that will be executed first when a container is run. Any command-line arguments passed to docker run <image> will be appended to the ENTRYPOINT command, and will override all elements specified using CMD. For example, docker run <image> bash we will add the command argument bash to the end of the ENTRYPOINT command.
You can override ENTRYPOINT instructions using the docker run --entrypoint
ENTRYPOINT [ "sh", "-c", "echo $HOME" ]
If the ENTRYPOINT isn’t specified, Docker will use /bin/sh -c as the default executor.
CMD
The CMD instruction has three forms:
CMD ["executable","param1","param2"](exec form, this is the preferred form)CMD ["param1","param2"](as default parameters to ENTRYPOINT)CMD command param1 param2(shell form)
The main purpose of a CMD is to provide defaults when executing a container. These will be executed after the entry point.
In Dockerfiles, you can define CMD defaults that include an executable.
Example:
CMD ["executable","param1","param2"]
If they omit the executable, you must specify an ENTRYPOINT instruction as well.
CMD ["param1","param2"] (as default parameters to ENTRYPOINT)
NOTE: There can only be one CMD instruction in a Dockerfile. If you want to list more than one CMD, then only the last CMD will take effect.
CMD ["bin/ping", "localhost"]
Understand how CMD and ENTRYPOINT interact
Both CMD and ENTRYPOINT instructions define what command gets executed when running a container. There are a few rules that describe their co-operation.
- Dockerfile should specify at least one of CMD or ENTRYPOINT commands.
- ENTRYPOINT should be defined when using the container as an executable.
- CMD should be used as a way of defining default arguments for an ENTRYPOINT command or for executing an ad-hoc command in a container.
- CMD will be overridden when running the container with alternative arguments.
The table below shows what command is executed for different ENTRYPOINT / CMD combinations:
| No ENTRYPOINT | ENTRYPOINT exec_entry p1_entry | ENTRYPOINT [“exec_entry”, “p1_entry”] | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No CMD | error, not allowed | /bin/sh -c exec_entry p1_entry | exec_entry p1_entry |
| CMD [“exec_cmd”, “p1_cmd”] | exec_cmd p1_cmd | /bin/sh -c exec_entry p1_entry | exec_entry p1_entry exec_cmd p1_cmd |
| CMD [“p1_cmd”, “p2_cmd”] | p1_cmd p2_cmd | /bin/sh -c exec_entry p1_entry | exec_entry p1_entry p1_cmd p2_cmd |
| CMD exec_cmd p1_cmd | /bin/sh -c exec_cmd p1_cmd | /bin/sh -c exec_entry p1_entry | exec_entry p1_entry /bin/sh -c exec_cmd p1_cmd |
COPY
COPY has two forms:
COPY <src>... <dest>COPY ["<src>",... "<dest>"](this form is required for paths containing whitespace)
The COPY command is used to copy one or many local files or folders from source and adds them to the filesystem of the containers at the destination path.
It builds up the image in layers, starting with the parent image, defined using FROM.The Docker instruction WORKDIR defines a working directory for the COPY instructions that follow it.
The <dest> is an absolute path, or a path relative to WORKDIR, into which the source will be copied inside the destination container.
COPY test relativeDir/ # adds "test" to `WORKDIR`/relativeDir/
COPY test /absoluteDir/ # adds "test" to /absoluteDir/ADD
ADD has two forms:
ADD <src>... <dest>ADD ["<src>",... "<dest>"]
The ADD command is used to add one or many local files or folders from the source and adds them to the filesystem of the containers at the destination path.
It is Similar to COPY command but it has some additional features:
- If the source is a local tar archive in a recognized compression format, then it is automatically unpacked as a directory into the Docker image.
- If the source is a URL, then it will download and copy the file into the destination within the Docker image. However, Docker discourages using ADD for this purpose.
ADD rootfs.tar.xz /
ADD http://example.com/big.tar.xz /usr/src/things/EXPOSE
EXPOSE <port> [<port>/<protocol>...]The EXPOSE command informs the Docker that the container listens on the specified network ports at runtime. You can specify whether the port listens on TCP or UDP, and the default is TCP if the protocol is not specified.
But EXPOSE will not allow communication via the defined ports to containers outside of the same network or to the host machine. To allow this to happen you need to publish the ports.
The EXPOSE command does not actually publish the port. To actually publish the port when running the container, use the -p flagon docker run to publish and map one or more ports, or the -P flag to publish all exposed ports and map them to high-order ports.
These are the flags -p and -P, and they differ in terms of whether you want to publish one or all ports:
- To actually publish the port when running the container, use the -p flag on docker run to publish and map one or more ports
- he -P flag to publish all exposed ports
//Publish host port to container port docker run -p 80:80/tcp -p 80:80/udp app //To publish all the ports you define in your Dockerfile with EXPOSE and bind them to the host machine, you can use the -P flag. docker run -P app
That’s all for now, I will follow it up with more knowledge on this topic next time.
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