Docker

Once the environment is set, it is time to install the services and the software that we need. This can be done using Docker, a simple and portable way to ship and run many applications and services in isolated containers. We will use it to install the required databases, web servers, and all the other applications required throughout this book, in a virtual machine created using Vagrant. In fact, the Vagrant VM that was previously created already has an example of getting an instance of MongoDB up and running using Docker.

Let's bring up the VM again (we stopped it previously with the vagrant halt command) and also MongoDB:

$> vagrant up
$> vagrant ssh
vagrant@vagrant-ubuntu-trusty-64:~$ docker start mongoDB
mongoDB
vagrant@vagrant-ubuntu-trusty-64:~$ docker ps
CONTAINER ID        IMAGE           COMMAND                    CREATED
360f5340d5fc        mongo:2         "/entrypoint.sh mong..."   4 minutes ago
    
STATUS              PORTS                      NAMES
Up 4 minutes        0.0.0.0:27017->27017/tcp   mongoDB
vagrant@vagrant-ubuntu-trusty-64:~$ exit
  

With docker start, we started the container; with docker ps, we listed all the running processes.

By using this kind of procedure, we are able to reproduce a full-stack environment in the blink of an eye. You may be wondering if this is as awesome as it sounds. The answer is yes, it is. Vagrant and Docker allow developers to focus on what they are supposed to do and forget about complex installations and tricky configurations. Furthermore, we made an extra effort to provide you with all the necessary steps and resources to reproduce and test all the code examples and demonstrations in this book.