Introduction to Docker

You'll go from starting and stopping your first container to seeing how to clean your environment by removing all containers and images. You'll see how to debug issues by running commands inside a container or executing bash commands in a container interactively. All of this is done using the Docker Command Line Interface.

Once you are able to manage images and containers, it's time to know how to share images with colleagues or your entire company and to understand how to create your own. Now, you'll build your own images using Dockerfiles. Dockerfiles are text files that include everything needed for Docker to build an image. You'll learn how to create images and will get an introduction to all the essential Dockerfile instructions like FROM, RUN, COPY, and more. By the end of this chapter, you'll have insight into how Docker makes images and be able to create optimized Docker images from scratch.

In this final chapter, you’ll focus on making your Dockerfiles configurable and secure. You'll learn how to make your Dockerfiles configurable using the ARG and ENV instructions. You’ll see why changing the user in your images makes them more secure and how to use the USER Dockerfile instruction to do so. To wrap things up, you’ll learn about some essential security best practices when creating Docker Images.