4 ms·

Fig – Fast, isolated development environments using Docker

157 points by bcjordan 13y ago

dougws 13y ago
Seems like this is pretty comparable to Vagrant using the Docker backend. Anyone have thoughts on pros and cons of each?
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
  - derefr 13y ago
    The parent didn't say "Vagrant," they said "Vagrant using the Docker backend."
bradleyg_ 13y ago
Been using this for a while now for Django development, it's really simplified the way I work. When I want to start work on a project: fig up -d db fig up -d redis fig up web One of the main benefits for me using fig/docker is that I only have a single VM on my machine, rather than one for each project. I usually just leave it running in the background. Combined with docker-osx https://github.com/noplay/docker-osx https://github.com/noplay/docker-osx I don't even need to ssh into my VM to start work.
- aanand 13y ago
  You can collapse the first two to `fig up -d db redis` if you like!
- rjzzleep 13y ago
  boot2docker[1] is now the recommended environment for docker on osx, but sadly sharing files is not as easy as it is with docker-osx. They just integrated nfs support though [1] https://github.com/boot2docker/boot2docker https://github.com/boot2docker/boot2docker
  - m_mueller 13y ago
    Sharing files? With Expandrive you can mount anything you can ssh into. This has been possible on Linux for a long time, Apple is lagging behind there, but Expandrive is a solid 3rd party solution.
    - jimmcslim 13y ago
      There is also sshfs which builds on top of fuse. This is also available for Mac OS X via fuseosx, install through homebrew.
      - m_mueller 13y ago
        I could never make that work reliably. Could you?
- chatmasta 13y ago
  Could you explain more how the VM fits into this workflow?
  - Legion 13y ago
    I imagine it has something to do with the fact that Docker requires Linux, and he's on a Mac.
cardmagic 13y ago
Fig is awesome, it lets you create a simple fig.yml that can specify multi-container apps. I recently built a fig2coreos adapter that takes the fig.yml as input and outputs the coreos systemd configuration files. [1] https://github.com/centurylinklabs/fig2coreos https://github.com/centurylinklabs/fig2coreos [2] http://www.centurylinklabs.com/building-complex-apps-for-docker-on-coreos-and-fig/ http://www.centurylinklabs.com/building-complex-apps-for-doc...
dergachev 13y ago
Looks pretty slick. For a recent project, I ended up building a 100 line Makefile, and fig could have covered about 70% of that. That said, Makefile are good to have around
Kiro 13y ago
Can someone explain the differences between Fig, Docker and Vagrant? Without knowing anything about server administration they seem to be doing the same thing, which is obviously wrong since Fig is built on top of Docker.
- fideloper 13y ago
  Vagrant builds virtual machines for you. Like another computer inside of your computer. Docker can run within a VM, or on your computer if you're not on a Macintosh (Mac's kernel is...for now...not supported). I usually create a Vagrant virtual machine of CoreOS, which works with Docker very nicely. Docker is a utility which uses "containers". Docker containers are usually used to run one process at a time (apache or mysql or python or grep or anything, really). You can connect multiple docker containers to create a functioning app. Running one for database and other one for running your code would a simple example. Fig tries to make the process of making Docker instances work together easy.
  - loganekz 13y ago
    The OS X kernel will not be supported. Docker is built upon features available only in the Linux kernel (LXC, cgroups)
    - zachlatta 13y ago
      However, Docker is officially supported on OS X through https://github.com/boot2docker/boot2docker https://github.com/boot2docker/boot2docker
      - jimmcslim 13y ago
        It is officially supported by virtue of boot2docker booting a small Linux kernel in a VM (VirtualBox).
- kayoone 13y ago
  Vagrant is basically a layer on top on virtualbox/vmware that helps you manage VMs more efficiently. It makes it easy to setup your local development enviroments in a vm and replicate the production enviroment for example, instead of installing all the services locally on your machine with homebrew and whatnot and polluting your desktop experience. Docker is afaik Linux only and uses some kind of container virtualization that makes it possible to run services in a separated virtual enviroment on a per process basis without the need to spin up a full vm with all the overhead. Also these docker containers seem to be portable to different machines pretty easily, making it easy to share enviroments among developers. Now Fig looks like something to make managing docker containers easier.
unvs 13y ago
I'm really starting to like Docker now. Is it possible to have multiple independent web apps talking to one postgres and one redis installation? I have a VPS with ~10 tiny websites, and it would be total overkill to bundle each app with its own db and caching. How would you reference that same "external" db in a fig configuration?

157 points by bcjordan 13y ago

Seems like this is pretty comparable to Vagrant using the Docker backend. Anyone have thoughts on pros and cons of each?

deleted 13y ago
[deleted]
- derefr 13y ago
  The parent didn't say "Vagrant," they said "Vagrant using the Docker backend."

bradleyg_ 13y ago

Been using this for a while now for Django development, it's really simplified the way I work. When I want to start work on a project: fig up -d db fig up -d redis fig up web One of the main benefits for me using fig/docker is that I only have a single VM on my machine, rather than one for each project. I usually just leave it running in the background. Combined with docker-osx https://github.com/noplay/docker-osx https://github.com/noplay/docker-osx I don't even need to ssh into my VM to start work.

aanand 13y ago
You can collapse the first two to `fig up -d db redis` if you like!
rjzzleep 13y ago
boot2docker[1] is now the recommended environment for docker on osx, but sadly sharing files is not as easy as it is with docker-osx. They just integrated nfs support though [1] https://github.com/boot2docker/boot2docker https://github.com/boot2docker/boot2docker
- m_mueller 13y ago
  Sharing files? With Expandrive you can mount anything you can ssh into. This has been possible on Linux for a long time, Apple is lagging behind there, but Expandrive is a solid 3rd party solution.
  - jimmcslim 13y ago
    There is also sshfs which builds on top of fuse. This is also available for Mac OS X via fuseosx, install through homebrew.
    - m_mueller 13y ago
      I could never make that work reliably. Could you?
chatmasta 13y ago
Could you explain more how the VM fits into this workflow?
- Legion 13y ago
  I imagine it has something to do with the fact that Docker requires Linux, and he's on a Mac.

cardmagic 13y ago

Fig is awesome, it lets you create a simple fig.yml that can specify multi-container apps. I recently built a fig2coreos adapter that takes the fig.yml as input and outputs the coreos systemd configuration files. [1] https://github.com/centurylinklabs/fig2coreos https://github.com/centurylinklabs/fig2coreos [2] http://www.centurylinklabs.com/building-complex-apps-for-docker-on-coreos-and-fig/ http://www.centurylinklabs.com/building-complex-apps-for-doc...

dergachev 13y ago

Looks pretty slick. For a recent project, I ended up building a 100 line Makefile, and fig could have covered about 70% of that. That said, Makefile are good to have around

Kiro 13y ago

Can someone explain the differences between Fig, Docker and Vagrant? Without knowing anything about server administration they seem to be doing the same thing, which is obviously wrong since Fig is built on top of Docker.

fideloper 13y ago
Vagrant builds virtual machines for you. Like another computer inside of your computer. Docker can run within a VM, or on your computer if you're not on a Macintosh (Mac's kernel is...for now...not supported). I usually create a Vagrant virtual machine of CoreOS, which works with Docker very nicely. Docker is a utility which uses "containers". Docker containers are usually used to run one process at a time (apache or mysql or python or grep or anything, really). You can connect multiple docker containers to create a functioning app. Running one for database and other one for running your code would a simple example. Fig tries to make the process of making Docker instances work together easy.
- loganekz 13y ago
  The OS X kernel will not be supported. Docker is built upon features available only in the Linux kernel (LXC, cgroups)
  - zachlatta 13y ago
    However, Docker is officially supported on OS X through https://github.com/boot2docker/boot2docker https://github.com/boot2docker/boot2docker
    - jimmcslim 13y ago
      It is officially supported by virtue of boot2docker booting a small Linux kernel in a VM (VirtualBox).
kayoone 13y ago
Vagrant is basically a layer on top on virtualbox/vmware that helps you manage VMs more efficiently. It makes it easy to setup your local development enviroments in a vm and replicate the production enviroment for example, instead of installing all the services locally on your machine with homebrew and whatnot and polluting your desktop experience. Docker is afaik Linux only and uses some kind of container virtualization that makes it possible to run services in a separated virtual enviroment on a per process basis without the need to spin up a full vm with all the overhead. Also these docker containers seem to be portable to different machines pretty easily, making it easy to share enviroments among developers. Now Fig looks like something to make managing docker containers easier.

unvs 13y ago

I'm really starting to like Docker now. Is it possible to have multiple independent web apps talking to one postgres and one redis installation? I have a VPS with ~10 tiny websites, and it would be total overkill to bundle each app with its own db and caching. How would you reference that same "external" db in a fig configuration?