Remaining competitive requires modernizing applications and infrastructure to be more agile, portable, and resilient. This is where containerization and orchestration solutions like Docker and Kubernetes can make a real impact.
Containers and orchestrators provide a lightweight and standardized way to develop, deploy, and manage applications across diverse infrastructures. These are some of the ways software modernization services can help your business.
This article will explore the key benefits of containerization and orchestration, provide an overview of Docker and Kubernetes, discuss real-world use cases, and offer best practices for getting started.
The Benefits of Containerization
Recalling the limitations of past approaches to application development and deployment helps one understand the value of containerization and orchestration.
Monolithic applications – where functionality is bundled together in a single artifact – can be difficult to manage, scale, and update. Fixing bugs or adding features often means rebuilding and redeploying the entire application.
Provisioning resources through physical hardware or virtual machines also introduces challenges. Deploying to heterogeneous environments is complex. Resource utilization tends to be inefficient. And costs can be unpredictable.
In contrast, containerized applications packaged with just their runtime dependencies can deliver:
Portability. Container images run unaltered on any infrastructure (cloud, on-prem, hybrid).
Agility. Containers spin up/down rapidly, enabling continuous development.
Efficiency. Increased resource density from lightweight containers.
Resilience. Isolate failures by containerizing services discreetly.
Collaboration. Share and reuse components through registries like Docker Hub.
With these advantages, it’s no surprise containers have become widely adopted. But taking full advantage requires effective orchestration.
The Role of Kubernetes
While Docker pioneered containers for packaging applications, Kubernetes has emerged as the leading system for deploying and managing containerized workloads at scale.
Created by Google and offered under an open-source license, Kubernetes eases the operational complexity of running container environments. Key capabilities include:
Provisioning and scheduling. Kubernetes automates deploying containers across clusters based on resource needs and other policies.
Service discovery and load balancing. Containers find each other dynamically through Kubernetes services to enable communication and distribution of network traffic.
Storage orchestration. Kubernetes manages to attach storage devices and assets to containers that need them.
Health monitoring. Checks container status and restarts or replaces unhealthy instances.
Horizontal scaling. Grows or shrinks the number of container instances based on demand.
Software updates. Kubernetes rolls out new software versions with zero downtime.
With Kubernetes handling these operational concerns behind the scenes, teams can focus more on developing applications rather than infrastructure maintenance.
Use Cases and Industry Adoption
The benefits of standardized containers orchestrated by solutions like Kubernetes are driving adoption across industries – including healthcare, finance, retail, government, and more. Below are some illuminating examples.
Optimizing Healthcare Systems
Data breaches are more common in organizations utilizing legacy software, and in 2023, they cost $4.45 million.
Healthcare organizations rely extensively on legacy monolithic applications to manage patient records, billing, regulatory compliance, and other critical systems. However, these outdated platforms can impede the delivery of quality care.
Containerization provides a bridge for healthcare IT to modernize:
Accenture migrated key systems at a large healthcare provider to Docker. This increased development velocity 5x and enabled scaling to handle more patient traffic.
Kubernetes is helping companies like Optum build next-gen analytics platforms to derive insights from healthcare data while maintaining HIPAA compliance.
Docker, combined with Kubernetes, allows apps to be deployed across varied care settings – data centers, multiple clouds, medical devices, and more to improve experiences.
Powering Financial Technology
Fintech startups are disrupting traditional financial services with cutting-edge apps and blockchain platforms. Maintaining security and regulatory compliance at scale requires optimized infrastructure.
Goldman Sachs relies on Kubernetes to securely manage thousands of trading containers across on-prem and cloud environments.
Cryptocurrency leader Coinbase can spin up new currency trading platforms in minutes with Docker and Kubernetes to quickly address market opportunities.
Square operates Kubernetes on AWS to handle growing volumes of payment transactions during peak seasons like Black Friday with fewer resources.
Enhancing Retail and Commerce
Retailers strive to create unified brand experiences across ecommerce sites, in-store systems, supply chains, and more. Containers enable tying these assets together.
Home Depot uses Kubernetes to scale web traffic during busy periods, coordinate inventory systems between stores, and run analytics apps to understand shopper behavior.
Docker containers help retailers like Walmart quickly launch and iterate on new microservices to test innovative concepts while maintaining legacy systems.
Kubernetes supports complex supply chains by enabling retailers like IKEA to replicate business services across many locations efficiently.
Steps to Get Started
The containerization path can vary across organizations depending on existing resources and priorities. But most initiatives share the following best practices:
Choose a target application. When first adopting containers, identify a pilot application that can demonstrate value without high risks. Good options have clear dependencies, don’t require significant data migrations, and need scalability.
Assess infrastructure changes. Determine if any modifications, such as OS changes, security controls, or capacity upgrades, are required before hosting production containers. Develop procedures for hardening hosts.
Select an orchestration approach. For most, start by deploying managed Kubernetes services like Amazon EKS, Azure Kubernetes Service, or Google Kubernetes Engine. This avoids managing clusters directly during the early stages.
Plan networking. Connect containers and integrate services through ingress controllers, service meshes, or other networking models compatible with your environment.
Establish CI/CD pipelines. Automate building and updating container images through continuous integration and deployment. Kubernetes native options like Helm Charts can help.
Monitor closely. Collect detailed visibility into all components, from containers to hardware. Use tools like Prometheus and Grafana to watch for performance issues, uptime, security events, and more.
Retrain teams. Get developers, ops teams, and other staff aligned on container strategies through training on Docker, Kubernetes basics, microservices patterns, CI/CD, and related skill sets.
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Conclusion
Containerization powered by orchestration engines like Kubernetes is driving IT modernization across healthcare, financial services, retail, and other key sectors. The benefits of agility, efficiency, and portability are too substantial to ignore. Getting started with containers may seem daunting, but following proven steps can ensure a successful journey.