First time at Zeet?

21 Mar
2024
-
15
min read

Simple Guide On Terraform Docker (2024)

Learn to support a wide range of cloud providers with Terraform Docker.

Jack Dwyer

Product
Platform Engineering + DevOps
Content
heading2
heading3
heading4
heading5
heading6
heading7

Share this article

What Is Terraform?

female dev working on project - Terraform Docker

What is Terraform? Terraform is an open-source infrastructure as code software tool created by HashiCorp. It allows users to define and provision data center infrastructure using a declarative configuration language. Terraform manages external resources like low-level components such as compute instances, storage, and networking, as well as high-level components such as DNS entries, SaaS features, etc. This allows it to support a wide range of cloud providers (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP, etc.) and services through "providers".

Maximizing Cloud Investments

Zeet helps you to get more from your cloud, Kubernetes, and Terraform investments and helps your engineering team become strong individual contributors through our CI/CD & deployment platform. 

Contact Zeet to learn more about how Zeet helps you get seamless cloud deployments every time, and helps your team to become a top-performing engineering team.

Related Reading

What Is Docker?

logo of docker - Terraform Docker

Docker is a popular platform for developing, shipping, and running applications in containers. This open-source tool automates the deployment of applications inside software containers by providing an additional layer of abstraction and automation of operating system-level virtualization on Linux. Docker containers are lightweight, standalone, executable software packages that include everything needed to run an application: code, runtime, system tools, system libraries, and settings. 

Streamlining Deployment with Docker in DevOps Environments

This makes Docker a popular tool for virtualization when quick startup times, fast performance, and manageable isolation are needed. Developers can focus on writing code without having to worry about managing complex deployment scripts, and different runtime environments work seamlessly. Docker has become increasingly popular in DevOps environments, allowing organizations to create a consistent deployment environment for applications and services. 

Understanding Docker Images and Containers in DevOps

Containers are an essential part of the technologies that enable DevOps, as they allow applications to be moved quickly and easily from development to testing to production without any issues, as each environment is consistent. Docker has a few different components that make it stand out, and one of them is the Docker image. Docker images are a set of filesystem layers that are stacked and layered on top of each other to create a filesystem. 

Leveraging Zeet for Enhanced Cloud Deployments and CI/CD

This filesystem is the basis for containers, and a container running is based on the image file of the same name. The topmost layer is read-write, and the underlying layers are read-only. To create an image, you write a Dockerfile with instructions on what you want your filesystem to look like, and then you use the Docker build command to create your image.

Empowering Engineering Teams with Zeet's CI/CD Platform

Zeet helps you to get more from your cloud, Kubernetes, and Terraform investments and helps your engineering team become strong individual contributors through our CI/CD & deployment platform. Contact Zeet to learn more about how Zeet helps you get seamless cloud deployments every time and helps your team to become a top-performing engineering team.

Zeet Terraform and Helm Product Overview

Simple Guide On Terraform Docker (2024)

Define your Docker infrastructure

The first step is to create a Terraform configuration file (e.g. `main.tf`) that defines the Docker resources you want to manage, such as Docker images and containers.

Initialize Terraform

Run terraform init to download and install the required Docker provider plugin. This plugin enables Terraform to interact with the Docker API to manage your Docker resources.

Format and validate the configuration

Use terraform fmt to format the configuration for readability and terraform validate to check for any syntax or configuration errors. This step ensures that your Terraform configuration is structured correctly and does not contain any errors that could prevent it from running successfully.

Apply the configuration

Run Terraform apply to create or update the Docker infrastructure based on your Terraform configuration. Terraform will compare the desired state defined in your configuration file with the current state of your Docker resources and make any necessary changes to bring them into alignment.

Code for Terraform with Docker

woman trying to learn - Terraform Docker

Below is an example of the code you would use to define a Docker container and image using Terraform:

hcl provider "docker" {  host = "tcp://127.0.0.1:2376/" } resource "docker_image" "nginx" {  name         = "nginx"  pull_triggers = ["always"] } resource "docker_container" "nginx" {  image = docker_image.nginx.latest  name  = "nginx"  ports {    internal = 80    external = 8000  } }


With this Terraform configuration, you can manage a Docker container running an Nginx web server with port 8000 on the host machine forwarded to port 80 in the container. The Docker provider block specifies the connection details for the Docker API, such as the host address, while the docker_image and docker_container resources define the desired state of the Docker image and container, respectively.

Common Mistakes To Avoid When Using Terraform with Docker

1. Avoiding proper tagging for Docker images

One common mistake is failing to tag Docker images correctly, which can lead to conflicts and confusion down the line. By not tagging images appropriately, you may inadvertently overwrite existing images or find it challenging to track versions effectively.

2. Neglecting to use Docker registry

Failing to use a Docker registry for image storage is a significant misstep. Without a registry, you'll lose the ability to share images easily across your team, leading to duplication of work and inconsistencies in your infrastructure.

3. Ignoring security best practices

Security is paramount when working with Docker. Failing to incorporate best practices such as image scanning, using only necessary open ports, and applying appropriate permissions can result in severe vulnerabilities in your environment.

4. Forgoing container orchestration

Not leveraging container orchestration tools like Kubernetes can limit the scalability and resiliency of your application. Without orchestration, you may encounter difficulties in managing multiple containers, monitoring their health, and scaling them up or down based on demand.

5. Overlooking environment variables

Neglecting to leverage environment variables within your Terraform scripts might lead to hardcoding sensitive information like passwords and API keys directly in your code. This practice is insecure and can expose your application to potential breaches.

6. Not cleaning up resources properly

Failing to clean up resources after they are no longer necessary can result in unnecessary costs and resource wastage. By overlooking proper resource management, you may end up with a cluttered infrastructure that's difficult to maintain and troubleshoot.

7. Lack of version control

Ignoring version control practices within Terraform and Docker workflows can lead to chaos. Without maintaining code versions, you risk losing track of changes, making collaboration difficult, and encountering problems in identifying when and why certain modifications were made.

8. Disregarding backup and disaster recovery

Neglecting to implement backup and disaster recovery plans for your Dockerized applications can be catastrophic. Without proper backups, you risk losing critical data and facing extended downtimes in case of failure.

9. Not monitoring and logging

Monitoring and logging are essential for maintaining the health and performance of your Docker containers. Neglecting to set up monitoring tools and configure logging properly can result in troubleshooting difficulties and performance bottlenecks.

10. Skipping testing

Failing to conduct thorough testing of your Terraform and Docker setups can lead to deployment failures and production issues. Skipping testing means you may deploy untested code to production, risking the stability and reliability of your applications.

Get Seamless Cloud Deployments with Zeet

Zeet helps you to get more from your cloud, Kubernetes, and Terraform investments and helps your engineering team become strong individual contributors through our CI/CD & deployment platform. 

Contact Zeet to learn more about how Zeet can help you get seamless cloud deployments every time, and helps your team to become a top-performing engineering team.

Related Reading

Zeet Contact Us

Have Successful Releases Every Time With Zeet's CI/CD & Deployment Platform for Kubernetes and Terraform

Zeet offers a cutting-edge CI/CD and deployment platform, designed to assist companies in the efficient utilization of their cloud, Kubernetes, and Terraform investments. Our platform ensures that your engineering team members reach their full potential as valuable individual contributors. By leveraging our advanced tools, Zeet allows you to enjoy smooth cloud deployments consistently. 

If you desire to elevate your team's performance and inspire them to become top-performing engineering professionals, Zeet is the ultimate solution. Contact us today to learn more about how Zeet can transform your cloud deployment experience.

Related Reading

Subscribe to Changelog newsletter

Jack from the Zeet team shares DevOps & SRE learnings, top articles, and new Zeet features in a twice-a-month newsletter.

Thank you!

Your submission has been processed
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.