Build Dynamic App Image

Learn to build dynamic app image in Docker

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Now, we know how to build and ship application through the Static Website workflow we gone through in previous episode.

In this episode, we will se how to build and deploy Dynamic application which need Database to store their data.

Building Application Image

• Get the application source code.
  • Download zip or tar file from here and unzip in your machine
  • Or you can clone the repo as git clone https://gitlab.com/nanuchi/techworld-js-docker-demo-app.git docker-node-app
• Enter into the docker-node-app directory

• Check the Dockerfile:

  FROM node:13-alpine
  
  ENV MONGO_DB_USERNAME=admin \
      MONGO_DB_PWD=password
  
  RUN mkdir -p /home/app
  
  COPY ./app /home/app
  
  # set default dir so that next commands executes in /home/app dir
  WORKDIR /home/app
  
  # will execute npm install in /home/app because of WORKDIR
  RUN npm install
  
  # no need for /home/app/server.js because of WORKDIR
  CMD ["node", "server.js"]
  

• Build the application image by running following command:

  $ cd docker-node-app
  $ docker build -t node-app:v1 .
  

Starting the Application

To properly start the application, we need to setup Mongo DB through running Mongo DB container.

NOTE: Try this in your local setup as in the online service, it is giving error due to system configurations.

• Create docker network:

  We are creating a separate network here for our dynamic application instead of using default Docker network.

  $ docker network create mongo-network
  

• Start Mongo DB:

  We are creating a separate network here for our dynamic application instead of using default Docker network.

  $ docker run -d -p 27017:27017 -e MONGO_INITDB_ROOT_USERNAME=admin -e MONGO_INITDB_ROOT_PASSWORD=password --name mongodb --net mongo-network mongo
  

• Start Mongo Express (Web-based MongoDB admin interface):

  $ docker run -d -p 8081:8081 -e ME_CONFIG_MONGODB_ADMINUSERNAME=admin -e ME_CONFIG_MONGODB_ADMINPASSWORD=password --net mongo-network --name mongo-express -e ME_CONFIG_MONGODB_SERVER=mongodb mongo-express
  

• Open Mongo Express interface from browser using URL http://localhost:8081.
• Create user-account database and users collection in Mongo Express.

• Start your code locally by running following commands:

  npm install
  node server.js
  
  # NOTE: For this step, you need to have `Node JS` installed in your machine.
  

  NOTE: You can run the container of the application image built in the Building Application Image above to start your application.

• Access the application UI from browser using URL http://localhost:3000.