Getting Started With Docker?

[John Gasper <>]

Hello all,

 

It looks like we have just a few days until our tutorial. (I can’t believe it is already the middle of October.) So I just wanted to reach out with a few items of housekeeping so that we can have a successful class. At last count we have 16 people in the class, so having ourselves prepared will be advantageous. The first thing that we need is a place to run/work with Docker. I’ve got a couple of, ok three, options for you.

 

1. Install Docker locally on your computer. Download and install the appropriate package from https://docs.docker.com/engine/installation/#desktop. You should get an icon in your launcher/start menu for Docker upon successful installation. Feel free to start it up. From the command-line, try running “docker ps”. Hopefully you get an empty listing vs an error.
2. Use someone else’s hardware. Verify that you can access http://labs.play-with-docker.com/ (click through the captcha), and click on Add New Instance. You should see a terminal window.
3. Not really the best, but install Docker on a Linux server and shell into it for class (I won’t be able to help you with issues that you may have with the installation… there are just too many variables in too short of time.)

 

Option #1 has the advantage of being local, so you can use Docker on the plane ride home, for example. Option #2 is great because there is nothing to install, but the VMs die after 4 hours. Please do give Option 2 a try as Option 2 will be ideal when we have breakout time and play with Docker Swarm as it is trivial to create several VMs for our Swarm cluster.

 

Here are a few cheat sheets that are generally pretty good. Feel free download them, or even to print them off and bring them along.

• https://www.docker.com/sites/default/files/Docker_CheatSheet_08.09.2016_0.pdf
• https://linoxide.com/linux-how-to/docker-commands-cheat-sheet/

 

I’m hoping to have a fun and relaxed day while we learn. And in case anyone cares, I’ll be wearing jeans, so feel free to come dressed casually.

 

I look forward to seeing you from 8:00am-5:00pm at Pacific C on Pacific Concourse Level. And if there is anything I can do to make this a better experience for you, please let me know.

 

Thanks,

John

 

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John Gasper
IAM Consultant
Unicon, Inc.
PGP/GPG Key: 0xbafee3ef