Docker & Containerization

Containerize Django applications — Dockerfile, Docker Compose, multi-stage builds, and container orchestration for production.

55 min•By Priygop Team•Last updated: Feb 2026

Docker for Django

Dockerfile: FROM python:3.12-slim → WORKDIR /app → COPY requirements.txt → RUN pip install → COPY . . → CMD ['gunicorn', 'config.wsgi:application']. Multi-stage builds reduce image size by 50-70%
Docker Compose: services: web (Django + Gunicorn), db (PostgreSQL), redis (cache/Celery broker), nginx (reverse proxy). docker-compose up starts the entire stack
Environment Variables: Never hardcode secrets in code — use .env file for local development, Docker secrets or cloud secret managers for production. django-environ parses environment configuration
Volume Mounting: Bind mount source code for development (live reload). Named volumes for database persistence. Never store data in containers — they're ephemeral
Health Checks: HEALTHCHECK CMD curl -f http://localhost:8000/health/ — Docker monitors container health. Kubernetes uses readiness/liveness probes for the same purpose
Container Best Practices: Run as non-root user, minimize layers (combine RUN commands), use .dockerignore, pin dependency versions, scan images for vulnerabilities (Trivy)