Docker Management Design Patterns: Docker direction with Kubernetes

[Sai Hegde]

With Docker announcing native support for Kubernetes, what do you think their direction with Swarm will be?

[Deepak Vohra]

Docker Swarm mode and Kubernetes are two options for Docker container orchestration. Both have some unique benefits. Kubernetes has been used in production for more than 15 years, while Docker Swarm mode is about a year new. But, Docker has some advantages over Kubernetes.

1. Docker Swarm mode supports Docker Service Stacks for developing microservices that have dependencies between them.
2. A managed service for Docker, 'Docker for AWS', is available, but a similar Kubernetes for AWS  is not available.

The objective of integrating Kubernetes is to provide an alternative Docker container orchestrator. "By adding Kubernetes support, IT teams get more options for container scheduling and orchestration. The next version of Docker EE will set up a single environment with both Swarm and Kubernetes on the same cluster and provide choice of orchestrator at deployment time. "

[Sai Hegde]

Deepak Vohra wrote:1. Docker Swarm mode supports Docker Service Stacks for developing microservices that have dependencies between them."

Doesn't Kubernetes support this as well?

[Deepak Vohra]

Docker Service Stacks are based on Docker Cloud Stack file, which has syntax of Docker Compose. Kubernetes does not support Docker Service Stacks natively.
A tool (Kompose) to convert a Compose file to Kubernetes files is available, but is not the same as Docker service stacks.