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  1. Stackups
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  4. Virtual Machine Platforms And Containers
  5. AWS CodeBuild vs Docker

AWS CodeBuild vs Docker

OverviewDecisionsComparisonAlternatives

Overview

Docker
Docker
Stacks194.2K
Followers143.8K
Votes3.9K
AWS CodeBuild
AWS CodeBuild
Stacks443
Followers485
Votes43

AWS CodeBuild vs Docker: What are the differences?

Introduction

In this article, we will discuss the key differences between AWS CodeBuild and Docker. Both AWS CodeBuild and Docker are powerful tools that developers can utilize in their software development and deployment processes. However, there are significant differences between the two platforms that should be considered when choosing the appropriate solution for a particular project.

  1. Deployment Methodology: AWS CodeBuild is a fully managed build service provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS) that compiles source code, runs tests, and produces deployable artifacts. It follows a cloud-native approach where the entire build process occurs within the AWS infrastructure. On the other hand, Docker is a widely-used containerization platform that allows developers to package their applications and dependencies into lightweight, portable containers that can be deployed on any compatible host system. While AWS CodeBuild focuses on the build process, Docker emphasizes the packaging and deployment aspects.

  2. Infrastructure Management: With AWS CodeBuild, the underlying infrastructure required to perform the builds is completely abstracted. Developers only need to define their build specifications, and AWS takes care of provisioning and managing the build environment. In contrast, Docker provides a container runtime that abstracts the underlying host system, enabling developers to package applications and run them consistently across different environments. Docker requires developers to manage their infrastructure, including setting up and maintaining the host system or using container orchestration platforms like Kubernetes.

  3. Compatibility with Existing Workflows: AWS CodeBuild is well integrated into the AWS ecosystem and can seamlessly build applications using different programming languages, AWS services, and deployment targets. It can easily leverage AWS services like CodeCommit, CodePipeline, and Elastic Beanstalk for continuous integration and delivery. Docker, on the other hand, is a technology-agnostic platform that can be used with any programming language, framework, or infrastructure. It allows developers to build highly customizable and flexible workflows based on their specific requirements.

  4. Scalability and Resource Utilization: AWS CodeBuild offers automatic scaling capabilities based on the workload requirements. It can scale horizontally to handle large builds and parallelize the build process across multiple build agents. CodeBuild optimizes resource utilization by automatically provisioning additional build resources when needed and releasing them when idle. Docker also supports scalability through container orchestration platforms like Kubernetes or Docker Swarm. However, the scalability of Docker containers depends on the underlying infrastructure and the configuration of the container runtime.

  5. Isolation and Security: AWS CodeBuild provides isolation and security through the use of separate build environments for different projects. Each build runs in an isolated environment, ensuring that the build process does not interfere with other builds. AWS CodeBuild also integrates with AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) for fine-grained control over user permissions and resource access. Docker provides isolation through containerization, where each application runs within its own container with its isolated filesystem and resources. Docker also provides security features like user namespaces, read-only containers, and customizable network configurations.

  6. Cost Structure: AWS CodeBuild follows a pay-as-you-go pricing model based on the number of build minutes and the amount of compute resources used. The pricing includes the build environment, code storage, and build minutes. Docker, being an open-source platform, provides more flexibility in terms of cost management. It allows developers to use existing infrastructure for running containers, which can help reduce costs. However, managing the infrastructure and scaling it efficiently can add operational overhead.

In Summary, AWS CodeBuild is a managed build service that abstracts the build process and provides seamless integration with AWS services, while Docker is a containerization platform that allows for custom workflows and compatibility with any language or infrastructure. The choice between the two depends on the project requirements, preferred deployment methodology, and the level of control and customization needed in the development and deployment processes.

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Advice on Docker, AWS CodeBuild

Florian
Florian

IT DevOp at Agitos GmbH

Oct 22, 2019

Decided

lxd/lxc and Docker aren't congruent so this comparison needs a more detailed look; but in short I can say: the lxd-integrated administration of storage including zfs with its snapshot capabilities as well as the system container (multi-process) approach of lxc vs. the limited single-process container approach of Docker is the main reason I chose lxd over Docker.

483k views483k
Comments

Detailed Comparison

Docker
Docker
AWS CodeBuild
AWS CodeBuild

The Docker Platform is the industry-leading container platform for continuous, high-velocity innovation, enabling organizations to seamlessly build and share any application — from legacy to what comes next — and securely run them anywhere

AWS CodeBuild is a fully managed build service that compiles source code, runs tests, and produces software packages that are ready to deploy. With CodeBuild, you don’t need to provision, manage, and scale your own build servers.

Integrated developer tools; open, portable images; shareable, reusable apps; framework-aware builds; standardized templates; multi-environment support; remote registry management; simple setup for Docker and Kubernetes; certified Kubernetes; application templates; enterprise controls; secure software supply chain; industry-leading container runtime; image scanning; access controls; image signing; caching and mirroring; image lifecycle; policy-based image promotion
Fully Managed Build Service;Continuous Scaling;Enables Continuous Integration;Integrates seamlessly with AWS services;FAQs: https://aws.amazon.com/codebuild/faqs/
Statistics
Stacks
194.2K
Stacks
443
Followers
143.8K
Followers
485
Votes
3.9K
Votes
43
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • 823
    Rapid integration and build up
  • 692
    Isolation
  • 521
    Open source
  • 505
    Testa­bil­i­ty and re­pro­ducibil­i­ty
  • 460
    Lightweight
Cons
  • 8
    New versions == broken features
  • 6
    Unreliable networking
  • 6
    Documentation not always in sync
  • 4
    Moves quickly
  • 3
    Not Secure
Pros
  • 7
    Pay per minute
  • 5
    Parameter Store integration for passing secrets
  • 4
    Integrated with AWS
  • 3
    Bit bucket integration
  • 3
    Streaming logs to Amazon CloudWatch
Cons
  • 2
    Poor branch support
Integrations
Java
Java
Docker Compose
Docker Compose
VirtualBox
VirtualBox
Linux
Linux
Amazon EC2 Container Service
Amazon EC2 Container Service
Docker Swarm
Docker Swarm
boot2docker
boot2docker
Kubernetes
Kubernetes
Docker Machine
Docker Machine
Vagrant
Vagrant
AWS Elastic Beanstalk
AWS Elastic Beanstalk
AWS CodeCommit
AWS CodeCommit
Amazon S3
Amazon S3
GitHub
GitHub
Bitbucket
Bitbucket
AWS CloudFormation
AWS CloudFormation
Jenkins
Jenkins
GitHub Enterprise
GitHub Enterprise

What are some alternatives to Docker, AWS CodeBuild?

Jenkins

Jenkins

In a nutshell Jenkins CI is the leading open-source continuous integration server. Built with Java, it provides over 300 plugins to support building and testing virtually any project.

Travis CI

Travis CI

Free for open source projects, our CI environment provides multiple runtimes (e.g. Node.js or PHP versions), data stores and so on. Because of this, hosting your project on travis-ci.com means you can effortlessly test your library or applications against multiple runtimes and data stores without even having all of them installed locally.

Codeship

Codeship

Codeship runs your automated tests and configured deployment when you push to your repository. It takes care of managing and scaling the infrastructure so that you are able to test and release more frequently and get faster feedback for building the product your users need.

CircleCI

CircleCI

Continuous integration and delivery platform helps software teams rapidly release code with confidence by automating the build, test, and deploy process. Offers a modern software development platform that lets teams ramp.

TeamCity

TeamCity

TeamCity is a user-friendly continuous integration (CI) server for professional developers, build engineers, and DevOps. It is trivial to setup and absolutely free for small teams and open source projects.

Drone.io

Drone.io

Drone is a hosted continuous integration service. It enables you to conveniently set up projects to automatically build, test, and deploy as you make changes to your code. Drone integrates seamlessly with Github, Bitbucket and Google Code as well as third party services such as Heroku, Dotcloud, Google AppEngine and more.

wercker

wercker

Wercker is a CI/CD developer automation platform designed for Microservices & Container Architecture.

GoCD

GoCD

GoCD is an open source continuous delivery server created by ThoughtWorks. GoCD offers business a first-class build and deployment engine for complete control and visibility.

Shippable

Shippable

Shippable is a SaaS platform that lets you easily add Continuous Integration/Deployment to your Github and BitBucket repositories. It is lightweight, super simple to setup, and runs your builds and tests faster than any other service.

Buildkite

Buildkite

CI and build automation tool that combines the power of your own build infrastructure with the convenience of a managed, centralized web UI. Used by Shopify, Basecamp, Digital Ocean, Venmo, Cochlear, Bugsnag and more.

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