Docker Compose vs Kompose

Overview

Docker Compose

Stacks22.3K

Followers16.5K

Votes501

GitHub Stars36.4K

Forks5.5K

Kompose

Stacks16

Followers49

Votes0

Docker Compose vs Kompose: What are the differences?

Introduction: In the world of containerization, tools like Docker Compose and Kompose play crucial roles in managing Docker containers. While they both serve similar purposes, there are key differences between the two that developers need to be aware of.

Definition: Docker Compose is a tool that allows you to define and run multi-container Docker applications, whereas Kompose is a conversion tool that takes existing Docker Compose files and converts them into Kubernetes resources.
Orchestration: Docker Compose is primarily used for local development and testing environments, providing a simple way to define and run multi-container applications on a single host. In contrast, Kompose is focused on helping users transition from Docker Compose to Kubernetes, enabling them to leverage the benefits of Kubernetes orchestration for production environments.
Flexibility: Docker Compose provides a straightforward way to define application services, networks, and volumes in a single YAML file, making it easy to manage and deploy containers. On the other hand, Kompose offers more flexibility by converting Docker Compose files into Kubernetes resources, allowing users to take advantage of Kubernetes features like auto-scaling, load balancing, and more.
Resource Management: Docker Compose handles the management of Docker containers and networks locally, simplifying the process of setting up and running containerized applications. In contrast, Kompose translates Docker Compose files into Kubernetes objects like pods, services, deployments, and more, enabling users to manage resources using Kubernetes control plane.
Community Support: Docker Compose has a large community of users and contributors, with extensive documentation and resources available for users at all levels. On the other hand, Kompose has a smaller but growing community, with active development and support from the Kubernetes community for users transitioning to Kubernetes from Docker Compose.
Learning Curve: Docker Compose is relatively easy to learn and use, making it accessible for developers looking to containerize applications quickly for local development and testing. Kompose, on the other hand, requires users to have some familiarity with Kubernetes concepts and resources, adding a learning curve for those transitioning from Docker Compose to Kubernetes.

In Summary, Docker Compose is ideal for local development and testing of multi-container Docker applications, while Kompose is designed to help users transition from Docker Compose to Kubernetes for production deployments.

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Advice on Docker Compose, Kompose

Michael

CEO at asencis Ltd

Jan 5, 2021

Needs advice

We develop rapidly with docker-compose orchestrated services, however, for production - we utilise the very best ideas that Kubernetes has to offer: SCALE! We can scale when needed, setting a maximum and minimum level of nodes for each application layer - scaling only when the load balancer needs it. This allowed us to reduce our devops costs by 40% whilst also maintaining an SLA of 99.87%.

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Detailed Comparison

Docker Compose	Kompose
With Compose, you define a multi-container application in a single file, then spin your application up in a single command which does everything that needs to be done to get it running.	Kubernetes + Compose. Kompose takes a Docker Compose file and translates it into Kubernetes resources.
Statistics
GitHub Stars 36.4K	GitHub Stars -
GitHub Forks 5.5K	GitHub Forks -
Stacks 22.3K	Stacks 16
Followers 16.5K	Followers 49
Votes 501	Votes 0
Pros & Cons
Pros 123 Multi-container descriptor 110 Fast development environment setup 79 Easy linking of containers 68 Simple yaml configuration 60 Easy setup Cons 9 Tied to single machine 5 Still very volatile, changing syntax often	No community feedback yet
Integrations
Docker	Docker Kubernetes

What are some alternatives to Docker Compose, Kompose?

Kubernetes

Kubernetes is an open source orchestration system for Docker containers. It handles scheduling onto nodes in a compute cluster and actively manages workloads to ensure that their state matches the users declared intentions.

Rancher

Rancher is an open source container management platform that includes full distributions of Kubernetes, Apache Mesos and Docker Swarm, and makes it simple to operate container clusters on any cloud or infrastructure platform.

Docker Swarm

Swarm serves the standard Docker API, so any tool which already communicates with a Docker daemon can use Swarm to transparently scale to multiple hosts: Dokku, Compose, Krane, Deis, DockerUI, Shipyard, Drone, Jenkins... and, of course, the Docker client itself.

Tutum

Tutum lets developers easily manage and run lightweight, portable, self-sufficient containers from any application. AWS-like control, Heroku-like ease. The same container that a developer builds and tests on a laptop can run at scale in Tutum.

Portainer

It is a universal container management tool. It works with Kubernetes, Docker, Docker Swarm and Azure ACI. It allows you to manage containers without needing to know platform-specific code.

Codefresh

Automate and parallelize testing. Codefresh allows teams to spin up on-demand compositions to run unit and integration tests as part of the continuous integration process. Jenkins integration allows more complex pipelines.

CAST.AI

It is an AI-driven cloud optimization platform for Kubernetes. Instantly cut your cloud bill, prevent downtime, and 10X the power of DevOps.

k3s

Certified Kubernetes distribution designed for production workloads in unattended, resource-constrained, remote locations or inside IoT appliances. Supports something as small as a Raspberry Pi or as large as an AWS a1.4xlarge 32GiB server.

Flocker

Flocker is a data volume manager and multi-host Docker cluster management tool. With it you can control your data using the same tools you use for your stateless applications. This means that you can run your databases, queues and key-value stores in Docker and move them around as easily as the rest of your app.

Kitematic

Simple Docker App management for Mac OS X

Related Comparisons

Docker Compose vs Kompose: What are the differences?

Definition: Docker Compose is a tool that allows you to define and run multi-container Docker applications, whereas Kompose is a conversion tool that takes existing Docker Compose files and converts them into Kubernetes resources.
Orchestration: Docker Compose is primarily used for local development and testing environments, providing a simple way to define and run multi-container applications on a single host. In contrast, Kompose is focused on helping users transition from Docker Compose to Kubernetes, enabling them to leverage the benefits of Kubernetes orchestration for production environments.
Flexibility: Docker Compose provides a straightforward way to define application services, networks, and volumes in a single YAML file, making it easy to manage and deploy containers. On the other hand, Kompose offers more flexibility by converting Docker Compose files into Kubernetes resources, allowing users to take advantage of Kubernetes features like auto-scaling, load balancing, and more.
Resource Management: Docker Compose handles the management of Docker containers and networks locally, simplifying the process of setting up and running containerized applications. In contrast, Kompose translates Docker Compose files into Kubernetes objects like pods, services, deployments, and more, enabling users to manage resources using Kubernetes control plane.
Community Support: Docker Compose has a large community of users and contributors, with extensive documentation and resources available for users at all levels. On the other hand, Kompose has a smaller but growing community, with active development and support from the Kubernetes community for users transitioning to Kubernetes from Docker Compose.
Learning Curve: Docker Compose is relatively easy to learn and use, making it accessible for developers looking to containerize applications quickly for local development and testing. Kompose, on the other hand, requires users to have some familiarity with Kubernetes concepts and resources, adding a learning curve for those transitioning from Docker Compose to Kubernetes.

Docker Compose vs Kompose

Overview