Docker Swarm vs minikube

Overview

Docker Swarm

Stacks779

Followers990

Votes282

minikube

Stacks110

Followers262

Votes3

GitHub Stars31.1K

Forks5.1K

Docker Swarm vs minikube: What are the differences?

Introduction

Docker Swarm and minikube are two popular container orchestration platforms used for managing and scaling containerized applications. Although they serve similar purposes, there are several key differences between them. In this article, we will outline six distinct differences between Docker Swarm and minikube.

Architecture and Scalability: Docker Swarm follows a simpler and less complex architecture compared to minikube. Swarm uses a decentralized design with a single manager node and multiple worker nodes, allowing for easier management and scalability. On the other hand, minikube uses a more complex architecture with a single master node and multiple worker nodes, which provides advanced features like high availability and fault-tolerance.
Containerization Technology: Docker Swarm is tightly integrated with Docker Engine, using Docker containers as the building blocks for applications. On the contrary, minikube utilizes Kubernetes as the containerization technology, providing a more powerful and extensible platform for managing containers.
Ease of Setup and Configuration: Docker Swarm offers a simplified setup and configuration process, making it easier for beginners to get started. It has a straightforward command-line interface and requires minimal configuration. In contrast, minikube has a more involved setup process due to its reliance on Kubernetes. It requires additional configuration and learning of Kubernetes concepts, which may pose challenges for newcomers.
Cluster Management and Scalability: Docker Swarm provides built-in cluster management capabilities, allowing users to easily manage and scale a cluster of Docker hosts. It handles load balancing and service discovery automatically, making it a convenient choice for managing medium-sized deployments. On the other hand, minikube offers more advanced cluster management features with Kubernetes. It provides powerful scaling options, automatic load balancing, and advanced networking capabilities, making it suitable for larger and more complex deployments.
Community Support and Ecosystem: Docker Swarm benefits from the vast Docker community, which provides extensive support, resources, and a wide range of pre-built Docker images. The large community ensures active development and continuous improvements. Minikube, being a part of the Kubernetes ecosystem, also benefits from a thriving community and a robust ecosystem. It offers a wide range of plugins, tools, and integrations with other Kubernetes components.
Use Cases and Industry Adoption: Docker Swarm is often preferred for simpler and smaller deployments, like single-host or small multi-host environments. It is widely adopted across various industries due to its simplicity and ease of use. On the other hand, minikube is more suited for larger and more complex deployments, particularly in enterprise settings. It is the favored choice for managing and orchestrating containerized applications at scale.

In summary, Docker Swarm and minikube differ in their architecture, containerization technology, ease of setup, cluster management capabilities, community support, and industry adoption. Each platform has its strengths and is suitable for different use cases and deployment scenarios.

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Advice on Docker Swarm, minikube

Simon

Senior Fullstack Developer at QUANTUSflow Software GmbH

Apr 27, 2020

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Our whole DevOps stack consists of the following tools:

@{GitHub}|tool:27| (incl. @{GitHub Pages}|tool:683|/@{Markdown}|tool:1147| for Documentation, GettingStarted and HowTo's) for collaborative review and code management tool
Respectively @{Git}|tool:1046| as revision control system
@{SourceTree}|tool:1599| as @{Git}|tool:1046| GUI
@{Visual Studio Code}|tool:4202| as IDE
@{CircleCI}|tool:190| for continuous integration (automatize development process)
@{Prettier}|tool:7035| / @{TSLint}|tool:5561| / @{ESLint}|tool:3337| as code linter
@{SonarQube}|tool:2638| as quality gate
@{Docker}|tool:586| as container management (incl. @{Docker Compose}|tool:3136| for multi-container application management)
@{VirtualBox}|tool:774| for operating system simulation tests
@{Kubernetes}|tool:1885| as cluster management for docker containers
@{Heroku}|tool:133| for deploying in test environments
@{nginx}|tool:1052| as web server (preferably used as facade server in production environment)
@{SSLMate}|tool:2752| (using @{OpenSSL}|tool:3091|) for certificate management
@{Amazon EC2}|tool:18| (incl. @{Amazon S3}|tool:25|) for deploying in stage (production-like) and production environments
@{PostgreSQL}|tool:1028| as preferred database system
@{Redis}|tool:1031| as preferred in-memory database/store (great for caching)

The main reason we have chosen Kubernetes over Docker Swarm is related to the following artifacts:

Key features: Easy and flexible installation, Clear dashboard, Great scaling operations, Monitoring is an integral part, Great load balancing concepts, Monitors the condition and ensures compensation in the event of failure.
Applications: An application can be deployed using a combination of pods, deployments, and services (or micro-services).
Functionality: Kubernetes as a complex installation and setup process, but it not as limited as Docker Swarm.
Monitoring: It supports multiple versions of logging and monitoring when the services are deployed within the cluster (Elasticsearch/Kibana (ELK), Heapster/Grafana, Sysdig cloud integration).
Scalability: All-in-one framework for distributed systems.
Other Benefits: Kubernetes is backed by the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF), huge community among container orchestration tools, it is an open source and modular tool that works with any OS.

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Detailed Comparison

Docker Swarm	minikube
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.	It implements a local Kubernetes cluster on macOS, Linux, and Windows. Its goal is to be the tool for local Kubernetes application development and to support all Kubernetes features that fit.
-	Local Kubernetes; LoadBalancer; Multi-cluster
Statistics
GitHub Stars -	GitHub Stars 31.1K
GitHub Forks -	GitHub Forks 5.1K
Stacks 779	Stacks 110
Followers 990	Followers 262
Votes 282	Votes 3
Pros & Cons
Pros 55 Docker friendly 46 Easy to setup 40 Standard Docker API 38 Easy to use 23 Native Cons 9 Low adoption	Pros 1 Let's me test k8s config locally 1 Easy setup 1 Can use same yaml config I'll use for prod deployment
Integrations
Docker	Windows Linux macOS

What are some alternatives to Docker Swarm, minikube?

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 Compose

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.

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 Swarm vs minikube: What are the differences?

Introduction

Architecture and Scalability: Docker Swarm follows a simpler and less complex architecture compared to minikube. Swarm uses a decentralized design with a single manager node and multiple worker nodes, allowing for easier management and scalability. On the other hand, minikube uses a more complex architecture with a single master node and multiple worker nodes, which provides advanced features like high availability and fault-tolerance.
Containerization Technology: Docker Swarm is tightly integrated with Docker Engine, using Docker containers as the building blocks for applications. On the contrary, minikube utilizes Kubernetes as the containerization technology, providing a more powerful and extensible platform for managing containers.
Ease of Setup and Configuration: Docker Swarm offers a simplified setup and configuration process, making it easier for beginners to get started. It has a straightforward command-line interface and requires minimal configuration. In contrast, minikube has a more involved setup process due to its reliance on Kubernetes. It requires additional configuration and learning of Kubernetes concepts, which may pose challenges for newcomers.
Cluster Management and Scalability: Docker Swarm provides built-in cluster management capabilities, allowing users to easily manage and scale a cluster of Docker hosts. It handles load balancing and service discovery automatically, making it a convenient choice for managing medium-sized deployments. On the other hand, minikube offers more advanced cluster management features with Kubernetes. It provides powerful scaling options, automatic load balancing, and advanced networking capabilities, making it suitable for larger and more complex deployments.
Community Support and Ecosystem: Docker Swarm benefits from the vast Docker community, which provides extensive support, resources, and a wide range of pre-built Docker images. The large community ensures active development and continuous improvements. Minikube, being a part of the Kubernetes ecosystem, also benefits from a thriving community and a robust ecosystem. It offers a wide range of plugins, tools, and integrations with other Kubernetes components.
Use Cases and Industry Adoption: Docker Swarm is often preferred for simpler and smaller deployments, like single-host or small multi-host environments. It is widely adopted across various industries due to its simplicity and ease of use. On the other hand, minikube is more suited for larger and more complex deployments, particularly in enterprise settings. It is the favored choice for managing and orchestrating containerized applications at scale.

Docker Swarm vs minikube

Overview

Docker Swarm vs minikube: What are the differences?