Mastodawn

Serge from Babka Jul 26, 2023

I have a #devops (or what we used to call #sysadmin) question...

I like Docker Swarm for its simplicity and apparent "lightweight" nature. From a user standpoint, you can simply define a set of services and it's not that much of a leap to go from a docker-compose file to a full blown distributed system for a small number f nodes.

The problems are that Docker Swarm only appears to be offered by Docker (tm) and requires the real Docker (tm) stack, as opposed to the solution most distros use today, which is to use podman as a Docker replacement (for many good reasons).

And the fact that Docker is owned by Mirantis, Mirantis's future seems uncertain is good reason not to stay.

Is anyone still using Docker Swarm? If not, do you have a lightweight alternative (not Kubernetes)? I've heard not-great things about Nomad.

I feel like this is a huge missing area in the orchestration landscape.

#docker #orchestration #dockerswarm #kubernetes #nomad

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csbchristopher Jul 26, 2023

@serge Maybe consider a lightweight k8s distrubution (like k3s https://k3s.io/)

I tried it for my 4 node homelab, with positive results.

K3s

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Serge from Babka

@csbchristopher

Thanks, I really appreciate the reply.

k3s and minikube are lighter weight and remove some of the abstractions. I'm less worried about the management of the kubernetes than just the every day complexity of adding services, adding operators, making new operators, etc.

For that reason, I've ruled k3s and minikube out for me, because while they're smaller, they don't collapse the problem enough for me right now.

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csbchristopher Jul 26, 2023

@serge Hmm, I've been using k8s for several years, and I've never had the need to write a new operator.

Usually one can handle the basics with just the "Service" and the "Deployment" objects. (https://kubernetes.io/docs/tutorials/kubernetes-basics/)

In any case, good luck!

Learn Kubernetes Basics

<!DOCTYPE html> Kubernetes Basics This tutorial provides a walkthrough of the basics of the Kubernetes cluster orchestration system. Each module contains some background information on major Kubernetes features and concepts, and a tutorial for you to follow along. Using the tutorials, you can learn to: Deploy a containerized application on a cluster. Scale the deployment. Update the containerized application with a new software version. Debug the containerized application. What can Kubernetes do for you?

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