Blue-green deployment with containers in Docker - Mini Project: Build & Apply

Blue-green deployment with containers

📖 Scenario: You are managing a web application that needs to be updated without downtime. You will use blue-green deployment with Docker containers to switch between two versions smoothly.

🎯 Goal: Build a simple blue-green deployment setup using Docker containers. You will create two containers named blue and green, configure a variable to track the active container, switch the active container, and finally display which container is currently active.

📋 What You'll Learn

Create two Docker containers named blue and green running a simple web server

Create a variable called active_container to track which container is live

Write a command to switch the active_container from blue to green or vice versa

Print the name of the currently active container

💡 Why This Matters

🌍 Real World

Blue-green deployment helps update applications without downtime by switching traffic between two container versions.

💼 Career

Understanding container management and deployment strategies is essential for DevOps roles to ensure smooth application updates.

1

Create two Docker containers named blue and green

Write two docker run commands to start containers named blue and green using the nginx image in detached mode.

Docker

# Run the blue container
# Run the green container

Hint

Use docker run -d --name container_name nginx to start each container.

2

Create a variable active_container to track the live container

Create a shell variable called active_container and set it to blue to indicate the blue container is currently active.

Docker

docker run -d --name blue nginx

docker run -d --name green nginx

# Set active_container to blue
# Your code here

Hint

Use active_container=blue to set the variable.

3

Switch the active_container from blue to green

Write a shell command to change the value of active_container from blue to green if it is currently blue. Use an if statement to check the current value.

Docker

docker run -d --name blue nginx

docker run -d --name green nginx

active_container=blue

# Switch active_container to green if it is blue
# Your code here

Hint

Use if [ "$active_container" = "blue" ]; then active_container=green; fi to switch.

4

Print the name of the currently active container

Write a echo command to display the text Active container is: followed by the value of active_container.

Docker

docker run -d --name blue nginx

docker run -d --name green nginx

active_container=blue

if [ "$active_container" = "blue" ]; then
    active_container=green
fi

# Print the active container
# Your code here

Hint

Use echo "Active container is: $active_container" to print the active container.

Practice

1. What is the main goal of a blue-green deployment when using containers?

easy

A. To reduce downtime by switching traffic between two identical environments

B. To increase the number of containers running simultaneously

C. To create backups of container images automatically

D. To monitor container resource usage in real-time

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand blue-green deployment concept

   Blue-green deployment uses two identical environments (blue and green) to switch traffic smoothly.

2. Step 2: Identify the main goal

   The main goal is to reduce downtime by switching user traffic from one environment to another without interruption.

3. Final Answer:

   To reduce downtime by switching traffic between two identical environments -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Blue-green deployment = reduce downtime [OK]

Hint: Blue-green means two environments for zero downtime [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing blue-green with scaling containers
• Thinking it creates backups automatically
• Assuming it monitors resource usage

2. Which Docker command is used to create a new container from an image for the green environment in a blue-green deployment?

easy

A. docker stop green_container

B. docker run -d --name green_container myapp:latest

C. docker push green_container myapp:latest

D. docker build -t green_container myapp/

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify command to create and start container

   The docker run command creates and starts a container from an image.

2. Step 2: Match command to green environment container creation

   docker run -d --name green_container myapp:latest runs the container detached with the name green_container.

3. Final Answer:

   docker run -d --name green_container myapp:latest -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Run command creates container [OK]

Hint: Use 'docker run' to start new containers [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using 'docker build' which builds images, not containers
• Using 'docker push' which uploads images to registry
• Using 'docker stop' which stops containers

3. Given the commands below, what will be the result after switching traffic from blue to green?

docker stop blue_container
docker start green_container

medium

A. The green environment stops, and the blue environment starts

B. Both blue and green environments run simultaneously

C. The blue environment stops, and the green environment starts serving traffic

D. No change occurs because containers are not restarted

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze the commands

   docker stop blue_container stops the blue container. docker start green_container starts the green container.

2. Step 2: Understand traffic switch effect

   Stopping blue and starting green means traffic moves from blue to green environment.

3. Final Answer:

   The blue environment stops, and the green environment starts serving traffic -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Stop blue + start green = traffic switch [OK]

Hint: Stopping blue and starting green switches traffic [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming both run simultaneously after stop command
• Confusing start and stop commands
• Thinking no change happens without redeploy

4. You tried to switch traffic by running docker stop blue_container and docker start green_container, but users still reach the blue environment. What is the most likely cause?

medium

A. The load balancer or proxy is still routing traffic to the blue environment

B. The green container failed to start due to image errors

C. Docker daemon is not running on the host machine

D. The blue container was never running initially

Solution

1. Step 1: Check container states

   Stopping blue_container and starting green_container should switch environments if containers run properly.

2. Step 2: Identify traffic routing cause

   If users still reach blue, likely the load balancer or proxy still routes traffic to blue environment IP or port.

3. Final Answer:

   The load balancer or proxy is still routing traffic to the blue environment -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Traffic routing depends on load balancer config [OK]

Hint: Check load balancer routes after container switch [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming container start/stop alone switches traffic
• Ignoring load balancer or proxy configuration
• Thinking Docker daemon status causes routing issues

5. You want to automate blue-green deployment using Docker Compose. Which approach correctly switches traffic between blue and green services?

hard

A. Run both blue and green services with the same name and let Docker handle traffic automatically

B. Stop Docker Compose and restart it with a new image tag without changing service names

C. Build images with different tags but deploy only the blue service always

D. Use two Compose files with different service names and update the reverse proxy to point to the active service

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand Docker Compose blue-green setup

   Using two Compose files or service names (blue and green) allows running both environments side by side.

2. Step 2: Switch traffic by updating reverse proxy

   Updating the reverse proxy or load balancer to point to the active service switches traffic without downtime.

3. Final Answer:

   Use two Compose files with different service names and update the reverse proxy to point to the active service -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Two services + proxy update = blue-green switch [OK]

Hint: Switch proxy target between blue and green services [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using same service names causing conflicts
• Not updating proxy or load balancer
• Deploying only one service without switching