Docker for Node.js Projects From a Docker Captain

2021 Update: Ready for Apple Silicon (M1 arm64) and Raspberry Pi’s!

2023: Fixes still happening when needed, and the course is being maintained regularly.
Welcome to the best course on the planet for using Docker with Node.js! With your basic knowledge of Docker and Node.js in hand, Docker Mastery for Node.js is a course for anyone on the Node.js path. This course will help you master them together.

I’m your instructor Bret, an Award Winning Docker Captain, DevOps community leader, and a bestselling Udemy author. I built this course for you because I live and breathe Docker containers, and I’ve enjoyed using Node.js since 2012. They work great together, and I’ll show you how!

Learn the cutting edge features of Docker that will make your Node.js apps build faster, smaller, and run more securely and reliability. Containers and Node.js are two of the hottest and most popular topics in tech.

It’s just as important to know what not to do, as well the best ways to use Node.js in Docker, and I teach a huge amount of info in this course for do’s and don’ts with Node.js in Docker.

You want assignments? We go through assignments using all sorts of Node.js + Docker setups. Single-container CLI apps, database-backed web apps, Express.js, hapi.js, distributed micro-service apps, Angular, Websockets, HTTP Proxies, MongoDB with proper connection shutdown, and more.

**NOTE: Be sure you know Docker basics and Node.js basics before starting this course. I suggest my Docker Mastery course first if you are new to Docker. Also read the course requirements!**

“…Bret is amazing. You can tell he knows exactly what he is talking about and enjoys helping others. I have never seen someone so involved with his user base as Bret. Direct messages via slack, live youtube broadcasts, newsletters, etc. I don’t know how he does it…I would seriously buy any course that Bret puts out because I have no doubts that it will be excellent.” — David Olson, Udemy student, Docker Mastery course.

“Great introduction.Bret delivers great resources and instructions. He is the guy you want to learn from when it comes to Docker. The real deal. Worth the money and more.“ —Joseph Martinez, Udemy student, Docker Mastery course

Some of the many cool things you’ll do in this course:

• Build Node.js Images that auto-scan for security vulnerabilities

• Use Docker’s cutting-edge BuildKit with SSH Agents and NPM Caches for better image building

• Use docker-compose with Visual Studio Code for full Node.js debug support in Docker

• Ensure you’re using all the latest features of Docker Desktop

• Use BuildKit and Multi-stage Builds to create minimal and flexible Dockerfiles

• Build custom Node.js images using distro’s like CentOS and Alpine

• Test Docker init, tini, and Node.js as a PID 1 process in containers

• Create Node.js apps that properly startup and respond to healthchecks

• Build graceful shutdown code into your apps for zero-downtime deploys

• Dig into HTTP connections with orchestration, and how Proxies can help

• Study examples of Docker Swarm and Kubernetes deployments for Node.js

• Migrate traditional (legacy) Node.js apps into containers

• Simplify your microservice solutions with advanced Docker Compose features

“Bret is a naturally born instructor, docker and swarm GURU…Bret gives clear and unbiased recipes for real world scenarios of handling docker files.“ — Marciej Domanski, Udemy student, Docker Mastery course.

“This speaker is powerful!…The speaker instantly gained my excitement and favor which is exactly what I was hoping would happen. This excellent connection makes it easy for me to follow along.” — Kendra, Udemy student, Docker Mastery course.

Extra things that come with this course:

• Access to the course Slack Chat team, for getting help/advice from me and other students.

• Weekly YouTube Live Q&A’s where you can ask me questions live.

• Bonus videos I put elsewhere like YouTube and share via Udemy announcements.

• Tons of reference links to supplement this content.

• Updates to content as products change their features on these topics.

What you will learn in this course:

You’ll start with a quick review about getting set up with Docker, as well as Docker Compose basics. That way we’re on the same page for the basics.

Then you’ll jump into Node.js Dockerfile basics, that way you’ll have a good Dockerfile foundation for new features we’ll add throughout the course.

You’ll be building on all the different things you learn from each Lecture in the course. Once you have the basics down of Compose, Dockerfile, and Docker Image, then you’ll focus on nuances like how Docker and Linux control the Node process and how Docker changes that to make sure you know what options there are for starting up and shutting down Node.js and the right way to do it in different scenarios.

We’ll cover advanced, newer features around making the Dockerfile the most efficient and flexible as possible using things like BuildKit and Multi-stage.

Then we’ll talk about distributed computing and cloud design to ensure your Node.js apps have 12-factor design in your containers, as well as learning how to migrate old apps into this new way of doing things.

Next we cover Compose and its awesome features to get really efficient local development and test set-up using the Docker Compose command line and Docker Compose YAML file.

With all this knowledge, you’ll progress to production concerns and making images production-ready.

Then we’ll jump into deploying those containers and running them in production. Whether you use Docker Engine or orchestration with Kubernetes or Swarm, I’ve got you covered. In addition, we’ll cover HTTP connections and reverse proxies for connection handling and routing with multi-container systems.

Lastly, you’ll get a final, big assignment where you’ll be building and deploying a large, complex solution, including multiple Node.js containers that are doing different things. You’ll build Docker images, Dockerfiles, and compose files, and deploy them to a server to test. You’ll need to check whether connections failover properly. You’ll basically take everything you’ve learned and apply it in one big project!

“Bret knows, lives, breaths and loves his technology stack. The passion and belief always comes through in all of his courses which is whyI will always recommend his work.” — Steven Hunt, Udemy student, Docker Swarm Mastery course

Why should you learn from me?

• I’m A Practitioner. Welcome to the real world: I’ve got more than 20 years of sysadmin and developer experience, over 30 certifications, and have been using Docker and Node.js for myself and my consulting clients since their early days. With me, you’re learning from someone who’s helped run many hundreds of container apps across dozens of projects and organizations.

• I’m An Educator. With me, you’ll learn from someone who knows how to make a syllabus: I want to help you. People say I’m good at it. I won a 2018 Leadership Award at DockerCon for helping others learn. For the last few years I’ve trained thousands of people on using Docker in workshops, conferences and meetups. See me teach at events like DockerCon, O’Reilly Velocity, GOTO, and Linux Open Source Summit.

• I Lead Communities. Also, I’m a Docker Captain, which means Docker Inc. thinks I know a thing or two about Docker and that I do well in sharing it with others. In the real-world: I run two local meetups in our fabulous tech community in Norfolk/Virginia Beach USA. I help online: usually in Slack and Twitter, where I learn from and help others.

“This is the best teacher i know, not because he teaches me, but because he forces me to learn for myself in the framework he has set.” — Fabian Letsch, Udemy student, Docker Mastery course.

Giving Back: a portion of my profit on this course will be donated to supporting open source and protecting our freedoms online! This course is only made possible by the amazing people creating open source. I’m standing on the shoulders of (open source) giants! Donations will be split between my favorite charities including the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Free Software Foundation. Look them up. They’re awesome!

This is a living course, and will be updated as features and workflows change.

This course is designed to be fast at getting you started but also get you deep into the “why” of things. Simply the fastest and best way to learn the latest docker skills. Look at the scope of topics in the Sessions and see the breadth of skills you will learn.

Also included is a private Slack Chat group and weekly Live YouTube Q&A for getting help with this course and continuing your Docker, Node.js, and DevOps learning with help from me and other students.

Thanks so much for considering this course. Come join me and thousands of others in this course (and my others) for learning the latest DevOps tech! – Bret

Rating Distribution

• 1 stars: 12 votes
• 2 stars: 14 votes
• 3 stars: 75 votes
• 4 stars: 374 votes
• 5 stars: 988 votes

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do I have access to the course materials?

You can view and review the lecture materials indefinitely, like an on-demand channel.

Can I take my courses with me wherever I go?

Definitely! If you have an internet connection, courses on Udemy are available on any device at any time. If you don’t have an internet connection, some instructors also let their students download course lectures. That’s up to the instructor though, so make sure you get on their good side!