Docker Full-Stack Learning Repository

This repository documents my hands-on learning journey with Docker by building and containerizing a full-stack web application.

The project covers:

• Frontend development using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
• Backend APIs using Node.js and Express
• Database integration using MongoDB
• Database UI using Mongo Express
• Containerization and service orchestration using Docker & Docker Compose

The primary goal is to understand real-world containerized application architecture and DevOps best practices.

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📌 Objectives

• Learn Docker fundamentals and container lifecycle
• Build a frontend application using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
• Develop REST APIs using Node.js and Express
• Use MongoDB as the database
• Manage MongoDB visually using Mongo Express
• Containerize each service using Docker
• Connect services using Docker networks
• Use Docker Compose for multi-container orchestration

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🛠️ Tech Stack

Frontend

• HTML
• CSS
• JavaScript

Backend

• Node.js
• Express.js

Database

• MongoDB
• Mongo Express

DevOps / Infrastructure

• Docker
• Docker Compose

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📂 Project Structure

docker-fullstack-learning/
│
├── frontend/              # HTML, CSS, JS frontend
├── backend/               # Node.js + Express API
│   ├── routes/
│   ├── controllers/
│   └── server.js
│
├── docker/                # Docker-related configs (optional)
│
├── docker-compose.yml     # Multi-container setup
├── .env                   # Environment variables (not committed)
├── README.md
└── .gitignore

All services communicate through a Docker network.

🚀 Getting Started Prerequisites

Docker installed

Docker Compose installed

Node.js (for local development only) ▶️ Running the Application (Docker Compose)

1. Clone the repository git clone https://github.com/your-username/docker-fullstack-learning.git cd docker-fullstack-learning

2. Create .env file MONGO_INITDB_ROOT_USERNAME=admin MONGO_INITDB_ROOT_PASSWORD=securepassword MONGO_DB_NAME=appdb

⚠️ Do not commit .env files to GitHub

3. Start all services docker-compose up -d

4. Access the Services Service URL Frontend http://localhost:3000

Backend API http://localhost:5000

Mongo Express http://localhost:8081

MongoDB localhost:27017 5. Stop the services docker-compose down

📖 What I Am Learning

Docker images and containers

Dockerfile best practices

Docker networks

Environment variables in containers

Multi-container applications

Service dependency management

Secure credential handling

MongoDB container initialization

Debugging containerized applications

⚠️ Best Practices Followed

No hard-coded credentials

Environment variables for secrets

Isolated services per container

Docker networking for communication

Clean project structure

Git-friendly setup

📈 Learning Progress

Docker Basics

Containerizing MongoDB

Mongo Express Setup

Docker Networking

Dockerizing Node.js Backend

Frontend Containerization

Production-ready Docker Compose

CI/CD Integration

🔒 Security Notes

Credentials are stored in .env files

.env files are excluded using .gitignore

MongoDB is not exposed publicly

This setup is for learning and development only

🤝 Contribution

This is a personal learning repository. Suggestions and improvements are welcome via issues or pull requests.