24 Feb 2024
Beginner
Docker image and container are both fundamental concepts in Docker, a popular containerization platform. Here's the difference between the two:
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Docker Image:
- A Docker image is a lightweight, standalone, executable package that includes everything needed to run a piece of software, including the code, runtime, libraries, and dependencies.
- Images are typically built using a Dockerfile, which contains instructions for assembling the image layer by layer.
- Images are immutable, meaning once they are built, they cannot be changed. If you need to make changes, you would typically create a new image.
- Docker images are stored in a registry, such as Docker Hub, where they can be shared and distributed among users and systems.
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Docker Container:
- A Docker container is a runtime instance of a Docker image.
- Containers are lightweight, isolated environments that contain everything needed to run a specific application or service, including the application code, runtime, system tools, libraries, and settings.
- Containers run on a shared operating system kernel and are more efficient than virtual machines because they do not require a separate operating system instance for each container.
- Containers can be started, stopped, moved, and deleted programmatically or via Docker commands.
⭐Summary: An image is a blueprint or template used to create containers, while a container is a running instance of an image that holds the application and all its dependencies in an isolated environment.
