Deploying your Docker Containers using Amazon Elastic Container Service (ECS)

Introduction

Docker is a popular technology for containerization of applications allowing developers to package an application with all of its dependencies into a container that can run on any Linux machine. It makes it easy for developers to build, deploy, and run applications in a consistent environment that can be easily scaled.

Amazon Elastic Container Service (ECS) is a highly scalable, high-performance container orchestration service that allows you to run, stop, and manage Docker containers on a cluster of Amazon EC2 instances.

In this tutorial, we will guide you through the process of deploying your Docker containers into Amazon ECS using the AWS Management Console.

Prerequisites

• Basic Knowledge of Docker containerization
• An AWS account
• Docker installed on your system

Step 1: Create an ECS Cluster

The first step is to create an ECS cluster using the AWS Management Console. An ECS cluster is a logical grouping of EC2 instances on which containers are executed.

1. Open the Amazon ECS console and select Clusters in the navigation pane.
2. Click Create Cluster, select EC2 Linux + Networking, and click Next Step.
3. In the Cluster Name field, enter a name for your cluster and select the EC2 instance type you want to use.
4. In the Networking section, select Create a new VPC, and provide a name for it. You can leave the other default values as they are.
5. In the Subnets section, select the availability zones in which you want your EC2 instances to be created, and leave the default values as they are.
6. In the Security Groups section, select Create new VPC security group, provide a name for it, and select the inbound traffic that should be allowed to your cluster instances.
7. Click Create when you’re done. Your cluster will be created.

Step 2: Create a Task Definition

A task definition is a blueprint for your application that defines various parameters like container images, CPU, memory, and storage requirements, environment variables, etc. You can create task definitions using the AWS Management Console.

1. Open the Amazon ECS console and select Task Definitions in the navigation pane.
2. Click Create new Task Definition, select Fargate or EC2 depending on the type of launch type you want to use, and click Next Step.
3. In the Task Definition Name field, enter a name for your task definition.
4. In the Task Role field, you can optionally specify an IAM role that provides permissions to your Amazon ECS tasks.
5. In the Network Mode field, select the network mode you want to use for your task.
   • awsvpc is the only network mode that supports Fargate launch type.
   • bridge or host network modes are supported for EC2 launch type.
6. In the Container Definitions field, click Add container and enter the following details:
   • In the Container Name field, enter a name for your container.
   • In the Image field, enter the image URI for your container image, e.g., nginx:latest.
   • In the Memory Limits field, specify the memory hard limits for your container in MB.
   • In the Port mappings field, map the container ports to the host ports.
7. Click Add, and then click Create.

Step 3: Create a Task and Run it on your Cluster

Once you have created a task definition, you can create a task and run it on your ECS cluster.

1. Open the Amazon ECS console and select Clusters in the navigation pane.
2. Select the cluster you want to use and click on the Tasks tab.
3. Click Run New Task.
4. In the Launch Type field, select the launch type you want to use, and then select the task definition you want to run.
5. In the Number of tasks field, specify the number of instances of your task you want to run.
6. In the Cluster VPC and Subnets field, select the VPC and subnets that you want to launch your task in.
7. In the Security groups field, select the security groups for your task.
8. Click Run Task.

Your task will start running on your ECS cluster.

Step 4: Monitor and Scale your Task

Amazon ECS provides various monitoring and scaling capabilities that you can use to manage your tasks, monitor their health, and scale them based on demand.

1. Open the Amazon ECS console and select Clusters in the navigation pane.
2. Select the cluster where your task is running and click on the Tasks tab.
3. Click on the task you want to monitor, and then click on the Logs tab to view the logs for your task.
4. You can also monitor the CPU and memory usage of your task using the Metrics tab.
5. To scale your task, click on the Details tab and then click on the Update button.
6. In the Update Task Set field, specify the number of tasks you want to add or remove, and then click on the Update button.

Conclusion

Amazon ECS is a highly-scalable, high-performance container orchestration service that provides a convenient way to deploy and manage your Docker containers in the cloud. With the AWS Management Console, you can create clusters, define task definitions, and manage your containers easily. In this tutorial, we have guided you through the process of deploying your Docker containers into Amazon ECS using the AWS Management Console.