Docker is a platform for packaging applications and their dependencies into lightweight, isolated containers that can run consistently across different environments. A container includes the application, required libraries, configuration, and runtime components, helping reduce differences between development, testing, and production environments.
For example, a development team can package a web application and its database dependencies into separate containers and run them together on a developer laptop, testing environment, or cloud server. Docker makes applications easier to deploy, scale, update, and move between systems. Related concepts include containers, container images, Docker Compose, orchestration, microservices, Kubernetes, and DevOps.
