This project has been created as part of the 42 curriculum by dplotzl.

Inception

Description

This project builds a small Docker-based infrastructure with three mandatory services: NGINX (TLS), WordPress (php-fpm), and MariaDB. The goal is to understand service isolation, networking, persistence, and secure configuration in a reproducible setup.

Docker in this project

• srcs/docker-compose.yml orchestrates all services.
• Each service is built from a dedicated Dockerfile under srcs/requirements/.
• Persistent data is stored in host paths under /home/dplotzl/data/.

Main design choices

• NGINX is the only public entrypoint on port 443.
• WordPress and MariaDB are only reachable on the internal Docker network.
• Secrets are mounted via Docker secrets files instead of hardcoded credentials.
• Data persists through Docker volumes mapped to the required host directory.

Comparison required by the subject

Virtual Machines vs Docker

• VM: full guest OS, heavier resources, stronger machine-level isolation.
• Docker: shared host kernel, lighter, faster startup, easier service composition.

Secrets vs Environment Variables

• Env vars are convenient for non-sensitive configuration.
• Secrets are better for passwords/credentials because they are mounted as files and avoid plaintext values in command history and image layers.

Docker Network vs Host Network

• Docker bridge network isolates services and supports controlled inter-container DNS.
• Host network removes that isolation and is forbidden for this project.

Docker Volumes vs Bind Mounts

• Docker volumes are Docker-managed and portable between runs.
• Bind mounts map specific host paths directly and are less portable.
• This project uses named volumes with bind-backed storage at /home/dplotzl/data/ to satisfy subject constraints.

Instructions

1. Create secrets in secrets/:
   • db_root_password.txt
   • db_password.txt
   • wp_admin_password.txt
   • wp_user_password.txt
2. Configure srcs/.env (domain and usernames).
3. Start:
   • make up
4. Stop:
   • make down
5. Clean containers/volumes:
   • make clean
6. Full cleanup:
   • make fclean

Resources

• Docker docs: https://docs.docker.com/
• Docker Compose docs: https://docs.docker.com/compose/
• NGINX docs: https://nginx.org/en/docs/
• PHP-FPM docs: https://www.php.net/manual/en/install.fpm.php
• MariaDB docs: https://mariadb.com/kb/en/documentation/
• WordPress CLI docs: https://developer.wordpress.org/cli/commands/

AI usage

AI was used for:

• reviewing shell scripts and configuration adjustments
• drafting documentation structure and formatting
• suggesting best practices for Docker security

All generated content was manually reviewed, tested and adapted before integration.