Docker & Kubernetes — Portable, Scalable Container Orchestration for Modern Applications

Most Docker and Kubernetes work we take on is production packaging for APIs, workers, and web frontends that already run on a single host or Compose stack. Typical deliveries include multi-stage Dockerfiles with non-root users, Helm charts for staging and production values, and managed clusters (EKS, GKE, or AKS) with namespaces, RBAC, and ingress wired to the team's existing CI. We also migrate Compose-based staging environments into Kubernetes when release cadence or multi-service coupling outgrows a single VM.

We choose Kubernetes when you need rolling deploys, horizontal scaling, or portable orchestration across clouds. For a single long-running service with modest traffic, a container on ECS, Cloud Run, or a hardened VM is often enough — we say so. Docker alone remains the packaging layer either way. Integration points are usually Terraform for cluster and network primitives, GitHub Actions or GitLab CI for build-scan-push, and Prometheus/Grafana for cluster and app metrics. Node.js and other runtimes ship as the same image shape; cloud choice (often AWS) drives managed control-plane and storage classes rather than rewrite of the app.

GitOps with Argo CD or Flux shows up once the team is deploying several services frequently and wants cluster state reviewed in Git. Until then, Helm from CI with clear rollback procedures is the common path.