Deploying a Project Using Docker Compose on AWS EC2

In this tutorial, I’ll walk you through the steps to deploy a project on an AWS EC2 instance using Docker Compose. You will learn how to:

Launch an EC2 instance on AWS
Configure the security group to allow traffic on port 8080
Connect to the EC2 instance using SSH from a local Ubuntu machine
Install Docker Compose
Deploy a project using Docker Compose
Host a website on the deployed container

Prerequisites:

An AWS account
A basic understanding of EC2 instances and Docker
Ubuntu installed on your local machine
SSH key pair for EC2 access

Step 1: Launching an EC2 Instance

Log in to AWS Console:
- Go to the AWS Management Console.
- Navigate to the EC2 service.
Launch a New EC2 Instance:
- Click on Launch Instance to create a new instance.
- Choose an Ubuntu-based AMI (e.g., Ubuntu 20.04 LTS).
- Select an instance type, such as t2.micro for testing (covered under the AWS free tier).
- Configure instance settings (you can leave most options at defaults for now).
- In the Security Group section, create a new security group with the following rules:
  - Type: HTTP, Port: 80, Source: Anywhere (0.0.0.0/0)
  - Type: Custom TCP, Port: 8080, Source: Anywhere (0.0.0.0/0)
  - Type: SSH, Port: 22, Source: My IP (or a trusted IP for security)
- Review and launch the instance, selecting an existing key pair (or create a new one) for SSH access.
Get the Public IP Address:
- After launching the instance, go to the Instances section, select your instance, and note the Public IP Address of the EC2 instance. You'll need this to connect via SSH.

Step 2: Connect to EC2 Instance Using SSH

Open Terminal on Your Local Machine (Ubuntu):
- Use the SSH key pair you downloaded when you launched the EC2 instance to connect via SSH:
```
  bashCopychmod 400 /path/to/your-key.pem
  ssh -i /path/to/your-key.pem ubuntu@<your-ec2-public-ip>
```
Confirm Connection:
- After a successful connection, you’ll be inside the EC2 instance terminal, ready to configure it.

Step 3: Install Docker and Docker Compose on EC2

Update the System:
- First, update the package list:
```
  bashCopysudo apt update
```
Install Docker:
- Install Docker by running the following commands:
```
  bashCopysudo apt install -y docker.io
```

Install Docker Compose:

Docker Compose is a tool for defining and running multi-container Docker applications. Install it by running:

  bashCopysudo curl -L "https://github.com/docker/compose/releases/download/1.29.2/docker-compose-$(uname -s)-$(uname -m)" -o /usr/local/bin/docker-compose
  sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/docker-compose

Verify Installation:
- Check the versions to ensure both Docker and Docker Compose were installed correctly:
```
  bashCopydocker --version
  docker-compose --version
```

Step 4: Deploy the Project Using Docker Compose

Clone Your Project Repository (or Upload Files):
- Clone your project’s repository (or upload your project files) onto the EC2 instance.
```
  bashCopygit clone https://github.com/yourusername/yourproject.git
  cd yourproject
```
Create a docker-compose.yml File:
- Inside your project folder, create a docker-compose.yml file that defines the services your app needs. Here’s an example of a docker-compose.yml file for a simple web app:
```
  yamlCopyversion: '3'
  services:
    web:
      image: nginx
      ports:
        - "8080:80"
      volumes:
        - ./html:/usr/share/nginx/html
```

This configuration tells Docker Compose to run an Nginx container, exposing port 8080 on the host machine and mapping it to port 80 in the container.

Start the Docker Compose Application:
- Run the following command to start your project with Docker Compose:
```
  bashCopysudo docker-compose up -d
```
- The -d flag runs the containers in detached mode (in the background).

Step 5: Test the Deployed Website

Access the Website:
- Open a browser on your local machine and go to:
```
  cppCopyhttp://<your-ec2-public-ip>:8080
```
- You should see the default Nginx welcome page or your custom website if you’ve configured it differently.

Step 6: Clean Up Resources

Stop the Docker Compose Application:
- If you no longer need the application running, you can stop the containers with:
```
  bashCopysudo docker-compose down
```
Terminate the EC2 Instance:
- Go to the EC2 console and terminate the instance to stop any further charges.

Conclusion

By following these steps, you have successfully deployed a project using Docker Compose on an AWS EC2 instance, configured security groups, and hosted a website. Docker Compose simplifies the deployment of multi-container applications and is a powerful tool to streamline production environments.

Deploying project using docker compose

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