Docker Compose — Practice Projects

Five complete, real-world multi-container projects that bring together everything you have learned throughout this tutorial series.

What You Will Build

#	Project	Services	Concepts
1	WordPress + MySQL	WordPress, MySQL, phpMyAdmin	Volumes, environment, health checks
2	REST API + Postgres + Redis	Node.js API, PostgreSQL, Redis	Build context, networks, depends_on
3	Nginx Reverse Proxy	Nginx, multiple backend apps	Custom networks, config files
4	ELK Stack	Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana	Resource limits, named volumes
5	Full Dev Environment	App, DB, cache, mail, monitoring	Profiles, Compose Watch, overrides
6	Practice Exercises	Mixed	Combine all concepts

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How to Use These Projects

Each project follows a consistent structure:

1. Architecture Overview — ASCII diagram of the service topology
2. Step-by-Step Build — Incremental compose.yml development
3. Testing — Commands to verify everything works
4. Enhancements — Suggestions to extend the project further

Prerequisite: You should have completed Chapters 1–14 before attempting these projects. Each project deliberately combines concepts from multiple chapters.

Project Complexity Progression:

  WordPress + MySQL        ████░░░░░░  Beginner
  API + Postgres + Redis   ██████░░░░  Intermediate
  Nginx Reverse Proxy      ███████░░░  Intermediate+
  ELK Stack                ████████░░  Advanced
  Full Dev Environment     ██████████  Expert