Managing Dependencies in Dockerized Applications
Last Updated :
23 Jul, 2025
Docker uses a daemon service with root privileges to run an application or a Dockerfile in an isolated environment. Dockerfile can have a lot of dependencies in it, and managing those is an important part in creating a docker image to be used by anyone in any environment. In this article, we will learn how to manage dependencies in Dockerized applications.
Primary Terminologies:
- Container: A container is a standalone executable piece of software that requires a docker image to run on.
- Dockerfile: It is a configuration setup file that includes step-by-step instructions on how to create a docker image
- Image: A docker image is built from building a Dockerfile, and contains all the dependencies and packages needed to run a container
- Layer: Each line of instruction in a Dockerfile corresponds to a layer in the Docker image.
Using exact versions in dependencies:
Step 1: Create a Dockerfile
We can provide exact versions of dependencies to be used in the Dockerfile so that no other version gets installed.
# Dockerfile
FROM node:12.18.3
RUN npm install [email protected]
Step 2: Building the Docker image
Now, build the image using docker build.
docker build -t node-image .
Output:
Using multi-stage builds
Step 1: Creating the Dockerfile
We can use multi-stage builds to separate out the build environment and the runtime environment. They are also beneficial in reducing the final artifacts size to be used while running the application.
# Dockerfile
# Stage 1: Build Stage
FROM node:12.18.3 AS build
WORKDIR /app
COPY package*.json ./
RUN npm install
COPY . .
RUN npm run build
# Stage 2: Production Stage
FROM node:12.18.3
WORKDIR /app
COPY package*.json ./
RUN npm install --only=production
Step 2: Building the Docker image
To create a docker image out of Dockerfile, use the command:
docker build -t multi-stage-test .
Step 3: Getting the list of all docker images
To list all the docker images, use the command:
docker images
Conclusion
In this article, we learned about how to manage dependencies in a dockerized application, and ensure that multiple environments in which the application runs face no issue, and runs smoothly. We first saw how to do this by using exact dependency versions in the Dockerfile, and then we used multi-stage builds to separate out the build time and run time artifacts from the final Docker image.
Can I use Docker Compose to manage dependencies?
Yes, docker compose is a feature provided by docker which allows us to run multiple docker containers and services at once, with custom configurations, networks, and volumes specified.
How do I handle environment-specific dependencies in Docker?
To handle certain dependencies specific to environments, we can use environment variables inside the Dockerfile. So, while running a container, we can specify the environment variable we require for the exact dependencies to get installed.
What is the best way to minimize the size of Docker images while managing dependencies?
To minimize docker images' final size, we need to ensure that we only add the required steps for only required packages during the installation and build creation process. We can also use multi-stage builds to separate out the build process from the runtime process, and hence reducing the final image size.
How do I handle version conflicts in dependencies within a Dockerized application?
We can specify the exact version of the dependency used in the Dockerfile, so that while running the container from the docker-image, only that exact version of the dependency is installed and used.
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