Navigating the world of Docker is like exploring a vast playground of computer magic. Every time we write some code or set things up, we realize how awesome containerization can be. As developers, we’re always on the lookout for ways to make our work smoother and faster. That’s where Docker extensions come into play.
I decided to write this blog and share a list of my favorite Docker extensions. These extensions have found a permanent spot in my tech toolkit. Covering security, observability, testing, database management, container orchestration, and more, I believe it’s all here. If I’m missing any, shout out, and I’ll add the extensions to the curated list.
Vulnerability detection
Snyk
Snyk is a developer security platform that enables application and cloud developers to secure their whole application from development to running their applications in the cloud. The Snyk container extension enables you to scan your remote or local image and detect any contained vulnerabilities.
Snyk integrates security natively into docker products allowing you to scan container images directly within docker desktop before pushing them to a registry. This helps you identify and fix vulnerabilities early in the development process, preventing them from reaching production.
You can also access clear and prioritized information about vulnerabilities, including severity levels, potential impact, and recommended remediation steps. This helps you focus on the most critical issues first.
Key features.
- Container image scans – It follows OCI specifications for container images, including layered file systems and metadata.
- Identifies third-party software from operating systems and application package managers within image layers.
- Detection by Snyk container – Identifies installed software, covering operating system packages, unmanaged software, and application packages.
- Scans each intermediate layer without squashing, considering the presence of manifest files even if deleted.
- Requires no container execution which means that you can perform successful scans without running foreign code.
- Supports many operating systems – Detects vulnerabilities in various operating systems, including AlmaLinux, Alpine Linux, CentOS, Debian, Oracle Linux, RHEL, SLES, Ubuntu, and more.
- Alerts on new vulnerabilities even if image software remains unchanged.
JFrog
The JFrog docker desktop extension is a powerful tool designed to enhance the security of local docker images. Leveraging the capabilities of JFrog Xray, this extension conducts comprehensive security scans on docker images within your local environment. JFrog Xray’s extensive vulnerabilities database, continuously updated by a dedicated security research team, ensures that the tool remains at the forefront of security solutions.
With this extension, you can scan local docker images for vulnerabilities directly within the familiar docker Desktop environment. This helps you identify and fix issues early in the development process, before they reach production, saving time and effort.
You can initiate scans with minimal disruption of your existing workflow since JFrog seamlessly integrates with docker. You can also use the docker desktop UI to view scan results, and understand and prioritize vulnerabilities.
Key features.
- Scans local docker images for security vulnerabilities using JFrog Xray’s extensive vulnerabilities database.
- JFrog gives you continuous updates to ensure access to the latest vulnerability information.
- This tool also used deep recursive scanning, examining every package within the docker image.
- Analyzes even the smallest binary components, providing a thorough understanding of potential security risks.
KubeScape
Kubescape is a tool designed to enhance the security robustness of your Kubernetes cluster by offering valuable insights into its security posture. The tool achieves this by conducting regular configuration and image scans, providing visualizations of RBAC rules, and suggesting automatic fixes when applicable.
The Kubescape Extension for docker Desktop functions by deploying Kubescape’s in-cluster components and establishing a connection to the ARMO Platform. Through this integration, it furnishes comprehensive insights into the Kubernetes cluster deployed by docker Desktop.
You can access this information through the intuitive dashboard on the ARMO platform, allowing you to easily understand and manage the security aspects of your Kubernetes environment.
Kubescape docker extension encourages you to adopt a “shift left” security mindset. This means prioritizing security from the very beginning, leading to more secure applications overall. You can also access actionable insights to address vulnerabilities effectively.
Key features.
- Allows you to scan Kubernetes clusters directly within your workflow without needing to switch tools.
- Streamlined scanning of Kubernetes clusters and container images within the familiar docker environment.
- Clear and concise information about vulnerabilities, including severity levels, potential impact, and recommended remediation steps.
- Highlights critical vulnerabilities first, allowing developers to focus on the most pressing security concerns.
- Automated vulnerability scanning as part of CI/CD pipelines, helping you catch and fix vulnerabilities early in the development lifecycle.
Monitoring and observability
Digma
Developing docker images involves various stages, each generating valuable data about the impact of code changes and the overall product’s stability. Digma, a free developer tool, acts as a Continuous Feedback bridge in the DevOps loop, aiming to help you as a developer decipher metrics, traces, and logs that code emits.
To collect data about the code, behind the scenes, Digma leverages OpenTelemetry, a widely used open standard for modern observability. To make getting started easier, Digma takes care of the configuration work for you, so from the developer’s point of view, getting started with continuous feedback is equivalent to flipping a switch.
Digma automatically and continuously processes observability data, providing you with valuable insights directly in their Integrated Development Environment (IDE) through linting. This approach enables a deeper understanding of code behavior, facilitating better design decisions and quicker responses to regressions, code smells, or issues.
The benefit is that there are almost no requirements to start using your observability data. The only step is to install the Digma IntelliJ plugin from the marketplace. This will let you both collect data while debugging locally as well as from your docker Compose application.
Digma’s benefit is that it is used not only to collect data but also to analyze your traces and provide feedback about your code, identifying issues, code smells, regressions, bottlenecks, and more.
Key Features:
- Runtime analysis – Digma utilizes OpenTelemetry to collect code runtime data, allowing you to effortlessly find problematic areas, pinpoint bottlenecks, and prioritize errors affecting end-users.
- Enhanced GitOps cycle – Integrating Digma into the GitOps cycle simplifies pull request feedback and code review annotations, making it easier for teams to collaborate.
- Enhanced observability – Digma enhances developer observability by collecting and analyzing code runtime data, offering insights into problematic code areas, bottlenecks, errors affecting end-users, and more.
- Continuous feedback – Digma facilitates continuous evaluation of code runtime data, offering developers shorter feedback loops and tighter control of their codebase.
- Easy installation – Digma can be easily installed as a docker extension from the Extensions Marketplace, and its setup involves straightforward steps for collecting feedback about code behavior.
Sumo Logic/ Collector
Sumo Logic is a modern SaaS log analytics platform that unifies organizations by centralizing all log and event data and provides insights into various aspects of IT operations, security, and compliance by collecting, aggregating, and analyzing log and event data from different sources.
Sumo Logic offers a Collector specifically designed for docker environments. The Sumo Logic Collector for docker allows users to collect and send log data from docker containers to the Sumo Logic platform for analysis.
Key features
- The Sumo Logic collector for docker is designed to collect log data generated by applications running in docker containers. It can capture logs from multiple containers across your dockerized environment.
- The collector streams log data in real-time to the Sumo Logic platform, providing near-instant visibility into the logs generated by your dockerized applications.
- The collector can automatically discover and monitor new docker containers as they are created or removed, ensuring that log data from all relevant containers is captured.
- You can configure the collector to filter and collect specific log sources or types within docker containers. This configurability allows for a more focused and efficient log analysis process.
Grafana
Grafana is an open-source logging, metrics, traces, and profiling platform that also provides incident management and our application monitoring service.
The Grafana docker extension simplifies monitoring your local docker Desktop instance directly from within your Grafana Cloud account. With prebuilt dashboards the Grafana docker extension eliminates the need to set up complex configurations or manually push logs and metrics, allowing you to visualize and analyze data from your local development environment effortlessly.
The extension leverages the embedded Grafana Agent to automatically collect data from your docker Desktop instance. The extension comes with pre-built dashboards specifically designed to monitor key docker metrics. These dashboards provide insights into container health, resource usage (CPU, memory, network), and overall performance. This readily available information saves you time designing and configuring dashboards from scratch.
With this extension, you can identify potential issues quickly. This improved visibility allows you to debug and troubleshoot faster, allowing you to resolve problems within your local environment before deploying them to production.
Key features.
- Grafana supports a wide range of data sources, including databases (such as MySQL, and PostgreSQL), cloud services like AWS CloudWatch, Azure Monitor, and monitoring systems (such as Prometheus, and InfluxDB). This means that you can aggregate data from diverse sources in a single dashboard.
- Grafana provides a user-friendly interface for creating dashboards. You can customize dashboards to suit their specific monitoring needs.
- Grafana includes alerting features that allow you to set up and receive notifications based on predefined conditions. This can help you proactively identify and address issues as they arise.
- Grafana supports template variables, allowing you to create dynamic and reusable dashboards. This is useful for handling scenarios where you want to switch between different data sources or filter data based on certain parameters.
Prometheus
Prometheus is a systems and service monitoring system. It collects metrics from configured targets at given intervals, evaluates rule expressions, displays the results, and can trigger alerts if some condition is observed to be true.
The extension allows running a Prometheus instance directly within your docker environment, eliminating the need for complex installations or configurations. It also comes pre-configured to scrape metrics from popular container orchestration platforms like docker Swarm and Kubernetes.
You can easily access ease to use dashboards that offer insights into container health, resource utilization (CPU, memory, network), and overall performance. You can also easily share your Prometheus dashboards with other members of your team.
Key features
- Dimensional data – Prometheus implements a highly dimensional data model.
- Powerful queries (PromQL) that allow you to slice and dice collected time series data.
- Great visualization and multiple modes for visualizing data, including a built-in expression browser.
- Integration with Grafana for advanced visualization options.
- Console template language for additional customization.
- Scaling is achieved through functional sharding and federation.
- Supports over ten languages, with the flexibility to implement custom libraries.
Database Tools
Mongo Express
Mongo Express is a lightweight Web-Based Administrative tool to effectively manage MongoDB Databases. You can run Mongo Express in docker Desktop and connect to any MongoDB server by providing a host name, port, username and password, depending on the security of your MongoDB server. Alternatively, you can use the Connection String authentication method by providing a valid MongoDB connection string.
The extension eliminates the need for manual configuration. With a single click, it sets up a MongoDB instance and a Mongo Express container. The Mongo Express docker extension also provides you with a visual way to manage your database, the extension helps developers focus on their core tasks and improve their overall productivity.
The interface also allows multiple users to access and manage the database simultaneously, facilitating collaboration within development teams.
Key Features.
- You can run Mongo Express in docker Desktop.
- You can also easily specify the MongoDB server to connect to.
- You can also save credentials for future use.
Open Source management tool for PostgreSQL
PostgreSQL is one of the most used databases. The PGAdmin4 desktop extension is designed to help developers oversee and administer numerous PostgreSQL and EDB advanced server database servers. It supports both local and remote servers, offering a unified graphical interface.
This extension simplifies accessing and managing multiple PostgreSQL servers, both locally and remotely, through a single user interface within docker Desktop. It offers a user-friendly graphical interface, allowing you to manage database objects, run SQL queries directly within the interface to interact with the database and analyze data, view and explore data through tables, charts, and graphs, making it easier to understand relationships and patterns as well as monitor server performance.
Generally, this extension offers an intuitive interface, promotes collaboration, and improves overall workflow, making it a popular choice for development environments.
Key features
- Embedded PGAdmin4 management tool – The extension integrates an embedded PGAdmin4 Open source management tool for PostgreSQL, providing a graphical interface for database management.
- Centralized database management – Allows you to monitor and manage multiple PostgreSQL and EDB advanced server database servers, both local and remote, through a single graphical interface.
- Graphical interface for object management – Provides an easy-to-use graphical interface for the creation and management of various database objects.
- Remote database management – Supports the management of remote database servers in addition to local servers, providing flexibility for users with distributed database environments.
Oracle SQLcl client tool
Oracle SQLcl, short for SQL developer command Line, is a Java-powered command line tool for Oracle database. It lets you run SQL and PL/SQL commands in a way that’s easy and efficient. With SQLcl, you can work with your database interactively or process commands in batches.
This docker extension simplifies connection by eliminating the need for separate installations or configurations of the SQLcl client tool. It also offers a user-friendly interface for interacting with the database, including command history and persistent storage for uploaded/downloaded files.
You can also enable connections to both local Oracle databases running on the docker desktop and Oracle Cloud autonomous databases.
Key Features.
- Inline editing – SQLcl allows you to edit your commands directly in the command line, providing a more dynamic and user-friendly experience.
- Statement completion – The tool assists you by suggesting and completing SQL and PL/SQL statements, saving you time and reducing errors.
- Command recall – SQLcl remembers your previously executed commands, making it convenient to revisit and reuse them without having to retype.
- Compatibility with SQL Plus Scripts – SQLcl seamlessly works with your existing SQL plus scripts, ensuring a smooth transition and compatibility with your established workflows.
Testing tools
AtomicJar
AtomicJar is an integration testing platform that enables developers to build databases and web frameworks. The company creates and engineers developer tools. AtomicJar’s acquisition by Docker highlights AtomicJar’s impact, particularly in its connection with the widely-used Testcontainers open-source project.
Testcontainers makes your life easier by offering ready-to-use Docker containers for databases, message brokers, and other dependencies directly integrated into your test suite. Instead of spending time on the hassle of setting up and managing test environments, developers can dive straight into writing meaningful test cases.
Key features
- With pre-configured Docker containers, you can skip the tedious process of configuring databases and other dependencies.
- Using the same containerized environment for all tests ensures consistency, minimizing the chances of encountering bugs specific to different environments.
- Testcontainers simplify the local development journey by allowing developers to effortlessly launch essential dependencies with minimal setup.
- Using test containers you no longer have to wrestle with complex configurations or manual environment setups – you can swiftly test your code changes and iterate faster.
- Support a wide range of programming languages (8 supported languages) and testing frameworks.
Jmeter
Apache JMeter is an open-source software, entirely built on Java. With this tool, you can conduct performance testing, functional testing, and load testing on web applications. Its primary purpose revolves around scrutinizing the functional aspects during load testing while also gauging the overall performance.
This docker extension eliminates the need for local JMeter installation, saving time and resources. Apart from that it also allows you to run JMeter tests directly from docker containers, facilitating integration into CI/CD pipelines and automated testing workflows.
With this extension in place, you can access a controlled and reproducible testing environment, ensuring consistency across different testing runs.
Key features
- Lightweight and is designed to be efficient and secure, ensuring a minimal resource footprint while maintaining robust security measures.
- Incorporates interactive charts to visualize and analyze data, providing a dynamic and user-friendly interface for interpreting test results.
- Enables support for JMeter plugins, allowing you to extend and customize their testing capabilities according to specific requirements.
- Facilitates the mounting of volumes, simplifying the management of files and configurations during test execution.
- Allows you to configure proxy settings, facilitating the simulation of real-world scenarios and enhancing the realism of performance tests.
Tailscale
The Tailscale extension is a valuable tool that enhances the security and connectivity of docker containers. It allows you to establish a secure, virtual private network (VPN) effortlessly, enabling secure communication among devices and docker containers. With a focus on simplicity and versatility, Tailscale ensures that connected containers are accessible only within the Tailscale network, eliminating the need to expose them to the public internet.
With this extension, you can expose your locally running containers’ public ports to your entire Tailscale network. This allows your team members or any authorized device on the network to access these services directly, facilitating collaboration and testing.
You can also connect to internal tools and databases running within containers, regardless of their physical location. This streamlines your workflow by eliminating the need for complex configurations or cumbersome access methods.
Securely SSH into your containers from any device on your Tailscale network. This enables remote debugging, maintenance, and management of containerized applications, enhancing development flexibility.
Leverage Tailscale’s secure mesh networking to ensure all communication between your local development environment and containers is encrypted and private. This adds a layer of security compared to traditional solutions.
Key Features.
- Tailscale ensures a secure connection to docker containers without the need to expose them to the public internet, enhancing the overall security posture of containerized applications.
- Facilitates the sharing of development servers among teammates seamlessly, eliminating the need for additional setup and fostering collaboration.
- Provides the capability to remotely access databases and sensitive development resources securely, preventing exposure to the public internet.
- Utilizes MagicDNS to assign short names for devices and containers, simplifying the identification and access of resources within the Tailscale network.
- Tailscale serves as a zero-configuration VPN, offering easy installation on any device within minutes. It automatically manages firewall rules, streamlining the setup process.
- Integrates with docker Desktop, allowing you to connect their containers to the Tailscale network directly from their docker environment.
Aqua Trivy
Trivy stands as the go-to open-source security scanner, known for its popularity, reliability, speed, and user-friendly nature. This Docker extension is designed to make finding vulnerabilities, Infrastructure as Code (IaC) misconfigurations, software bill of materials (SBOM) discovery, cloud scanning, and identifying Kubernetes security risks a breeze. Whether you’re working with local or remote images, Trivy empowers you to run unlimited vulnerability scans, providing insights into potential security issues before you even use or pull the images.
Trivy allows scanning container images directly from the docker desktop UI. This eliminates the need to use separate commands or tools, saving you time and simplifying your workflow. You can also scan images before deployment and prioritize fixing them before the code is deployed to production.
This Docker extension often provides links to relevant resources like documentation and vulnerability databases, allowing you to understand and address any identified vulnerabilities.
Key features.
- Trivy offers unrestricted vulnerability scanning, allowing users to assess potential security risks without limitations.
- Renowned for its simplicity, Trivy is extremely user-friendly, making it accessible for users of all experience levels in the realm of security scanning.
- Enables scanning of both locally stored images, with the convenience of choosing from a list, and remote images by directly entering the name in the search box.
- Provides flexibility with severity filtering, allowing you to focus on vulnerabilities based on their criticality. Optionally, it can display only those issues for which fixes are available.
Utility tools
Livecycle
The Livecycle docker extension is a tool that helps you collaborate and share your work more efficiently within the software development lifecycle (SDLC). With this Docker extension, you can instantly share your local development environment, which includes running containers, with your teammates for review and collaboration. This eliminates the need for setting up separate staging environments or waiting for CI builds. You can also local development environment directly to cloud platforms or Kubernetes clusters.
Key features
- Instant and secure tunneling to both front-end and back-end services running in the shared environment.
- You can share their local environment directly or publish it to the cloud.
- Allows you to generate secure HTTPS links for all exposed services, making them easily accessible for review.
- Provides control over who can access the shared environment, including both public and private access options.
- Integrates with external identity providers for secure access management.
- Offers built-in debugging tools like log inspection, shell access, and container inspection for troubleshooting purposes.
- Works with the OSSPreevy CLI tool to create ephemeral environments automatically for each pull request on cloud providers or Kubernetes clusters, streamlining the CI/CD process.
Live Charts
Live Charts brings real-time graph visualization to docker environments, offering users an insightful view into the performance metrics of CPU, Memory, Disk, and Network usage. This tool is designed to provide an effortless and dynamic monitoring experience, allowing users to stay informed about resource utilization within their containerized environment. With intuitive and interactive charts that update in real-time, Live Charts empowers you to make informed decisions, optimize your docker infrastructure, and maintain peak system performance.
Live Charts displays dynamic graphs for CPU, memory, disk, and network usage allowing you to quickly identify any performance bottlenecks or resource constraints affecting their containers.
With this docker extension, you can proactively address potential problems before they impact the application’s functionality or user experience.
You can also optimize resource usage, optimize container configuration, and resource allocation, leading to more efficient resource management within the docker environment. You can save a lot of time and effort using live charts and can streamline troubleshooting by providing visual cues to help pinpoint the source of performance issues.
Key features.
- Live charts specializes in presenting real-time visualizations of critical system metrics, offering immediate insights into the CPU, Memory, Disk, and Network usage within docker containers.
- Enables you to effortlessly monitor and track the current usage of essential resources, ensuring a proactive approach to system management.
- Provides intuitive and interactive charts that dynamically update, allowing you to explore and analyze the most recent data for better decision-making.
- Covers a spectrum of vital resources, including CPU, Memory, disk, and network, giving you a holistic understanding of their containerized environment’s performance.
- The extension dynamically updates charts to reflect the most recent data, providing users with accurate and up-to-date information about their containerized environment.
Disk Usage
The Disk Usage extension, presented by docker Inc., is one of the Docker extensions that offers a valuable solution for optimizing disk space within docker desktop environments. With a focus on efficient management, this extension offers a one-click solution to reclaim disk space by removing unneeded elements such as stopped containers, unused images, dangling images, and unused build cache, contributing to a more streamlined and space-conscious docker environment. By providing insights into disk usage statistics, you can make informed decisions to enhance the efficiency of your disk space utilization.
By automating disk space reclamation, the extension can save you time that would otherwise be spent manually identifying and removing unnecessary You can instead use your time and effort in core development tasks and avoid the frustration associated with managing disk space. The extension also encourages you to be proactive in managing your disk space. By regularly using the extension, you can prevent disk space issues from hindering your development workflow.
The extension also encourages you to be proactive in managing your disk space. By regularly using the extension, you can prevent disk space issues from hindering your development workflow.
Portainer
Portainer’s docker desktop extension simplifies docker container management, providing users with access to the world’s most popular GUI-based container management platform. With a rich set of management features, this extension enhances the docker desktop experience by offering seamless integration with Portainer’s robust functionality.
The extension provides a single, user-friendly interface within docker desktop to manage containers, images, networks, volumes, and other docker objects. This eliminates the need to switch between different tools or command lines.
Portainer provides visualizations like tables, graphs, and lists to quickly see the status and resource usage of containers. This allows you to gain immediate insights into your containerized applications, facilitating informed decision-making and troubleshooting.
Key features.
- Portainer’s extension streamlines docker container management through a user-friendly graphical user interface (GUI), making it accessible for users of all skill levels.
- You can view all running containers at a glance, providing a comprehensive overview of the current containerized environment.
- Easily access and view logs for all containers, facilitating efficient troubleshooting and monitoring of containerized applications.
- Console into containers directly from Portainer, enabling you to interact with and manage containerized applications effortlessly.
- Deploy code into containers with ease using a simple form, streamlining the process of updating and managing applications.
- Convert YAML configurations into custom templates for easy reuse, enhancing efficiency in deploying standardized configurations across different containers.
- Integrates with the Kubernetes API, providing you with access to Kubernetes functionality directly from the Portainer interface.
PortNavigator
PortNavigator serves as a powerful networking tool designed for network visualization and configurations. This tool, delivered through a user-friendly docker desktop GUI, empowers you to manage docker networking settings efficiently. By facilitating modifications to gateways, subnets, IP addresses, and container port mappings, PortNavigator minimizes the reliance on command line interactions and provides intuitive visualizations of existing networks and containers.
PortNavigator empowers you by offering a more intuitive and efficient way to manage and visualize docker container networks, ultimately leading to increased productivity and a smoother development experience.
Key Features.
- PortNavigator offers a visual interface for configuring docker networking settings, providing an intuitive and user-friendly environment for users to modify gateways, subnets, IP addresses, and container port mappings.
- Seamlessly integrates with docker desktop, allowing you to manage networking configurations without the need for extensive command-line interactions.
- Empowers you to modify gateway settings effortlessly through the GUI, streamlining the process of adjusting network configurations.
- Simplifies the configuration of subnets, allowing you to define and modify subnet settings with ease.
- Provides tools for managing IP addresses within docker networks, ensuring flexibility and control over network addressing.
- Presents visualizations of existing networks, allowing you to understand the current network topology at a glance.
- Offers visual representations of containers within the network, enhancing the overall understanding of the containerized environment.
Kubernetes
Lens
Lens Kubernetes, seamlessly integrates with docker Desktop, enabling users to run K0s, a lightweight certified Kubernetes distribution. This extension enhances your docker experience, providing full situational awareness of your Kubernetes clusters.
With an intuitive graphical interface, Lens empowers you to efficiently manage and monitor multiple Kubernetes clusters, applications, and resources, lowering the entry barrier for newcomers and boosting productivity for experienced users. Lens provides a comprehensive GUI for visualizing and managing all aspects of a Kubernetes cluster, including
viewing and managing multiple clusters simultaneously, deploy, manage, and scale containerized applications.
You can also easily monitor resources like pods, deployments, and services, and gain insights into their health and performance. At the same time you can access and analyze logs from applications and containers for debugging purpose
With Lens Kubernetes you can run a lightweight Kubernetes cluster (k0s) within your docker Desktop. This eliminates the need for complex setup processes and allows you to quickly experiment and learn Kubernetes.
Key Features.
- Lens offers complete situational awareness for everything running in your Kubernetes clusters, providing insights and control through a simple graphical user interface.
- The extension simplifies the management and monitoring of multiple Kubernetes clusters, making it easy for you to navigate and interact with their containerized environments.
- Gain increased visibility with real-time statistics, log streams, and hands-on troubleshooting capabilities, enhancing the monitoring and debugging process.
- Lens facilitates the running of K0s, an open-source, all-inclusive Kubernetes distribution. This lightweight solution is suitable for various environments, including cloud, bare metal, edge, and IoT.
- You can be confident that your clusters are properly set up and configured, ensuring the reliability and stability of your Kubernetes infrastructure.
Experience seamless Kubernetes deployment with the Harpoon docker extension by harpoon Corp. This innovative extension brings the power of the no code Kubernetes platform, providing a drag-and-drop tool for deploying software in seconds. With a user-friendly visual interface, harpoon empowers both beginners and seasoned professionals to deploy production-grade software effortlessly on the industry-leading container orchestrator, Kubernetes—all without the need for coding skills.
Manually deploying applications to Kubernetes requires knowledge of YAML configuration files and potentially Helm charts, which can be challenging for beginners and error-prone. However with Harpoon deploying applications becomes as simple as dragging and dropping container images or code repositories directly into the Harpoon interface.
Harpoon enables you to easily provision and manage cloud infrastructure, including Kubernetes clusters, on platforms like AWS, simplifying the entire deployment process. This reduces errors and time spent during the deployment process.
Key features.
- Harpoon eliminates the need for coding skills, allowing you to deploy and configure software on Kubernetes effortlessly through a drag-and-drop interface.
- The extension provides a visual interface that simplifies the complexity of Kubernetes, making it accessible for users with various levels of experience.
- You can utilize drag-and-drop functionality for deploying software, streamlining the deployment process and making it intuitive for users.
- Deploy production-grade software in seconds, making Harpoon an efficient and time-saving tool for both beginners and experienced Kubernetes users.
- Whether you’re new to Kubernetes or a seasoned pro, Harpoon caters to all skill levels, providing a platform that suits the needs of diverse users.
Kubescape
This extension allows you to enhance the security of your Kubernetes cluster effortlessly. This extension empowers you to fortify their Kubernetes environment by offering insights into the cluster’s security posture through a user-friendly online dashboard. Kubescape facilitates regular configuration and image scans, visualizes RBAC rules, and suggests automatic fixes, providing a comprehensive approach to securing your Kubernetes deployment.
Key features
- Kubescape delivers valuable insights into your Kubernetes cluster’s security posture, allowing you to identify and address potential vulnerabilities.
- Conducts regular configuration and image scans, ensuring continuous monitoring and proactive identification of security issues within the Kubernetes environment.
- Visualizes Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) rules, providing you with a clear overview of the access permissions within the cluster and aiding in security rule management.
- Offers suggestions for automatic fixes where applicable, streamlining the remediation process and enhancing the overall security resilience of the cluster.
- The extension installs Kubescape in-cluster components, ensuring seamless integration with docker Desktop. This allows for efficient communication with the ARMO Platform to gather insights.
- Connects to the ARMO Platform, facilitating a centralized dashboard for monitoring and managing the security of the Kubernetes cluster deployed by the docker desktop.
Management and container orchestration
Volumes Backup & Share Docker Extension
The Volumes Backup & Share extension, is designed to simplify the backup, cloning, restoration, and sharing of docker volumes effortlessly. This verified extension offers a seamless experience for docker desktop users, allowing them to enhance data resilience by creating copies of volumes and collaborating with others through SSH or by pushing volumes to a registry.
By simplifying volume management tasks, you can spend less time on administrative duties and more time on core development activities. You can also efficiently backup, restore, and collaboration features saving you valuable time and effort. Knowing that data is protected and easily recoverable also fosters a sense of security and allows you to experiment and iterate freely.
Key features.
- You can easily perform backup and restore operations for docker volumes, ensuring data integrity and providing a safety net for critical data.
- Clone docker volumes for replication purposes and share them with others. This feature promotes collaboration and efficient data sharing within the docker environment.
- Allows you to export volumes to various destinations, including compressed files in the local filesystem, existing local images, new local images, or images in docker Hub or other registries.
- Import data into new or existing containers from compressed files in the local filesystem, existing images, or images in docker Hub or other registries, providing versatility in data management.
- Transfer volumes seamlessly via SSH to another host running docker Desktop or docker engine. This feature ensures secure and efficient data movement between hosts.
- Perform actions like cloning, emptying, or deleting docker volumes, providing users with control over volume configurations and content.
Openshift.
The OpenShift docker desktop extension by Red Hat Inc. empowers developers working with OpenShift by simplifying the deployment and testing of applications directly from docker Desktop. This extension seamlessly integrates with docker Desktop, allowing you to choose your target environment, select a project, and deploy applications onto OpenShift effortlessly. With a user-friendly interface, developers can streamline their workflow and take advantage of key capabilities provided by the extension.
You can deploy applications directly from docker Desktop to your OpenShift cluster with a click of a button, eliminating complex configuration and command-line interactions.
This extension also allows you to quickly test changes locally and then deploy them to OpenShift for further testing or integration with other components, streamlining the development cycle.
This extension reduces many of the complexities of Kubernetes development by allowing you to explore Kubernetes resources, manage OpenShift configuration, and interact with your cluster from a familiar interface.
Key features.
- Automatically scans and detects Kubernetes environments by analyzing kubeconfigs in the local environment. Preselects the default Kubernetes environment and allows easy switching between different environments.
- Enables you to connect to new Kubernetes environments that are not yet configured on the local workstation. Users can directly connect to the desired environment by providing connection details.
- You can browse and select the project (namespace) in which you want to deploy your application on OpenShift.
- Allows you to pick and choose container images that have been built and deployed on container registries.
- Deploys container images by building the necessary resources, with automatic creation of routes to expose the application outside of the OpenShift cluster. Once deployed, the application opens in a new browser tab for quick access.
Conclusion: Top Docker extensions
As I think about Docker’s journey, it’s pretty amazing how so many of us developers have jumped on board, lured by its promises of consistency, scalability, and portability. I’ve personally felt the power it gives, making it a breeze to deploy my apps across different platforms and environments.
But you know how it is in the software world – things keep changing, and we need to stay adaptable. That’s where Docker extensions come in. Whether I’m tweaking performance, adding in cool third-party tools, or just making my workflows smoother, these extensions have become my go-to tools, making Docker even more awesome.
While this list of my favorite Docker extensions may not be exhaustive, but it’s a pretty good and exciting starting point for any developer out there looking to supercharge their productivity and dive deep into the world of Docker magic.
Let me know if I missed any extensions that you think should be included: Ping me
FAQs: Top Docker extensions
What are Docker extensions?
Docker extensions are small software programs that add new features and functionalities to Docker desktop. They can help you manage containers, automate tasks, and integrate Docker with other tools you use in your development workflow.
Are there any costs associated with using Docker extensions?
Most Docker extensions are free to use. However, some may offer paid plans with additional features.
What are the benefits of using Docker extensions?
Docker extensions can help supercharge your productivity by automating repetitive tasks, saving you time and effort. They can also integrate with other tools you use, creating a seamless development experience. Docker extensions can aso help extend docker’s functionality.
Can I create my own Docker extension?
Yes, Docker provides APIs and tools for developers to create their own extensions. However, this requires programming knowledge and familiarity with the Docker SDK.
Do Docker extensions work with Docker for Mac/Windows and Docker for Linux?
The availability of extensions may vary depending on the platform you’re using. Always check the extension’s documentation for compatibility information.
