Docker Compose for Multi-Container Apps

Most real applications need more than one container — an app server, a database, maybe a cache. Docker Compose lets you define them all in one file.

#A Sample docker-compose.yml

version: '3.8'
services:
  app:
    build: .
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    depends_on:
      - db
  db:
    image: postgres:16
    environment:
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: example
    volumes:
      - db_data:/var/lib/postgresql/data

volumes:
  db_data:

#Starting the Stack

docker compose up -d

#Viewing Logs Across Services

docker compose logs -f

#Stopping Everything

docker compose down

#Why This Matters

With one command, your entire local development environment — app and database — comes up consistently, on any machine, every time.

That wraps up our Docker for Beginners series — you now know enough to containerize and run real applications.