Managing Docker Containers with OpenShift and Kubernetes

Casey Justus AWS, DevOps, Docker, Microservices, Technology Snapshot Leave a Comment

For the last few years, Docker containers have been all the rage in the DevOps world. After all, what’s not to like? They allow you to strip out 99% of stuff in your VM and just deploy your code.

Containers can save resources, speed deployment, scale well and offer more fault tolerance. But how do you manage them?

In my experience, the Docker Machine and Docker Swarm stack hasn’t lived up my to expectations. It has a limited API, no support for monitoring and logging, and much more manual scaling. AWS’s EC2 containers scale well, but you’ll be locked into Amazon.

In my opinion, the best current stack for Docker containers includes Kubernetes and OpenShift. In this blog I will give a brief introduction to Kubernetes + OpenShift with an eye for what they do well…

Using Docker + AWS to build, deploy and scale your application

Brandon Klimek AWS, DevOps, Docker, Spring, Spring Boot, Tutorial 8 Comments

I recently worked to develop a software platform that relied on Spring Boot and Docker to prop up an API. Being the only developer on the project, I needed to find a way to quickly and efficiently deploy new releases. However, I found many solutions overwhelming to set up.

That was until I discovered AWS has tools that allow any developer to quickly build and deploy their application.

In this 30 minute tutorial, you will discover how to utilize the following technologies:
– AWS CodeCommit – source control (git)
– AWS Code Build – source code compiler, rest runner
– AWS Codepipeline – builds, tests, and deploys code every time the repo changes
-AWS Elastic Beanstalk – service to manage EC2 instances handling deployments, provisioning, load balancing, and health monitoring
-Docker + Spring Boot – Our containerized Spring Boot application for the demo

Once finished, you will have a Docker application running that automatically builds your software on commit, and deploys it to the Elastic beanstalk sitting behind a load balancer for scalability. This continuous integration pipeline will allow you to worry less about your deployments and get back to focusing on feature development within your application.

Microsoft Silver Partner

Keyhole Earns Microsoft Competency Partner Status

Keyhole Software Azure, Company News, Consulting, Keyhole Leave a Comment

We are excited to announce that Keyhole Software has achieved the status of Microsoft Silver Competency Partner.

Joining this elite tier of Microsoft Partners represents that Keyhole has achieved the highest level of application development competence with Microsoft technologies. It required a history of success within the technology industry and a constant commitment to customers.

Creating A Custom Amazon Alexa Skill

Ryan Nguyen .NET, Azure, Conversational Apps, Programming, Tutorial 1 Comment

With the explosion of the internet of things (IoT), many companies are competing to create the best smart home ecosystem for consumers.

Amazon Echo, for instance, is a robust system that allows the user to interact with their smart devices via voice command. Alexa is the application that the Echo communicates with, essentially the brain of the Amazon Echo. It controls how your Amazon Echo communicates with your other smart devices and services. It can sync with a variety of smart devices including switches, thermostats, garage doors, sprinklers, door locks, music streamers, news outlets, and more. It also allows the third-party companies to create custom skills which are then accessible through the Amazon Echo.

In this blog I will discuss the Amazon Echo and its Alexa application. We will go through the process to create a custom Alexa skill about the Keyhole blog, paying particular attention to keywords you’ll need to understand when you create your own Skill. From there, we’ll show how to test a Skill via simulators and deploy it to your Amazon Echo.

Golden Service Fabric Hammer

James Bradley .NET, Azure, Microservices, Service Fabric, Technology Snapshot, Tutorial Leave a Comment

I had some time before my next project started up, so David Pitt asked me to research and write a blog on Service Fabric. It sounded terrifying. First off, I’m not really what you would call articulate. I finish only half of sentences that I… well, I would hate talking to me. Secondly, I hadn’t yet had as much of a chance …