Step-by-Step Guide: Hosting WordPress in Docker on EC2 for Efficient Website Deployment

Step-by-Step Guide: Hosting WordPress in Docker on EC2 for Efficient Website Deployment
In today’s digital landscape, having a robust and scalable hosting environment is crucial for running a successful WordPress website. Amazon Web Services (AWS) EC2 instances provide a reliable and highly scalable infrastructure, while Docker offers containerization technology that simplifies deployment and enhances flexibility. In this guide, we will walk you through the process of hosting WordPress on AWS EC2 using Docker, enabling you to leverage the power of both platforms for optimal website performance.
Why Host WordPress on AWS and Docker?
  1. Scalability: AWS EC2 offers elastic scaling capabilities, allowing you to seamlessly adjust your resources based on traffic fluctuations. With Docker, you can easily manage containers, enabling efficient scaling and ensuring your WordPress site can handle high loads.
  2. Flexibility: Docker provides a lightweight and isolated environment for running applications. By encapsulating WordPress and its dependencies within containers, you gain portability and the ability to replicate your setup across different environments.
  3. Security: AWS implements robust security measures, including firewalls, access control, and encryption. Docker containers offer additional isolation, preventing conflicts between applications and reducing the attack surface for potential vulnerabilities.
  4. Resource Efficiency: Docker’s containerization approach enables efficient resource utilization by running multiple applications on a single host. This translates to cost savings and improved performance for your WordPress site.

Step-by-Step Guide: Hosting WordPress on AWS EC2 Using Docker

Step 1: Launch an EC2 Instance

  • Access the AWS EC2 Dashboard and launch a new instance with an appropriate AMI.
  • Configure the instance details, including instance type, network settings, and security groups. Ensure ports 22, 80, and 443 are open for SSH, HTTP, and HTTPS traffic, respectively.
  • Launch the instance and securely connect to it using SSH.

Step 2: Install Docker

Update the package lists:

 
sudo apt update

These packages are required to enable the use of Docker’s repository and ensure a smooth installation process.

sudo apt install apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl software-properties-common gnupg

Add Docker’s GPG key:

curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu/gpg | sudo apt-key add -

To verify that you now have the Docker GPG key with the fingerprint “9DC8 5822 9FC7 DD38 854A E2D8 8D81 803C 0EBF CD88,” search for the last 8 characters “0EBFCD88” using the command 

sudo apt-key fingerprint 0EBFCD88
Hosting WordPress in Docker on EC2

Add the stable Docker repository:

sudo add-apt-repository "deb [arch=amd64] https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu $(lsb_release -cs) stable"

In order to install the Docker engine, it is necessary to update the apt package index and proceed with the installation of the latest release of Docker Engine and containerd. Alternatively, you can choose to install a specific version by following the next step.

sudo apt update
sudo apt-get install docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io

Add a limited Linux user account to the “docker” group

echo $USER 

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
Hosting WordPress in Docker on EC2

After executing the usermod command, it is important to close the current SSH session and open a new one to ensure the changes take effect. Then, you can verify the successful installation by running the built-in “Hello World” program provided by Docker.

sudo docker run hello-world
Hosting WordPress in Docker on EC2

Step 3: Set up Docker Compose

sudo curl -L "https://github.com/docker/compose/releases/download/1.27.4/docker-compose-$(uname -s)-$(uname -m)" -o /usr/local/bin/docker-compose

Apply executable permissions to the binary:

sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/docker-compose
Hosting WordPress in Docker on EC2

Step 4: Set up WordPress

Create a file named “docker-compose.yml”

nano docker-compose.yaml

Paste the following content into the file

version: '3.7'
services:
  db:
    image: mysql:8.0.19
    restart: always
    volumes:
      - db_data:/var/lib/mysql
    restart: always
    environment:
      - MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=wordpress
      - MYSQL_DATABASE=wordpress
      - MYSQL_USER=wordpress
      - MYSQL_PASSWORD=wordpress
  wordpress:
    depends_on:
      - db
    image: wordpress:latest
    ports:
      - 80:80
    restart: always
    environment:
      - WORDPRESS_DB_HOST=db
      - WORDPRESS_DB_USER=wordpress
      - WORDPRESS_DB_PASSWORD=wordpress
      - WORDPRESS_DB_NAME=wordpress
volumes:
  db_data:

CTRL + O saves a Nano file. CTRL + X exits Nano

Start the Docker containers

sudo docker-compose up -d
sudo docker ps
Hosting WordPress in Docker on EC2

WordPress Setup 

Conclusion:

By hosting WordPress on AWS EC2 using Docker, you can harness the power of both platforms for enhanced scalability, flexibility, security, and resource efficiency. With this comprehensive guide, you now have the knowledge and step-by-step instructions to deploy your WordPress website on a robust and optimized hosting environment. Embrace the advantages of AWS and Docker, and unlock the full potential of your WordPress site for a seamless user experience.

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