Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Docker Swarm VS OpenShift

Compare Docker Swarm VS OpenShift and see what are their differences

Docker Swarm logo Docker Swarm

Native clustering for Docker. Turn a pool of Docker hosts into a single, virtual host.

OpenShift logo OpenShift

OpenShift gives you all the tools you need to develop, host and scale your apps in the public or private cloud. Get started today.
  • Docker Swarm Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-11-01
  • OpenShift Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-15

Docker Swarm features and specs

  • Simplicity
    Docker Swarm is easy to set up and use, especially for those already familiar with Docker. It integrates seamlessly into the Docker ecosystem, providing a straightforward solution for container orchestration without the need for additional tools.
  • Native Docker Integration
    Swarm is built into Docker, meaning that Docker users do not need to install or configure another orchestration tool. This provides a consistent experience from development to production.
  • Declarative Service Model
    Swarm allows users to define the desired state of their services, and the system works to maintain that state. This includes scaling services up or down, and handling load balancing.
  • Easy Scaling
    Docker Swarm makes it easy to scale applications horizontally by simply changing the number of replicas of a service. The platform manages the distribution of these replicas across the available nodes.
  • Built-in Load Balancing
    Swarm includes built-in load balancing, distributing incoming client requests to running containers based on task states and node availability.

Possible disadvantages of Docker Swarm

  • Limited Ecosystem
    Compared to Kubernetes, Docker Swarm has a more limited ecosystem of plugins, extensions, and third-party integrations. This can make it less flexible for complex or custom setups.
  • Less Feature-Rich
    Although sufficient for many use cases, Swarm lacks some advanced features that other orchestrators like Kubernetes offer, such as custom scheduling policies, complex networking configurations, and a broader range of storage options.
  • Community and Support
    The Docker Swarm community is smaller and less active compared to Kubernetes. This affects the available support, community-contributed tools, and overall development pace.
  • Scaling Limits
    While Docker Swarm can handle small to medium-sized clusters efficiently, it may not perform as well as Kubernetes in very large-scale deployments, particularly in terms of resource management and fault tolerance.
  • Future Uncertainty
    With Docker's increasing focus on Kubernetes, the long-term future of Docker Swarm is uncertain. This raises concerns about investing in a technology that might not be as actively developed or supported in the future.

OpenShift features and specs

  • Comprehensive Platform
    OpenShift provides a complete Kubernetes-based container platform, including a strong set of integrated tools such as CI/CD pipelines, monitoring, and logging, which simplifies the development and deployment of applications.
  • Hybrid and Multi-Cloud Support
    OpenShift supports hybrid and multi-cloud deployments, enabling organizations to build, deploy, and manage applications across on-premises infrastructure and multiple cloud providers.
  • Enterprise-grade Security
    It offers robust security features, including role-based access control (RBAC), built-in authentication and authorization, and integrated vulnerability scanning, ensuring secure application development and deployment.
  • Developer Productivity
    OpenShift boosts developer productivity with features like source-to-image (S2I) builds, self-service environments, and a rich catalog of pre-configured application templates and runtimes.
  • Scalability and High Availability
    It is designed to scale applications seamlessly and ensure high availability with automated horizontal pod scaling, load balancing, and failover capabilities.

Possible disadvantages of OpenShift

  • Complexity
    The comprehensive nature of OpenShift can lead to increased complexity, particularly for small teams or organizations without prior Kubernetes or container orchestration experience.
  • Cost
    Enterprise-grade features come with significant licensing costs, which might be a barrier for startups and small to medium-sized enterprises.
  • Learning Curve
    Due to its extensive range of features and integrations, there can be a steep learning curve for administrators and developers new to the platform.
  • Vendor Lock-in
    While OpenShift supports hybrid and multi-cloud environments, there can be concerns about vendor lock-in due to the level of customization and proprietary features specific to Red Hat's implementation.
  • Resource Intensive
    Running OpenShift efficiently requires substantial computational resources and infrastructure, which might be challenging for organizations with limited IT resources.

Docker Swarm videos

Kubernetes vs Docker Swarm | Container Orchestration War | Kubernetes Training | Edureka

More videos:

  • Review - Roberto Fuentes – NodeJS with Docker Swarm

OpenShift videos

OpenShift Container Platform by RedHat | Kubernetes Made Easy | Tech Primers

More videos:

  • Review - Open Source PaaS - OpenShift Review Part 1
  • Review - Red Hat OpenShift overview

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Docker Swarm and OpenShift)
Developer Tools
63 63%
37% 37
Cloud Computing
18 18%
82% 82
DevOps Tools
57 57%
43% 43
Cloud Hosting
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Docker Swarm and OpenShift

Docker Swarm Reviews

Top 12 Kubernetes Alternatives to Choose From in 2023
With Docker Swarm, you can create and manage a cluster of Docker nodes, enabling the deployment and scaling of containerized applications across a distributed environment.
Source: humalect.com
11 Best Rancher Alternatives Multi Cluster Orchestration Platform
Next, we have Docker Swarm on our alternatives to rancher list. Docker Swarm is a lightweight container orchestration tool that lets you create, deploy and manage containerized applications. It is even one of the most popular container orchestration tools after Kubernetes.
Docker Swarm vs Kubernetes: how to choose a container orchestration tool
Docker Swarm is an open-source container orchestration platform built and maintained by Docker. Under the hood, Docker Swarm converts multiple Docker instances into a single virtual host. A Docker Swarm cluster generally contains three items:
Source: circleci.com

OpenShift Reviews

Kubernetes Alternatives 2023: Top 8 Container Orchestration Tools
OpenShift is another container orchestration alternative for Kubernetes. It is a PaaS developed by Red Hat as a hybrid, enterprise-scale platform with extended Kubernetes capabilities for container orchestration. With a Linux OS, OpenShift helps you securely automate and scale the entire lifecycle of containerized applications. That means you can virtualize every host and...
OpenShift alternatives
The OpenShift platform was released by Red Hat – the maker of the professional Linux distribution “Red Hat Enterprise Linux” (RHEL). The OpenShift alternative “Rancher” has now been taken over by the traditional Linux provider SUSE. “Canonical Kubernetes”, is another OpenShift alternative from an established Linux provider. Read on to find out more about these and other...
Source: www.ionos.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Docker Swarm seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 3 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Docker Swarm mentions (3)

  • Ask HN: Why did K8s win against Docker Swarm?
    Docker Swarm Classic (https://github.com/docker-archive/classicswarm) is dead. Docker Swarm Mode is alive, and I know some people use it, but it's very niche compared to k8s. As someone who interacts with k8s regularly, I often feel like there is a place for a simpler k8s alternative. But looking at history I see the attempts like Swarm fail. What do you think played the decisive role in the k8s victory? Features,... - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
  • K8s vs Docker Swarm
    So the thing is support for Swarm was delegated to Mirantis, https://www.mirantis.com/blog/mirantis-will-continue-to-support-and-develop-docker-swarm/ since it was delegated very little was done to move forward swarm _> https://github.com/moby/swarmkit/commits/master , docker swarm itself (docker the company) is deprecated https://github.com/docker-archive/classicswarm . I think because there's no way to... Source: almost 2 years ago
  • #30DaysOfAppwrite: Docker Swarm Integration
    Docker Swarm is a container orchestration tool built right into the Docker CLI which allows us to deploy our Docker services to a cluster of hosts, instead of just the one allowed with Docker Compose. This is known as Swarm Mode, not to be confused with the classic Docker Swarm that is no longer being developed as a standalone product. Docker Swarm works great with Appwrite as it builds upon the Compose... - Source: dev.to / almost 4 years ago

OpenShift mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of OpenShift yet. Tracking of OpenShift recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Docker Swarm and OpenShift, you can also consider the following products

Kubernetes - Kubernetes is an open source orchestration system for Docker containers

Google App Engine - A powerful platform to build web and mobile apps that scale automatically.

Rancher - Open Source Platform for Running a Private Container Service

Salesforce Platform - Salesforce Platform is a comprehensive PaaS solution that paves the way for the developers to test, build, and mitigate the issues in the cloud application before the final deployment.

Docker Compose - Define and run multi-container applications with Docker

Dokku - Docker powered mini-Heroku in around 100 lines of Bash