Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

FreeBSD Jails VS Docker

Compare FreeBSD Jails VS Docker and see what are their differences

FreeBSD Jails logo FreeBSD Jails

Jails on the other hand permit software packages to view the system egoistically, as if each package had the machine to itself.

Docker logo Docker

Docker is an open platform that enables developers and system administrators to create distributed applications.
  • FreeBSD Jails Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-12-19
  • Docker Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-25

Docker

Website
docker.com
$ Details
Release Date
2013 January
Startup details
Country
United States
State
California
Founder(s)
Solomon Hykes
Employees
50 - 99

FreeBSD Jails features and specs

  • Isolation
    FreeBSD Jails provide process isolation, allowing multiple processes to run independently without affecting each other.
  • Security
    Jails offer an added layer of security by restricting the resources and access of applications, reducing potential attack surfaces.
  • Resource Management
    Jails allow for fine-grained control over resource allocation, enabling administrators to manage CPU, memory, and network usage per jail.
  • Simplicity
    Compared to full virtualization solutions, jails are lightweight and simple to set up, making them easier to deploy and manage.
  • Compatibility
    Running on the FreeBSD operating system, jails are inherently compatible with FreeBSD applications and services.

Possible disadvantages of FreeBSD Jails

  • Limited Isolation
    While jails provide process isolation, they share the same kernel, which may lead to using kernel-level exploits to escape the jail.
  • FreeBSD Specific
    Jails are specific to FreeBSD, meaning they cannot natively run software designed for other operating systems without adaptation.
  • Complex Networking
    Configuring networking in jails can be complex and may require careful setup to ensure proper isolation and performance.
  • Resource Contention
    Since all jails run on the same host system, high resource usage by one jail can affect the performance of others if not managed properly.
  • Lack of GUI and Advanced Features
    FreeBSD Jails focus on providing a command-line environment with limited graphical support, which may not be suitable for all applications.

Docker features and specs

  • Portability
    Docker containers are designed to run consistently across different environments such as development, testing, and production, ensuring that software behaves the same regardless of where it's deployed.
  • Efficiency
    Docker containers share the host OS kernel and use fewer resources compared to traditional virtual machines, which allows for faster startups and reduced overhead.
  • Isolation
    Containers encapsulate the application and its dependencies in a separate environment, which minimizes conflicts between different applications' dependencies.
  • Scalability
    Docker makes it easier to scale applications quickly and manage resource allocation dynamically, which is particularly useful for microservices architectures.
  • Continuous Integration and Deployment
    Docker facilitates CI/CD processes by making it easier to automate the deployment pipeline, resulting in faster code releases and more frequent updates.
  • Community and Ecosystem
    A vast community and a rich ecosystem of tools and pre-built images in Docker Hub, enabling you to quickly find and reuse code and solutions.

Possible disadvantages of Docker

  • Complexity
    While Docker can simplify certain aspects of deployment, it adds a layer of complexity to the infrastructure that might require specialized knowledge and training.
  • Security
    Containers share the host OS kernel, which can pose security risks if an attacker gains access to the kernel. Proper isolation and security measures must be implemented.
  • Persistent Data
    Managing persistent data in Docker can be challenging, as containers are ephemeral and the default storage solutions are not always suitable for all applications.
  • Monitoring and Debugging
    Traditional monitoring and debugging tools might not work well with containerized applications, requiring specialized tools and approaches which can complicate troubleshooting.
  • Performance Overhead
    Although lighter than virtual machines, Docker containers can still introduce performance overheads, especially when multiple containers are running simultaneously.
  • Compatibility
    Not all software and systems are fully compatible with Docker, which can limit its use in certain legacy applications and complex environments.

FreeBSD Jails videos

20 Years of FreeBSD Jails (2019)

More videos:

  • Demo - FreeBSD Jails Brief demo

Docker videos

What is Docker in 5 minutes

More videos:

  • Tutorial - What is Docker? Why it's popular and how to use it to save money (tutorial)
  • Review - Real World PHP Dockerfile Review, from a #Docker Captain

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to FreeBSD Jails and Docker)
Developer Tools
8 8%
92% 92
Containers As A Service
11 11%
89% 89
Cloud Computing
4 4%
96% 96
Virtual Machine Management

User comments

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Reviews

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

FreeBSD Jails Reviews

We have no reviews of FreeBSD Jails yet.
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Docker Reviews

Exploring 7 Efficient Alternatives to MAMP for Local Development Environments
Though not specifically designed for PHP development, Docker offers a containerized approach to create, deploy, and run applications. It enables easy installation of PHP, web servers, and databases within containers, facilitating quick and consistent development environment setups.
Source: medium.com
Top 6 Alternatives to XAMPP for Local Development Environments
Docker - A containerization platform that allows developers to package applications and their dependencies into containers. Docker Compose can be used to define multi-container application stacks, including web servers, databases, and other services. Features powerful portability and consistency, supports rapid building, sharing, and container management, suitable for...
Source: dev.to
The Top 7 Kubernetes Alternatives for Container Orchestration
Docker uses images as templates to create new containers using Docker engine commands such as Build -t or run -d.
Kubernetes Alternatives 2023: Top 8 Container Orchestration Tools
Docker is an open-source platform for building, managing, deploying containerized applications. Swarm is a native feature in Docker with a group of virtual or physical machines that lets you schedule, cluster, and run Docker applications. It is a Docker alternative for Kubernetes that provides high portability, agility, and high availability.
Top 12 Kubernetes Alternatives to Choose From in 2023
Docker Swarm is a native clustering and orchestration solution provided by Docker, the leading containerization platform.
Source: humalect.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Docker should be more popular than FreeBSD Jails. It has been mentiond 73 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.

FreeBSD Jails mentions (32)

  • Why do I run FreeBSD for my home servers
    I understand what you mean re: Arch wiki (I'm a fan of it even though not an arch user) but I genuinely suggest you go over and read some of the FreeBSD Handbook. It is a cohesive whole which can be read from start to finish (it is an actual book). This is also how the whole system feels as well (as others have commented). Things are integrated and coherent. Example: freebsd has its own libc, and the kernel... - Source: Hacker News / about 1 month ago
  • Its possible to install FreeBSD ina External USB HDD?
    You can install FreeBSD on an external disk. The FreeBSD Handbook answers the other questions. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • FreeBSD docs a good start to start the journey?
    I have an veeery old notebook (Toshiba tecra s2) and wanted to give this machine a new life. Learning about unix and so on. Are the docs on https://docs.freebsd.org/en/books/handbook/ a good start for this? Or does someone has any recommendations? Source: about 2 years ago
  • how well would freebsd perform on a development / study laptop?
    In the official handbook read chapters 1-5, 13, & 19 to get oriented. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Distro for a Software Engineer.
    The system that exhibits the best software engineering in its development and in the software packaging process is undoubtedly FreeBSD -- it wouldn't hurt to look at it more carefully. I build all of my desktop (Gnome/Plasma/XFCE) and math and programming languages / editors from source code on FreeBSD using the latest stable operating system release (13.1, soon to be 13.2). See the FreeBSD Journal to get an... Source: over 2 years ago
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Docker mentions (73)

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What are some alternatives?

When comparing FreeBSD Jails and Docker, you can also consider the following products

Apache Mesos - Apache Mesos abstracts resources away from machines, enabling fault-tolerant and elastic distributed systems to easily be built and run effectively.

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

rkt - App Container runtime

Rancher - Open Source Platform for Running a Private Container Service

Docker Hub - Docker Hub is a cloud-based registry service

Apache Karaf - Apache Karaf is a lightweight, modern and polymorphic container powered by OSGi.