Inception - Docker Infrastructure

A complete web infrastructure using Docker containers with WordPress, MariaDB, Nginx, Redis, and monitoring tools.

What This Project Does

This project creates a multi-container Docker application that runs:

• WordPress - A fully functional blog/website
• MariaDB - Database backend
• Nginx - Web server with SSL/TLS encryption
• Redis - Caching layer for better performance
• Adminer - Web-based database management
• cAdvisor - Container monitoring dashboard
• Static Site - Simple portfolio page

All services run in isolated Docker containers and communicate through a private network.

How It Works

Architecture Overview

1. Internet traffic arrives at Nginx on port 443 (HTTPS)
2. Nginx acts as a reverse proxy:
   • Routes requests to WordPress for the main site
   • Routes /adminer/ to the database admin tool
   • Handles SSL/TLS encryption
3. WordPress connects to:
   • MariaDB for storing content
   • Redis for caching (faster page loads)
4. All containers communicate on an isolated Docker network called "inception"

Key Features

• SSL/TLS Encryption - All traffic is encrypted
• Reverse Proxy - Nginx protects backend services
• Persistent Data - WordPress and database data survives container restarts
• Automated Setup - WordPress installs and configures itself on first run
• Monitoring - cAdvisor tracks container resource usage

Installation

1. Clone the Repository

git clone <your-repo-url>
cd inception

2. Configure Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the srcs/ directory:

# Database
MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=your_secure_root_password
MYSQL_DATABASE=wordpress
MYSQL_USER=wpuser
MYSQL_PASSWORD=your_secure_db_password

# WordPress
WP_URL=https://your-domain.42.fr
WP_TITLE=My WordPress Site
WP_ADMIN_USER=admin
WP_ADMIN_PASS=your_secure_admin_password
WP_ADMIN_EMAIL=admin@example.com
WP_USER=author
WP_USER_EMAIL=author@example.com
WP_USER_PASS=your_secure_user_password

3. Build and Start

make

This will:

• Create data directories at /home/$USER/data/
• Build all Docker images from scratch
• Start all containers

Usage

Starting and Stopping

# Start all services
make up

# Stop all services
make down

# Restart services
make restart

# View running containers
docker ps

# View logs
docker logs wordpress
docker logs nginx
docker logs mariadb

Accessing Services

| WordPress | https://your-domain.42.fr | Adminer | https://your-domain.42.fr/adminer/ | Static Site | http://your-domain.42.fr:8080 | cAdvisor | http://your-domain.42.fr:8082

Cleaning Up

# Stop and remove containers
make clean

# Remove everything including data volumes
make fclean

# Rebuild from scratch
make re

Project Structure

inception/
├── Makefile                    # Build commands
├── srcs/
│   ├── .env                   # Environment variables (create this)
│   ├── docker-compose.yml     # Container orchestration
│   └── requirements/
│       ├── mariadb/           # Database container
│       ├── wordpress/         # WordPress + PHP-FPM
│       ├── nginx/             # Web server + SSL
│       └── bonus/
│           ├── redis/         # Cache
│           ├── Adminer/       # DB admin
│           ├── static-site/   # Portfolio
│           └── cadvisor/      # Monitoring
└── docs/
    └── images/                # Architecture diagrams

Data Persistence

Your data is stored on the host machine:

• WordPress files: /home/$USER/data/wordpress
• Database files: /home/$USER/data/mariadb

Even if you stop or remove containers, your data remains safe. To completely remove data, use make fclean.

Docker Network

All containers communicate on a bridge network called "inception". This isolates them from other Docker containers and the host network.

Volume Mounts

• WordPress and Nginx share the /var/www/html volume
• MariaDB and WordPress data persist on the host filesystem
• cAdvisor mounts Docker socket for monitoring (read-only)

Container Dependencies

nginx → depends on → wordpress, adminer
wordpress → depends on → mariadb, redis
adminer → depends on → mariadb