Why Do We Need to Prefer Container Orchestration Over VM Orchestration?

As a DevOps engineer, have you ever wondered: Should I choose container orchestration over traditional VM orchestration? After all, VMs with features like Auto Scaling Groups (ASG) and Application Load Balancers (ALB) already provide robust solutions for application deployment. So, why introduce containers into the mix? This decision is less about choosing between tools and more about matching your infrastructure to your application's needs.

Let’s dig deeper to understand when and why container orchestration might be your best choice.

You're planning for a long trip. You could walk it's simple and reliable. But taking a car offers convenience, speed, and flexibility that walking simply can't match.

The analogy applies to VMs and containers. VMs (with orchestration via ASG and ALB) are solid, offering strong isolation, established workflows, and wide compatibility. But containers, orchestrated by platforms like Kubernetes, provide unparalleled agility and efficiency for modern, cloud-native applications.

Why Container Orchestration Excels

Let’s break down why containers, paired with orchestration, shine in today’s dynamic application environments:

1. Effortless Scaling and Resilience Tools like Kubernetes take auto-scaling to the next level by scaling not just instances but individual containers based on demand. Add to these self-healing capabilities such as automatically restarting failed containers and you have a system designed for high availability and minimal downtime.
2. Optimized Resource Utilization Containers share the host OS kernel, eliminating the overhead of multiple operating systems required by VMs. This lightweight nature allows you to run more containers than VMs on the same hardware, leading to significant cost savings and better resource efficiency.
3. Microservices and Decoupling Containerization enables microservices architecture, allowing developers to break down monolithic applications into independently deployable services. Kubernetes makes it easy to manage these services, ensuring seamless communication, scaling, and updates.
4. Cloud Portability With container orchestration, your application isn’t tied to a specific cloud provider. Whether you’re on AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, or an on-premises setup, containers offer unparalleled portability and consistency across environments.
5. Streamlined DevOps Workflows Containers simplify collaboration between developers and operations. Developers can package applications with all their dependencies, while operators deploy these containers consistently across environments, reducing conflicts and increasing deployment speed.

But What About VMs?

While containers and orchestration offer transformative benefits, VMs (with orchestration via ASG and ALB) remain highly relevant, particularly in these scenarios:

1. Enhanced Security and Isolation VMs run separate operating systems, offering stronger isolation than containers, which share the host OS kernel. If a container runtime or the underlying OS is compromised, all containers on the node may be affected. In such cases, VMs provide a safer alternative.
2. Support for Legacy Applications Not all applications are ready for containerization. Legacy systems may rely on specific configurations, libraries, or OS versions that are easier to manage within a VM.
3. Dedicated Resources for Heavy Workloads For applications requiring consistent resource allocation like databases or analytics engines VMs offer predictable performance by dedicating CPU, memory, and storage to a single instance.
4. Customization Flexibility VMs allow complete customization of the OS and environment. If your application requires a highly tailored stack, VMs may be the better choice.

The Real Question: What’s Best for Your Needs?

The question about what container orchestration provides you that VM orchestration doesn't is a bit like asking why you’d need a car when you can walk. Both methods have their place, what matters is aligning the tool with the journey.

• Choose containers when you’re building cloud-native, microservices-based applications that demand agility, scalability, and portability.
• Choose VMs when dealing with legacy systems, compliance heavy environments, or applications requiring dedicated resources and strong isolation.

In most cases, the answer isn’t about picking one over the other it’s about combining both strategically. For instance, you might run your core application on Kubernetes while using VMs for stateful services like databases.

In the end, remember this: Walking might get you there, but a car will get you there faster and more efficiently. But that doesn’t mean walking doesn’t have its place sometimes, simplicity and reliability are all you need. Choose the vehicle that suits your journey. ??