Red Hat Looks to Certify Docker Container Interoperability

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Red Hat has been making the case for the use of open source Docker containers as a way to make applications not only easier to deploy, but also more secure. Now Red Hat is looking to certify the interoperability of different Linux-based platforms that make use of Docker containers.

With the announcement today of its Partner Early Access Program (PEAP), Red Hat will certify the interoperability of different platforms that support Docker containers. Red Hat is looking to further the adoption of Docker. According to Lars Herrmann, senior director of product marketing at Red Hat, Docker containers essentially put a lightweight foundation in place for automating much of the DevOps process.

Upon release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 and the Red Hat OpenShift platform as a service (PaaS) environments, both will be “certified container hosts,” and will consider Docker as the preferred container of use. The benefits of using Docker include eliminating the need for virtual machine images that come with their own complete operating system, simplified patching of applications and all of their dependencies, and a single run-time environment to develop and test applications against.

While Red Hat has been an early vocal supporter of Docker container technology, it has not quite reached the stage of a mass movement. But as time goes on, Red Hat is betting that the complexities of managing applications across different virtual environments in the cloud is going to create a need for simpler ways to deploy and manage applications.

Whether that winds up being Docker or some other derivative remains to be seen. But what is certain is that the idea of a container that makes it easier to manage applications at a higher level of abstraction is a concept that is already long overdue.