node-docker-template

Bare bones dockerized starter for Node.js applications using pnpm.

Features

• Node.js 18 Alpine-based Docker container
• pnpm package manager for faster, more efficient dependency management
• Environment variable configuration
• Docker Compose setup for easy development
• Non-root user for security
• Hot reload with nodemon in development

Prerequisites

• Docker
• Docker Compose
• pnpm (for local development)

Quick Start

1. Clone and navigate to the project:

   cd node-docker-template

2. Copy the environment example file:

   cp env.example .env

3. Configure your environment variables in .env:

   # Application Configuration
   APP_NAME=My App
   PORT=3000
   
   # Node.js Configuration
   NODE_ENV=development

4. Build and run with Docker Compose:

   docker-compose up --build

Development

Local Development with pnpm

1. Install pnpm (if not already installed):

   npm install -g pnpm

2. Install dependencies:

   pnpm install

3. Run in development mode:

   pnpm run dev

4. Run in production mode:

   pnpm start

Docker Development

1. Build the image:

   docker build -t node-docker-template .

2. Run the container:

   docker run --env-file .env node-docker-template

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Required	Default
APP_NAME	Application name	No	World
PORT	Application port	No	3000
NODE_ENV	Node.js environment	No	development

Project Structure

node-docker-template/
├── src/
│   └── index.js          # Main application file
├── package.json          # Node.js dependencies and scripts
├── pnpm-lock.yaml        # pnpm lockfile (auto-generated)
├── Dockerfile           # Docker configuration
├── docker-compose.yml   # Docker Compose configuration
├── env.example          # Environment variables example
├── .gitignore          # Git ignore rules
└── README.md           # This file

Why pnpm?

• Faster installations - Up to 2x faster than npm
• Disk space efficient - Uses hard links and symlinks to save space
• Strict dependency resolution - Prevents phantom dependencies
• Better monorepo support - Built-in workspace features

Customization

This template provides a minimal foundation that can be easily extended:

1. Add your application logic to src/index.js
2. Add dependencies with pnpm add <package>
3. Add dev dependencies with pnpm add -D <package>
4. Modify the Dockerfile for specific requirements
5. Update environment variables as needed

Common Commands

# Install dependencies
pnpm install

# Add a dependency
pnpm add express

# Add a dev dependency
pnpm add -D nodemon

# Run scripts
pnpm start
pnpm dev

# Build and run with Docker
docker-compose up --build

# Build Docker image only
docker build -t node-docker-template .

Security

• Uses non-root user in Docker container
• Environment variables for configuration
• Alpine Linux base image for smaller attack surface
• Production-ready configuration

License

MIT