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wtf is flocker?

m3ngyang/flocker — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-07-06 · repo last pushed 2016-01-11

PythonAudience · ops devopsComplexity · 4/5DormantSetup · hard

TL;DR

Flocker makes container data portable so that when a container moves between servers, its stored data automatically moves with it. This solves the problem of running databases and other data-heavy services inside containers.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it does
      Portable container data
      Datasets not volumes
      Data follows container
    Tech stack
      Python
      Distributed systems
    Use cases
      Run databases in containers
      Migrate containers between servers
      Manage data volumes
    Audience
      Operations teams
      Production infrastructure
    Background
      Built by ClusterHQ
      Released June 2015

Code map

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Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Run a database inside a container and move it between servers without losing its data.

REASON 2

Relocate stateful services during server maintenance with data automatically following the container.

REASON 3

Manage data volumes independently of containers if you handle your containers through other tools.

REASON 4

Migrate containers away from crowded servers without manually copying data.

What's in the stack?

Python

How it stacks up

m3ngyang/flocker0xhassaan/nn-from-scratch3ks/embedoc
Stars0
LanguagePythonPythonPython
Last pushed2016-01-112023-06-08
MaintenanceDormantDormant
Setup difficultyhardmoderatehard
Complexity4/54/51/5
Audienceops devopsdeveloperdeveloper

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · hard Time to first run · 1h+

Requires a multi-server cluster setup and separate documentation installation guides not included in the README.

The license is not mentioned in the README, refer to the repository for licensing details.

Wtf does this do

Flocker solves a specific headache for teams running applications in containers: what happens to your data when a container moves to a different server. Normally, if you're running something like a database inside a container, the data it stores stays stuck on that one server. If the container gets moved elsewhere, the data doesn't follow. This tool makes that data portable, so your storage travels with your container wherever it goes. The way it works is by creating what it calls "datasets" instead of standard storage volumes. When you use it to manage your applications, the dataset and the container are handled together as a pair. So if a container needs to move from one server to another in your cluster, the associated data volume moves with it automatically. You can also use it just to manage data volumes on their own if you prefer to handle your containers through other means. This is mainly aimed at operations teams who need to run stateful services like databases in production. For example, if you're running a database that needs to be relocated because a server is getting crowded or needs maintenance, normally that's a painful process of manually copying data around. With this tool, the data just follows the container, making those migrations much simpler. The project was built by ClusterHQ, a small team of engineers with deep experience in distributed systems. It's written in Python and was under active development, with version 1.0 released in June 2015. The README doesn't go into much detail about the specific technical architecture or setup process, pointing instead to separate documentation for installation guides and tutorials.

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
How do I set up Flocker to make my containerized database data portable across a multi-server cluster?
Prompt 2
Show me how to create a Flocker dataset and attach it to a container so the data moves when the container migrates.
Prompt 3
Help me configure Flocker to manage storage volumes separately from my existing container orchestration tool.
Prompt 4
Walk me through relocating a stateful container from one server to another using Flocker so the data follows automatically.

Frequently asked questions

wtf is flocker?

Flocker makes container data portable so that when a container moves between servers, its stored data automatically moves with it. This solves the problem of running databases and other data-heavy services inside containers.

What language is flocker written in?

Mainly Python. The stack also includes Python.

Is flocker actively maintained?

Dormant — no commits in 2+ years (last push 2016-01-11).

What license does flocker use?

The license is not mentioned in the README, refer to the repository for licensing details.

How hard is flocker to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated hard, with roughly 1h+ to a first successful run.

Who is flocker for?

Mainly ops devops.

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