📘 Introduction
In this blog, I’ll walk you through how I deployed a two-tier Flask web application with a MySQL database using Docker containers on an AWS EC2 instance. This setup ensures container isolation, environment consistency, and real-time communication between the app and database via Docker networking.
By the end of this guide, your application will be accessible over the internet with just a public IP and a browser!
✅ Connect to the instance:
ssh -i my-key.pem ubuntu@your-public-ip
🐳 2. Installing Docker and Git on Ubuntu
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y docker.io
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER && newgrp docker
1. sudo apt update
Updates the package list to fetch the latest versions available from repositories.
2. sudo apt install -y docker.io
Installs Docker Engine from Ubuntu’s default repository without asking for confirmation.
3. sudo usermod -aG docker $USER && newgrp docker
Adds your user to the Docker group so you can run Docker without sudo.
🔧 3. Cloning the Flask Project
clone https://github.com/ApurvGujjar07/Two-Tier-Flask-App-.git
cd two-tier-flask-app
ls
You’ll see files like app.py, Dockerfile, etc.
📦 4. Build Flask App Docker Image
docker build -t two-tier-backend .
This command packages the app into a Docker image named two-tier-backend.
🌐 5. Create Docker Network
docker network create mynetwork
This allows containers to communicate internally by name (DNS-style linking).
🐬 6. Run MySQL Container
docker run -d --name mysql --network mynetwork \
-e MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=root \
-e MYSQL_DATABASE=devops \
mysql
✅ MySQL now runs and is ready for connection on the Docker network.
🚀 7. Run Flask App Container
docker run -d -p 5000:5000 --network mynetwork \
-e MYSQL_HOST=mysql \
-e MYSQL_USER=root \
-e MYSQL_PASSWORD=root \
-e MYSQL_DB=devops \
two-tier-backend:latest
Your Flask app is now running and mapped to port 5000 of your EC2 instance.
🔍 8. Verify Everything is Working
Check running containers
🌐 9. Access App in Browser
Then visit:
🌍 http://<your-public-ip>:5000
✅ You should see the live Flask web app now!
Connect to MySQL and verify DB:
docker exec -it mysql mysql -u root -p
Then run:
SHOW DATABASES;
USE devops;
SHOW TABLES;
SELECT * FROM messages;
🧠 Conclusion
In this blog, I demonstrated how to:
Launch an EC2 instance
Install and configure Docker
Deploy a two-tier Flask + MySQL app
Connect containers via Docker network
Expose the app publicly via port 5000
This is a solid DevOps practice project showing real-world containerization, networking, and deployment skills.
👨💻 About the Author
Hi, I'm Apurv Gujjar, a passionate and aspiring DevOps Engineer.
"This project marks the beginning of my journey into the world of DevOps, containerization, and cloud-native application deployment."
