Docker Development Environment

Spheral builds an up-to-date docker container for every merge-request on develop. Developers can use this container to do development tasks on local machines.

Creating a Dev Environment

We will use docker dev create with our spheral docker image and a local repository. This will allow us to skip setting up a linux system with external packages, gives us pre-built TPLs and allows us to edit a cloned repository from our local machines IDE/text editor.bash:

> rm <path_to_local_repo>/compose-dev.yaml
> docker dev create --base-image ghcr.io/llnl/spheral --name <name_your_env> --path <path_to_local_repo> -o <path_to_local_repo>

Note

You need to have Docker Desktop, VSCode and the VSCode Dev Environment Extension installed for this to work. You do not need to use VSCode to access the container, but the extension seems to do some of the lifting for us when setting up the volume to our local repo.

Output

spheral-recursing_darwin <---- Name of dev environment
Creating Dev Environment "spheral-recursing_darwin"
populating volume from /Users/davis291/Projects/spheral
Creating Dev Environment "spheral-recursing_darwin"
detecting language
Detecting main repo language...
building compose stack
building compose stack
starting compose stack
starting compose stack
 Network spheral-recursing_darwin_default  Creating
 Network spheral-recursing_darwin_default  Created
 Container spheral-recursing_darwin-app-1  Creating
 Container spheral-recursing_darwin-app-1  Created
 Container spheral-recursing_darwin-app-1  Starting
 Container spheral-recursing_darwin-app-1  Started <---- Name of running container to connect to.
Dev Environment "spheral-recursing_darwin" (5bd37219d27eb68a77ce6fd8fee05a533a52017d8dcc72430867e2471e428e58) is running!%

Connecting to a Dev Container

Once the continaer has ben started you can connect directly through the terminal with the Container name (NOT the Dev Environment name).:

> docker exec -it spheral-recursing_darwin-app-1 /bin/bash
root@671dab5d0b00:/home/spheral/workspace/build_docker-gcc/install#

This drops you into the install location of the spheral@develop build from github, this is a fully installed version of the latest develop spheral.

Tip

VSCode & Docker Desktop:

  • Open Docker Desktop and navigate to the Dev Environment tab.

  • Find the container name and select OPEN IN VSCODE.

Development Work

Your local Spheral repo is mounted from your local filesystem. You can develop directly from your IDE or text editor of choice. Then you can compile and run from within the container itself.

  • The local Spheral repository will be mounted in the container at /com.docker.devenvironments.code/.

  • There already exists a full build and install of Spheral at develop in /home/spheral/workspace/build_docker-gcc/install.

  • An updated host config file can be found at /home/spheral/wokspace/docker-gcc.cmake.