Connecting Two Laravel Projects in Docker-Compose Environments

A comprehensive guide to setting up and managing communication between multiple Laravel microservices using Docker and Docker Compose.

More info - https://medium.com/@murilolivorato/connecting-two-laravel-projects-built-in-two-docker-compose-environments-1a979e64f332

Overview

This project demonstrates how to:

• Set up multiple Laravel projects in separate Docker environments
• Establish communication between microservices
• Manage containerized Laravel applications
• Handle inter-service communication
• Implement service discovery
• Configure network connectivity between containers

Features

• Multiple Laravel projects in Docker containers
• Inter-service communication
• Docker network configuration
• Service discovery
• Environment isolation
• Scalable microservices architecture
• Container orchestration

Prerequisites

• Docker and Docker Compose installed
• Basic understanding of Laravel
• Basic knowledge of Docker concepts
• Two separate Laravel projects
• Git

Installation

1. Project Structure

microservices/
├── project-1/
│ ├── docker/
│ │ ├── nginx/
│ │ │ └── default.conf
│ │ └── php/
│ │ └── Dockerfile
│ ├── docker-compose.yml
│ └── .env
└── project-2/
├── docker/
│ ├── nginx/
│ │ └── default.conf
│ └── php/
│ └── Dockerfile
├── docker-compose.yml
└── .env

2. Docker Network Setup

1. Create a shared network:

docker network create laravel-network

2. Configure docker-compose.yml for Project 1:

# project-1/docker-compose.yml
version: '3'
services:
  app1:
    build:
      context: .
      dockerfile: docker/php/Dockerfile
    container_name: project1_app
    volumes:
      - .:/var/www/html
    networks:
      - laravel-network
    environment:
      - DB_HOST=mysql
      - DB_DATABASE=project1
      - DB_USERNAME=root
      - DB_PASSWORD=secret
      - PROJECT2_URL=http://project2_app:8000

  nginx1:
    image: nginx:alpine
    container_name: project1_nginx
    ports:
      - "8001:80"
    volumes:
      - .:/var/www/html
      - ./docker/nginx/default.conf:/etc/nginx/conf.d/default.conf
    networks:
      - laravel-network
    depends_on:
      - app1

  mysql1:
    image: mysql:8.0
    container_name: project1_mysql
    environment:
      MYSQL_DATABASE: project1
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: secret
    networks:
      - laravel-network
    volumes:
      - mysql1_data:/var/lib/mysql

networks:
  laravel-network:
    external: true

volumes:
  mysql1_data:

3. Configure docker-compose.yml for Project 2:

# project-2/docker-compose.yml
version: '3'
services:
  app2:
    build:
      context: .
      dockerfile: docker/php/Dockerfile
    container_name: project2_app
    volumes:
      - .:/var/www/html
    networks:
      - laravel-network
    environment:
      - DB_HOST=mysql
      - DB_DATABASE=project2
      - DB_USERNAME=root
      - DB_PASSWORD=secret

  nginx2:
    image: nginx:alpine
    container_name: project2_nginx
    ports:
      - "8002:80"
    volumes:
      - .:/var/www/html
      - ./docker/nginx/default.conf:/etc/nginx/conf.d/default.conf
    networks:
      - laravel-network
    depends_on:
      - app2

  mysql2:
    image: mysql:8.0
    container_name: project2_mysql
    environment:
      MYSQL_DATABASE: project2
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: secret
    networks:
      - laravel-network
    volumes:
      - mysql2_data:/var/lib/mysql

networks:
  laravel-network:
    external: true

volumes:
  mysql2_data:

Implementation

1. Service Communication

1. Project 1 Service

// project-1/app/Services/Project2Service.php
namespace App\Services;

use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Http;

class Project2Service
{
    protected $baseUrl;

    public function __construct()
    {
        $this->baseUrl = env('PROJECT2_URL');
    }

    public function getData()
    {
        try {
            $response = Http::get("{$this->baseUrl}/api/data");
            return $response->json();
        } catch (\Exception $e) {
            return [
                'error' => 'Failed to communicate with Project 2',
                'message' => $e->getMessage()
            ];
        }
    }
}

2. Project 2 API Endpoint

// project-2/routes/api.php
Route::get('/data', function () {
    return response()->json([
        'message' => 'Data from Project 2',
        'timestamp' => now()
    ]);
});

2. Environment Configuration

1. Project 1 .env

# project-1/.env
APP_NAME=Project1
APP_ENV=local
APP_KEY=base64:your-key
APP_DEBUG=true
APP_URL=http://localhost:8001

DB_CONNECTION=mysql
DB_HOST=mysql1
DB_PORT=3306
DB_DATABASE=project1
DB_USERNAME=root
DB_PASSWORD=secret

PROJECT2_URL=http://project2_app:8000

2. Project 2 .env

# project-2/.env
APP_NAME=Project2
APP_ENV=local
APP_KEY=base64:your-key
APP_DEBUG=true
APP_URL=http://localhost:8002

DB_CONNECTION=mysql
DB_HOST=mysql2
DB_PORT=3306
DB_DATABASE=project2
DB_USERNAME=root
DB_PASSWORD=secret

Usage

Starting the Services

1. Start Project 1:

cd project-1
docker-compose up -d

2. Start Project 2:

cd project-2
docker-compose up -d

Testing the Connection

1. From Project 1 to Project 2

// project-1/routes/web.php
Route::get('/test-connection', function () {
    $service = new \App\Services\Project2Service();
    return $service->getData();
});

2. Access the endpoint

curl http://localhost:8001/test-connection

Best Practices

1. Network Configuration

   • Use external networks for service communication
   • Implement proper network security
   • Use container names for service discovery

2. Environment Management

   • Use environment variables for configuration
   • Keep sensitive data in .env files
   • Use different environments for development and production

3. Service Communication

   • Implement proper error handling
   • Use HTTP client for service communication
   • Implement retry mechanisms for failed requests

4. Security

   • Implement proper authentication between services
   • Use HTTPS for service communication
   • Implement rate limiting
   • Use proper firewall rules

👥 Author

For questions, suggestions, or collaboration:

• Author: Murilo Livorato
• GitHub: murilolivorato
• linkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/murilo-livorato-80985a4a/

📸 Screenshots

Running

Stating the project

localhost:8082

localhost:8083

Creating the connection between two docker compose

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