Azure Container Instances (ACI)

Run containers in Azure without managing servers.

What is Azure Container Instances?

Azure Container Instances (ACI) offers the fastest and simplest way to run a container in Azure. It allows you to deploy containers without managing the underlying virtual machines or adopting a higher-level service like Kubernetes.

ACI provides a unique benefit in the serverless container space, as it allows you to run containers without needing to orchestrate them. You can focus on deploying your application containers without the operational overhead of managing infrastructure. This makes ACI ideal for a wide range of scenarios, from simple application deployments to complex event-driven architectures.

Key Features

  • Serverless: No virtual machines to manage.
  • Fast Deployment: Start containers in seconds.
  • Container-Native: Deploy individual containers or groups of containers.
  • Customizable Resources: Specify CPU and memory requirements for your containers.
  • Networking: Assign a public IP address and fully qualified domain name (FQDN) for easy access.
  • Security: Leverage Azure's robust security features.
  • Integration: Seamlessly integrates with other Azure services.

Container Groups

ACI supports container groups, which are a co-scheduled group of containers that share the same compute, storage, and networking resources. This is useful for sidecar patterns or applications composed of multiple interdependent containers.

Common Use Cases

ACI is well-suited for various scenarios, including:

  • Simple Web Applications: Deploy single-container web apps quickly.
  • Batch Processing: Run short-lived tasks or batch jobs.
  • Event-Driven Architectures: Respond to events with containerized functions.
  • Build and Test Tasks: Automate build and testing processes in containers.
  • Development and Testing: Quickly spin up containerized environments for development.

ACI vs. Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)

While both ACI and AKS are Azure services for running containers, they cater to different needs:

Feature Azure Container Instances (ACI) Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
Management Serverless, no VM management Kubernetes cluster management (control plane managed by Azure)
Complexity Simple, ideal for single containers or small groups More complex, suitable for microservices and orchestration
Orchestration Minimal (container groups) Full Kubernetes orchestration (scaling, self-healing, rolling updates)
Use Cases Batch jobs, event processing, simple apps, dev/test Complex microservices, stateful applications, large-scale deployments

Choose ACI for simplicity and quick deployments, and AKS for robust orchestration and complex microservice architectures.

Getting Started

You can get started with Azure Container Instances using several methods:

  • Azure Portal: A user-friendly interface for creating and managing container instances.
  • Azure CLI: Powerful command-line tool for automating deployments. Use az container create.
  • Azure PowerShell: Another command-line option for managing resources.
  • ARM Templates or Bicep: Infrastructure as Code for repeatable deployments.

Here's a quick example using Azure CLI to run a simple Nginx container:

az container create --resource-group myResourceGroup --name mycontainer --image mcr.microsoft.com/azuredocs/aci-helloworld --dns-name-label myuniqueaci

For more detailed examples and configurations, please refer to the official Azure documentation.