What are Containers?

Application containers are lightweight runtime environments that provide apps with the files, variables, and libraries they need to run, maximising their portability.

Container definition

While traditional virtual machines (VMs) enable the virtualisation of computing infrastructure, containers enable the virtualisation of software applications. Unlike virtual machines, containers use their host’s operating system (OS), rather than supplying their own.

Why containers?

Because they don’t include full operating systems, containers require minimal computing resources and are quick and easy to install. This efficiency allows them to be deployed in clusters, with individual containers encapsulating single components of complex applications. Separating application components into different containers allows developers to update individual components without reworking the entire application.

HPE hybrid IT products and services

HPE's Project New Hybrid IT Stack lets you build containerised apps anywhere and seamlessly deploy across your on-prem data centre and multiple clouds. The platform builds on HPE’s composable infrastructure to bring a frictionless IT environment to life.