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Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

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Overview

The Ecomdrop IA Connector is fully containerized using Docker, making it easy to deploy consistently across different environments. This guide covers building Docker images, using docker-compose, and configuring containers for production.

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Docker Architecture

The application uses a multi-container setup:
  • Application Container: Node.js 20 Alpine running the Shopify app
  • MySQL Container: MySQL 8.0 with optimized configuration
  • Network: Custom overlay network (EcomdropNet) for service communication

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Building the Docker Image

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Dockerfile Overview

The application uses a production-optimized Dockerfile: 
FROM node:20-alpine
RUN apk add --no-cache openssl netcat-openbsd

WORKDIR /app
ENV NODE_ENV=production

# Install dependencies
COPY package.json package-lock.json* ./
RUN npm ci --omit=dev && npm cache clean --force

# Copy application code
COPY . .

# Build application
RUN npm run build

# The container waits for MySQL before starting
CMD ["/app/docker-entrypoint.sh"]
The Dockerfile includes a custom entrypoint script that waits for MySQL to be ready before starting the application, preventing connection errors during startup.

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Build from Command Line

1

Navigate to project directory

cd ecomdrop-ia-connector
2

Build the Docker image

docker build -t shopify-app_shopify_app:latest .
This creates an image tagged as shopify-app_shopify_app:latest.
3

Verify the image was built

docker images | grep shopify-app
You should see your newly built image listed.

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Build with Custom Tags

For versioned deployments: 
# Build with version tag
docker build -t shopify-app_shopify_app:v1.0.0 .

# Tag with multiple versions
docker tag shopify-app_shopify_app:v1.0.0 shopify-app_shopify_app:latest

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Docker Compose Setup

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Configuration File

The docker-compose.yml defines the complete application stack: 
version: "3.8"

services:
  mysql:
    image: mysql:8.0
    networks:
      - EcomdropNet
    environment:
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: ${MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD}
      MYSQL_DATABASE: shopify_app
      MYSQL_USER: shopify_user
      MYSQL_PASSWORD: ${MYSQL_PASSWORD}
    volumes:
      - mysql_data:/var/lib/mysql
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD", "mysqladmin", "ping", "-h", "localhost"]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 10

  shopify_app:
    image: shopify-app_shopify_app:latest
    networks:
      - EcomdropNet
    environment:
      DATABASE_URL: mysql://shopify_user:${MYSQL_PASSWORD}@mysql:3306/shopify_app
      SHOPIFY_API_KEY: ${SHOPIFY_API_KEY}
      SHOPIFY_API_SECRET: ${SHOPIFY_API_SECRET}
      NODE_ENV: production
    depends_on:
      - mysql

networks:
  EcomdropNet:
    external: true

volumes:
  mysql_data:
    driver: local

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Starting Services

1

Create environment file

Create a .env file with required variables:
# Database
MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=secure_root_password
MYSQL_PASSWORD=secure_user_password

# Shopify API
SHOPIFY_API_KEY=your_api_key
SHOPIFY_API_SECRET=your_api_secret
SHOPIFY_APP_URL=https://connector.ecomdrop.io
2

Create Docker network

docker network create --driver overlay EcomdropNet
This network allows containers to communicate securely.
3

Start services

docker-compose up -d
The -d flag runs containers in detached mode.
4

Check service status

docker-compose ps

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Viewing Logs

# Follow logs in real-time
docker-compose logs -f shopify_app

# Last 100 lines
docker-compose logs --tail 100 shopify_app

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Environment Configuration

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Required Environment Variables

DATABASE_URL=mysql://shopify_user:password@mysql:3306/shopify_app
MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=secure_root_password
MYSQL_PASSWORD=secure_user_password
Use strong, unique passwords for production deployments. Never commit passwords to version control.
SHOPIFY_API_KEY=your_shopify_api_key
SHOPIFY_API_SECRET=your_shopify_api_secret
SHOPIFY_APP_URL=https://connector.ecomdrop.io
SCOPES=read_products,write_products,read_orders,read_themes,write_themes
Get these values from your Shopify Partners Dashboard.
THEME_2_5_GIT_REPO=your-org/theme-repo
THEME_2_5_GIT_BRANCH=main
THEME_2_5_GIT_PROVIDER=github
THEME_2_5_GIT_TOKEN=your_github_token
Required only if using the theme installation feature.
NODE_ENV=production
PORT=3000
TZ=America/Bogota

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MySQL Container Configuration

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Optimized MySQL Settings

The MySQL container is configured with production-optimized settings: 
command:
  - mysqld
  - --character-set-server=utf8mb4
  - --collation-server=utf8mb4_unicode_ci
  - --default-authentication-plugin=mysql_native_password
  - --max_allowed_packet=256M
  - --innodb_buffer_pool_size=768M
  - --max_connections=200
These settings are optimized for a typical VPS with 2-4GB RAM. Adjust innodb_buffer_pool_size based on your server’s available memory (typically 50-70% of total RAM).

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Health Checks

MySQL includes a health check to ensure the database is ready: 
healthcheck:
  test: ["CMD", "mysqladmin", "ping", "-h", "localhost"]
  interval: 10s
  timeout: 5s
  retries: 10
  start_period: 30s

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Container Management

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Stopping Services

docker-compose down

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Restarting Services

# Restart all services
docker-compose restart

# Restart specific service
docker-compose restart shopify_app

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Updating the Application

1

Rebuild the image

docker build -t shopify-app_shopify_app:latest .
2

Recreate containers

docker-compose up -d --force-recreate shopify_app
3

Verify the update

docker-compose logs -f shopify_app

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Volume Management

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Data Persistence

MySQL data is stored in a named volume: 
volumes:
  mysql_data:
    driver: local

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Backup Database Volume

# Create backup
docker run --rm \
  -v shopify-app_mysql_data:/data \
  -v $(pwd):/backup \
  alpine tar czf /backup/mysql_backup_$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz /data

# Restore backup
docker run --rm \
  -v shopify-app_mysql_data:/data \
  -v $(pwd):/backup \
  alpine tar xzf /backup/mysql_backup_20250304.tar.gz -C /

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Docker Swarm Deployment

For production deployments with high availability:

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Initialize Swarm

# On manager node
docker swarm init

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Deploy Stack

docker stack deploy -c docker-compose.yml shopify-app

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Monitor Services

docker service ls

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Scaling Services

# Scale application to 3 replicas
docker service scale shopify-app_shopify_app=3

# Note: MySQL should remain at 1 replica
Do not scale MySQL replicas without proper replication configuration. Use a managed database service for high-availability databases.

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Best Practices

1

Use .dockerignore

Exclude unnecessary files from the build context:
node_modules
.git
.env
*.log
build
.cache
2

Multi-stage builds

For even smaller images, consider multi-stage builds to separate build dependencies from runtime.
3

Security scanning

# Scan for vulnerabilities
docker scan shopify-app_shopify_app:latest
4

Resource limits

Set resource limits in docker-compose.yml:
deploy:
  resources:
    limits:
      cpus: '1'
      memory: 1G
    reservations:
      memory: 512M

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Next Steps

Production Deployment

Learn how to deploy to production with SSL and monitoring

Troubleshooting

Common issues and solutions for Docker deployments

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