🐳 Docker File Sharing System with Volume Persistence

A robust file sharing system demonstrating persistent storage using Docker volumes between host and container. This project showcases how Docker volumes maintain data persistence across container lifecycles.

🎯 Project Overview

This system provides an interactive menu-based interface for sharing files and folders between a Docker container and the host system, using Docker volumes for persistent storage. The project demonstrates key Docker concepts including containerization, volume mounting, and data persistence.

Key Features Demonstrated

• ✅ Docker Volume Persistence - Data survives container restarts
• ✅ Interactive Menu System - User-friendly command-line interface
• ✅ File & Folder Operations - Send, receive, and manage files
• ✅ Cross-Platform Compatibility - Works on any system with Docker
• ✅ Automated Volume Management - Docker handles storage automatically

🏗 System Architecture

Host Machine (Debian VM) ←→ Docker Container ←→ Docker Volumes ↓ ↓ ↓ Debian OS File Sharing System Persistent Storage (Interactive Menu) (file_share_data, incoming_data, logs_data)

📊 Performance Benefits

Traditional File Sharing vs Docker Volume Approach

Aspect	Traditional Approach	Docker Volumes
Persistence	Manual backup required	Automatic persistence
Portability	Platform-dependent	Cross-platform
Isolation	Direct host access	Containerized isolation
Setup	Complex configuration	Simple Docker commands
Scalability	Limited	Easily scalable

Key Advantages

• 🔒 Data Safety: Files persist even if container crashes or is deleted
• ⚡ Performance: Direct volume access without network overhead
• 🔧 Simplicity: No complex shared folder configurations needed
• 📦 Portability: Works on any system with Docker installed
• 🔄 Version Control: Entire system can be version-controlled via GitHub

🛠 Technology Stack

• Docker - Containerization platform
• Docker Compose - Container orchestration
• Debian Linux - Base operating system
• Bash Scripting - Interactive menu system
• Docker Volumes - Persistent storage mechanism

📋 Prerequisites

Before installation, ensure you have:

• Docker Engine (version 20.10.0 or higher)
• Docker Compose (version 2.0.0 or higher)
• Linux environment (tested on Debian 13)

Install Prerequisites on Debian

bash

Update system

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Install Docker

sudo apt install docker.io -y

Install Docker Compose

sudo apt install docker-compose -y

Add user to docker group (avoid sudo for docker commands)

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER newgrp docker

Verify installation

docker --version docker-compose --version

🚀 Installation & Setup

Method 1: Clone from GitHub (Recommended)

bash

Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/HamzaButt22/file-sharing-system.git cd file-sharing-system

Make scripts executable

chmod +x scripts/*

Build and start the system

docker-compose build docker-compose up -d

Method 2: Manual Setup

bash

Create project directory

mkdir file-sharing-system cd file-sharing-system

Create scripts directory

mkdir scripts

Copy all script files to scripts/ directory

Copy Dockerfile and docker-compose.yml to root directory

Set permissions and build

chmod +x scripts/* docker-compose build docker-compose up -d

🎮 How to Use

Starting the System

bash

Navigate to project directory

cd file-sharing-system

Start the container

docker-compose up -d

Access the interactive menu

docker exec -it file-sharing-container /app/combined_menu

Menu Options

===== DOCKER FILE SHARING SYSTEM =====

1. Send a File
2. Send a Folder
3. Receive a File
4. Receive a Folder
5. Delete Sent Item
6. View Docker Volumes
7. Exit

Usage Examples

Sending a File

1. Choose Option 1 from menu
2. Enter file path: /etc/hosts or ~/Documents/test.txt
3. File is copied to Docker volume and persists across restarts

Receiving a File

1. Choose Option 3 from menu
2. Select from available files in shared volume
3. File is copied to incoming volume

Checking Volume Contents

1. Choose Option 6 from menu
2. View all files in Docker volumes
3. Verify persistence after container restart

🧪 Testing Persistence (Key Feature)

Complete Persistence Test

bash

1. Start the system

docker-compose up -d

2. Send a test file through the menu

docker exec -it file-sharing-container /app/combined_menu

Choose Option 1 → Enter /etc/hosts

3. Stop the container

docker-compose down

4. Verify volume persists

docker volume ls

Should show: file_sharing_system_file_share_data

5. Restart container

docker-compose up -d

6. Verify file still exists

docker exec -it file-sharing-container /app/combined_menu

Choose Option 6 - the file should still be there!

Advanced Testing

bash

Test multiple container restarts

for i in {1..5}; do echo "Test iteration $i" docker-compose down docker-compose up -d docker exec -it file-sharing-container ls -la /shared_volume sleep 2 done

📁 Project Structure

file-sharing-system/ ├── Dockerfile # Container definition ├── docker-compose.yml # Orchestration configuration ├── scripts/ # Bash script files │ ├── combined_menu # Main interactive menu │ ├── sendfile # File sending functionality │ ├── sendfolder # Folder sending functionality │ ├── receivefile # File receiving functionality │ └── receivefolder # Folder receiving functionality ├── README.md # This documentation └── .gitignore # Git ignore rules

Volume Structure in Container

/shared_volume # Files available for sharing /incoming_volume # Received files storage /logs_volume # Operation logs and history

🔧 Troubleshooting

Common Issues and Solutions

Container Fails to Start

bash

Check Docker logs

docker-compose logs

Rebuild from scratch

docker-compose down -v docker-compose build --no-cache docker-compose up -d

Permission Errors

bash

Add user to docker group

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER newgrp docker

Fix file permissions

chmod +x scripts/*

Volume Access Issues

bash

Check volume status

docker volume ls docker volume inspect file_sharing_system_file_share_data

Manual volume access

sudo ls -la /var/lib/docker/volumes/file_sharing_system_file_share_data/_data

Debugging Commands

bash

Check container status

docker ps docker stats

Check volume contents

docker exec -it file-sharing-container ls -la /shared_volume

View system logs

docker logs file-sharing-container

📊 Performance Metrics

File Operations Performance

• File Transfer Speed: Limited only by disk I/O
• Concurrent Operations: Supports multiple simultaneous operations
• Volume Scalability: Volumes automatically scale with storage needs

Resource Usage

• Memory Usage: ~50MB (minimal overhead)
• CPU Usage: Negligible during idle state
• Storage Efficiency: Only stores actual file data

🚀 Advanced Usage

Custom Volume Mounts

Modify docker-compose.yml for custom volume paths:

yaml services: file-sharing-app: # ... existing config ... volumes: - /custom/host/path:/shared_volume # Custom host path - incoming_data:/incoming_volume - logs_data:/logs_volume

Multiple Instances

bash

Scale to multiple instances (for testing)

docker-compose up -d --scale file-sharing-app=3

Backup and Restore

bash

Backup volume data

docker run --rm -v file_sharing_system_file_share_data:/volume -v $(pwd):/backup alpine
tar czf /backup/backup.tar.gz -C /volume ./

Restore volume data

docker run --rm -v file_sharing_system_file_share_data:/volume -v $(pwd):/backup alpine
sh -c "rm -rf /volume/* && tar xzf /backup/backup.tar.gz -C /volume"

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please follow these steps:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch: git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature
3. Commit changes: git commit -m 'Add amazing feature'
4. Push to branch: git push origin feature/amazing-feature
5. Open a Pull Request

Development Setup

bash

Clone and setup development environment

git clone https://github.com/HamzaButt22/file-sharing-system.git cd file-sharing-system

Create development branch

git checkout -b development

Make changes and test

docker-compose up -d docker exec -it file-sharing-container /app/combined_menu

📝 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

🙏 Acknowledgments

• Docker Inc. for the excellent containerization platform
• Debian Project for the stable Linux distribution
• The open-source community for continuous inspiration

📞 Support

If you encounter any issues or have questions:

1. Check the Troubleshooting section
2. Search existing Issues
3. Create a new issue with detailed description

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🎯 Project Demonstration Guide

Quick Demo Sequence

bash

1. Clone and setup

git clone https://github.com/HamzaButt22/file-sharing-system.git cd file-sharing-system docker-compose up -d

2. Demonstrate functionality

docker exec -it file-sharing-container /app/combined_menu

Show menu options and send a file

3. Demonstrate persistence

docker-compose down docker-compose up -d docker exec -it file-sharing-container /app/combined_menu

Show file still exists after restart

4. Show Docker volumes

docker volume ls docker volume inspect file_sharing_system_file_share_data

Key Points to Highlight

• ✅ Persistence: Files survive container lifecycle
• ✅ Isolation: Containerized environment
• ✅ Ease of Use: Simple menu interface
• ✅ Portability: Works on any Docker-supported system

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Happy File Sharing! 🎉