DevOps and Docker Talk: Cloud Native Interviews and Tooling

Bret is joined by the founders of Plakar - Julien Mangeard and Gilles Chehade - to nerd out over backup engineering. The kind where you're building your own file formats and cryptographic layers, not just wiring up cron jobs. We get into how Plakar deduplicates and encrypts at the source so your cloud provider never sees your keys. Also, their snapshot model has no chain dependencies, which means you can delete any backup without breaking the others. We had a fun hour of backup horror stories, ransomware pragmatism, where I'm lobbying hard for a Docker volume integration.Check out the video podcast version here: https://youtu.be/OPRK5osKQHI🙌 The Agentic DevOps Guild has launched! It's a training + community + mentorship program for engineers wanting to learn the latest CI/CD automation and dive into Agentic DevOps. Meetups are happening now, with new course videos dropping every few weeks. Join the Guild and become your team's leader in AI for infrastructure automation https://www.bretfisher.com/theguild 🍾★Show Links★Plakar websitePlakar Github RepoPlakar demoPlakar on XCreators & Guests Cristi Cotovan - Editor Bret Fisher - Host Beth Fisher - Producer Julien Mangeard - Guest Gilles Chehade - Guest You can also support this podcast by subscribing to my YouTube channel and my weekly newsletter at bret.news!Grab the best coupons for my Docker and Kubernetes courses.Join my cloud native DevOps community on Discord.Grab some merch at Bret's Loot BoxHomepage bretfisher.com (00:00) - Introduction (02:25) - Backup Engineering (07:07) - Restore First Mindset (09:13) - Plakar's Elevator Pitch (20:41) - Docker and Volume Backups (26:27) - Docker Image Deployment Challenges (29:10) - Backing Up the System (30:13) - Encryption and Architecture Modes (34:14) - Enterprise Scaling and Solo DevOps (36:05) - Ransomware And Encryption (36:44) - Source Side Dedup Demo (39:34) - Chainless Snapshots (41:24) - Sync And Multi Store Copies (43:56) - Crypto Audits And Repair (46:05) - Backup Stress Horror Stories (50:07) - Make Backups Usable (52:17) - Ransomware Detection Heuristics (58:23) - Cloud Native Positioning (01:02:13) - Kubernetes and Integrations

They dig into silent rebuilds: how container base images are rebuilt without tag changes and why mutable tags hide those updates. They explore tools and automation for digest-checking like Dependabot, Renovate, Tag Tracker, and Chainguard. They discuss pinning digests for consistency and workflows to detect and respond to unseen image changes.

I'm joined by Nirmal Mehta of AWS and Viktor Farcic from Upbound, to go through our 2025 year in review. We look into the AI tools that consumed us this year, from CLI agents to terminal emulators, IDEs, AI browsers - what worked, what flopped, what's worth your time and money, and what we think isn't!Check out the video podcast version here: https://youtu.be/mnagfUsh5bc🙌 The Agentic DevOps Guild has launched! It's a training + community + mentorship program for engineers wanting to learn the latest CI/CD automation and dive into Agentic DevOps. Meetups are happening now, with new course videos dropping every few weeks. Join the Guild and become your team's leader in AI for infrastructure automation https://www.bretfisher.com/theguild 🍾Creators & Guests Cristi Cotovan - Editor Bret Fisher - Host Beth Fisher - Producer Nirmal Mehta - Host Viktor Farcic - Guest You can also support this podcast by subscribing to my YouTube channel and my weekly newsletter at bret.news!Grab the best coupons for my Docker and Kubernetes courses.Join my cloud native DevOps community on Discord.Grab some merch at Bret's Loot BoxHomepage bretfisher.com (00:00) - Introduction (04:15) - Game of AI Tools (04:41) - Reflecting on the Fast-Paced Year (07:52) - CLI Tools and AI Integration (09:30) - Ghostty (12:29) - Terminal Preferences and AI Tools (14:33) - Claude Code (16:54) - Skills (28:01) - Warp (35:22) - AWS Kiro and Spec-Driven Development (41:41) - Visual Editors (IDEs) (47:02) - Zed (49:12) - AI Browsers (01:02:53) - Notion AI (01:05:11) - Code Rabbit MCP (01:07:50) - AI Optimization (01:10:42) - Ad Blocking and AI SEO

David Flanagan (RawKode), cloud native educator and creator of RawKode Academy, introduces an opinionated Tech Matrix to cut through CNCF decision fatigue. He walks through matrix design, advocate picks like Linkerd, Cilium, Flux and WebAssembly, UI modes, and how teams and learners can use opinionated guidance to choose technologies.

In this engaging discussion, Philip Andrews, Global Field CTO at Cast AI, dives into the revolutionary concept of live migration for Kubernetes pods. He explains how this technology allows pods to move seamlessly between nodes without downtime, preserving critical connections and data. The conversation explores its significant benefits for stateful workloads, addresses networking challenges, and highlights use cases in machine learning. Philip also shares insights into bin packing strategies that optimize costs while ensuring performance reliability.

Exciting news about Docker Swarm's maintenance until 2030! A new course focusing on GitHub Actions and AI automation is on the horizon, with a waitlist available for early updates. The ongoing support from Mirantis reassures users that Swarm remains a viable option in the container orchestration landscape. Plus, insights into the challenges and future roadmap for Swarm make this a must-listen for anyone in the DevOps scene!

This week, Michael Irwin from Docker's developer success team dives into the cutting-edge AI toolkit Docker offers. He discusses the impressive Model Runner for easy model deployment and the benefits of seamless integration with tools like the MCP Toolkit. Michael highlights the innovative Gordon AI chatbot in Docker Desktop and shares insights on optimizing workflows using Docker with AI. He also touches on cost-effectiveness in cloud computing and the burgeoning potential of open-source models, making a compelling case for Docker's role in the AI landscape.

Andrew Tunall, President and Chief Product Officer at Embrace, shares insights on the future of software quality assurance amid AI advancements. He predicts a shift toward shipping buggier code without traditional QA, emphasizing the need for enhanced observability in mobile apps. Discussions include adapting QA processes and the necessity for robust reliability frameworks to navigate AI's complexities. Tunall also highlights the importance of standardization in Continuous Integration as technology rapidly evolves, urging developers to leverage real user data for better app performance.

Ivan Burazin and Vedran Jukic, co-founders of Daytona, pivot their focus to AI agents and their cloud hosting environments. They delve into the unique infrastructure needs for developing these agents, emphasizing sandboxing for security and isolation. The discussion highlights the practical applications of AI agents in automating software engineering tasks, contrasts Daytona's solutions with traditional methods, and considers the balance between human oversight and autonomous operations in shaping the future of development.

Julián Duque, Principal Developer Advocate at Heroku, dives into the transformative capabilities of their AI platform. He discusses Heroku's shift to Kubernetes and the significance of Master Control Points (MCP), which streamline workflows and boost productivity. Listeners get insights into deploying AI-driven applications seamlessly using new features like PG Vector and integrating vector databases. Duque also highlights future prospects for Heroku's AI tools, empowering developers to leverage AI more effectively in their projects.