Docker Volumes vs Bind Mounts: Where Your Data Actually Lives

Short summary

A container's writable layer is destroyed when the container is removed, so persistence requires named volumes, bind mounts, or tmpfs. Named volumes are Docker-managed and portable—ideal for databases and app state. Bind mounts point to host directories, great for dev convenience but coupling-heavy. Tmpfs lives in RAM for throwaway or sensitive data. The author recommends --mount syntax over -v to avoid silent directory creation bugs.

• •Named volumes: Docker-managed, portable, right default for databases and app state
• •Bind mounts: host-coupled, ideal for dev convenience and config files
• •Tmpfs: RAM-only, vanishes on stop, for sensitive or throwaway data

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