book

Heroku Cloud Application Development

Name: Heroku Cloud Application Development
Author: Anubhav Hanjura
ISBN: 9781783550975

by Anubhav Hanjura

April 2014

Intermediate to advanced

336 pages

7h 48m

English

Packt Publishing

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Heroku Cloud Application Development
Table of Contents
Heroku Cloud Application Development
Credits
About the Author
About the Reviewers
www.PacktPub.com
Support files, eBooks, discount offers and moreWhy Subscribe?Free Access for Packt account holders
Preface
What this book covers
What you need for this book
Who this book is for

Conventions
Reader feedback
Customer support
ErrataPiracyQuestions
1. Hello Heroku
What is cloud computing?
Cloud service models
What is cloud application development?
Key advantages of cloud application development
Introducing Heroku
Walking down the memory lane
An overview of Heroku's architecture
Process managementLoggingHTTP routingHeroku interfaces
The Heroku feature set
Let's play HerokuGetting ready for the ride – the prerequisitesSigning upInstalling the Heroku toolbeltLogging in and generating a new SSH key
Test driving Heroku
Summary
2. Inside Heroku
The Heroku platform stackThe Celadon Cedar stack
Request routing in Heroku
The execution environment - dynos and the dyno manifold
Heroku's logging infrastructure – the Logplex system
The Heroku add-on architecture
Programmatically consuming Heroku services
The Heroku Platform APISecuritySchemaDataAccessing the APIAPI clientsCalling the APIResponseLimits on API calls
The Heroku process architecture
ProcfileDeclaring process typesThe Procfile formatA sample ProcfileAdding Procfile to Heroku
Running applications locally
Setting local environment variables
Process formation
Process scalingStopping a process typeChecking on your processesProcess logs
Running a one-off process
Running anything
Summary
3. Building Heroku Applications
Heroku's guiding influence – the Twelve-Factor App methodologyA codebase is always versioned and it can have multiple deploysDeclare and isolate dependencies explicitly (always)Configuration should be stored in the environmentBackend services should be treated as attached (loosely-coupled) resourcesStrict separation of the build, release, and run stages of an appAn app in execution is a process or many processesServices should be exported through port bindingAn app should scale out through its process modelFaster startup and graceful shutdown is the way to app agility and scalabilityDevelopment and production (and everything in between) should be as similar as possibleThe app should just log the event not manage itApp's administrative or management task should be run as a one-off process
Creating a Heroku application
Configuring your Heroku application
The Heroku application configuration APIExamples of using application configurationThe persistence of configuration variablesAccessing configuration variables at runtimeLimits on configuration dataUsing the Heroku config plugin
Introducing buildpacks
Using a custom buildpackSpecifying a custom buildpack at the app creation stageThird-party buildpacksThe buildpack APIComponents of a buildpack APIThe bin/detect scriptThe bin/compile scriptThe bin/release scriptWriting a buildpack
The slug compiler
Optimizing the slugSize limits
Summary
4. Deploying Heroku Applications
Deployment on Heroku
Getting a Heroku account
Installing the toolbelt client kit
Logging into the Heroku account
Setting up SSH
Writing your application
Pushing your application to Heroku
The Git vocabulary
Getting started with GitTracking a new projectUsing an existing Git projectThe life cycle of an artifact in GitTracking files in a Git projectWhen you don't need Git to track your filesThe git diff command – knowing what changedCommitting your changesDeleting a fileMoving a fileViewing commit historyUndoing a changeYou can use some Git helpThe local repositoryRemote repositories
Creating a Heroku remote
Renaming an application
Sending code to Heroku
Optimizing slug size
Cloning existing Heroku applications
Forking an application
Side effects of forking an application
Transferring Apps
Optimizing deployments
The choice of a region
Tracking application changes
Setting up Deploy HooksBasecampCampfireE-mailHTTPIRC
Release management
Checking installed releasesVerifying the new releaseRolling back the release
Summary
5. Running Heroku Applications
The Heroku app lifecycle
The Heroku CLI
How to get the Heroku client toolVerifying the toolHow to get the latest Heroku client toolWhere is the Heroku client stored?What if my client installation is corrupted or not working?The Heroku CLI commandsHeroku CLI commands by functionExtending the Heroku CLIThe Heroku CLI and add-onsA note on Heroku CLI and security
Running your cloud apps locally
Using Foreman to check ProcfilesUsing Foreman to run apps directlyRunning one-off commandsForeman command-line options
The Apps page
The Resources tabManaging resourcesThe Activity tabThe Access tabThe Settings tabThe Run Production Check tabHeroku support
Summary
6. Putting It All Together
Heroku's support for JavaGeneral support for JavaDatabase support for Java appsEnvironment configuration
Integrating Eclipse with Heroku
PrerequisitesConfiguring Heroku in EclipseInstalling the Eclipse plugin for HerokuSetting up Heroku for developmentSetting up SSH supportCreating a new Heroku Java app in EclipseUsing an existing Heroku applicationPushing code to HerokuPushing code to the Git repository
Managing Heroku apps in Eclipse
Viewing your Heroku applicationGetting to the application's detailsReviewing the application's detailsGoing deeper into the application informationAdding collaborators to the applicationChanging the environment variablesHeroku's process management in EclipseScaling your app dynosRestarting your web app
Summary
7. Heroku Best Practices
The One Cloud development platformIntroducing the Cloud 9 IDEThe C9 user interfaceThe C9 project viewSetting up preferences in the C9 IDE environmentDeploying on HerokuPerforming Git operations using the C9 IDE
Heroku and the data store
Creating a Heroku Postgres database
Logging in to the databaseCreating more databases – the forkSynchronizing databases via database followersChecking database logsPerformance and the Heroku Postgres database
Disaster recovery in Heroku PostgreSQL
Importing data into PostgresDeleting a Heroku Postgres databaseAccessing Heroku Postgres externallyAccessing the database credentialsConnecting from outside of Heroku
High availability Postgres
Choosing the right plan
When does Heroku Postgres failover?
Effect of the failoverChecking the availability status after failover
Configuring domains the right way
Overview of DNSWorking with DNS in HerokuConfiguring your domainDomain addition rulesAdding a custom domain to HerokuConfiguring domain DNSChecking DNS configurationRemoving Heroku custom subdomainsOther domain-related considerations
Optimizing applications
The 2X dyno effectWhen do I need the 2X dynos?Checking whether you need 2X dynosWhat if I use 2X dynos?Now some examples...Notes on 2X dynos
Managing your app dynos
Using the Heroku scheduler
Using NewRelic to keep the dyno alive
Summary
8. Heroku Security
Overview
Communication between the developer's machine and the Heroku platform
General concepts of securitySecurity of developer communication with HerokuA look inside the SSH protocolClient authenticationApp security and the Heroku dashboardYour Heroku account and the dashboardSecurity of applications and data resident on Heroku and third-party serversHeroku security practicesSource code securityBuild and deploy securityApplication securityData securityConfiguration and metadataInfrastructure securitySecurity in add-onsSecuring the logging infrastructureNetwork securitySecurity standards and complianceSecuring web requestsPiggyback SSLSSL for a custom domain
Application security tools
wwwhisperA sample wwwhisper appGetting wwwhisperRemoving wwwhisperEnabling wwwhisper in your applicationFor other Rack-based applicationsPost wwwhisper enablementLocal setup for wwwhisperUsing wwwhisper locallyDisabling wwwhisper in a local environmentTinfoil website security scannerUpgrading the add-onThe TINFOILSECURITY_SCAN_SCHEDULE configuration parameterThe Tinfoil security scanner dashboardThe scanning process
Summary
9. Troubleshooting Heroku Applications
The need for troubleshooting
Your window to the running app – the logs
A little more about Logplex – Heroku's logging systemSources and drainsThe message limitRetrieving Heroku logsGetting last 'n' log messagesGetting live log messagesSetting up logging levelsDissecting the Heroku log messageLog message typesLog filtersExamples of log filteringGetting more from logging – other logging tools
Techniques for troubleshooting your app
Troubleshooting application downtimeDebugging HTTP requests and APIsValidating your process formationChecking your databaseWhen everything else failsProduction check
A recommended Heroku configuration
The stackThe process formationDatabase serviceDomain and security considerationsProactive health monitoring
Maintenance windows
Checking the maintenance statusEnabling the maintenance modeDisabling the maintenance modeThe maintenance window – behind the scenesCustomizing site contentCustomizing error pagesTesting custom maintenance and error pagesWhen requests time out
Error classification in Heroku
Summary
10. Advanced Heroku Usage
Experimenting with Heroku LabsUsing Heroku Labs featuresSeamless deployment using pipelinesEnabling the pipelines featurePerformance monitoringSwitching on monitoringLog snapshotWatching your app closely using the Request IDSupporting the Request ID
Introducing Websockets
Websocket versus HTTPWebsocket is not HTTPWebsocket use casesTypical apps using WebsocketsSupporting Websockets in your appEstablishing a Websocket connectionDisadvantages of using Websockets
Heroku and Websockets
Switching on Websocket supportTurning Websockets offThe Websockets exampleThe server codeThe client code
Your first Heroku Platform API call
Before we get startedSupported API methodsSample uses of the platform APICreating an applicationCreate an application API responseRetrieving application informationModifying application informationDeleting an applicationInterpreting an API responseError operationsError formatAn example error responseWarnings
Sharing your app on Heroku
Prerequisites for collaborationAdding app collaborators to the Heroku dashboardDeleting a collaboratorAdding collaborators via the Heroku CLIListing collaboratorsRemoving a collaboratorCollaborator actionsWorking on the appViewing the app
Summary
Index

Content preview from Heroku Cloud Application Development

Creating a Heroku application

Heroku started by supporting Ruby on Rails (RoR) as the default framework for developing web apps. With RoR was born the core philosophy of Heroku platform—convention over configuration. This philosophy means that a developer should not have to make too many decisions while developing an app and at the same time should not lose the flexibility of developing it in a way he or she deems appropriate. Over a period of time, Heroku added support for other languages such as Java, Node.js, and others while enabling the same underlying philosophy for developing apps on the Heroku platform.

Let's see a real manifestation of this philosophy by creating a web app. The process of creating a Heroku app could be broken down (for ...

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Publisher Resources

ISBN: 9781783550975

Cloud Computing

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Heroku Cloud Application Development

by Anubhav Hanjura

Creating a Heroku application

Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
and much more.