To facilitate this, Docker has overlay networks that use VXLAN tunnels to pass container traffic seamlessly and transparently between instances running on different hosts.

The Overlay Network is a powerful tool for allowing communication between containers across multiple host systems. It is particularly relevant in Docker Swarm environments, where containers are ...

The Weave project, created by Zett.io, is meant to address Docker’s networking issue by providing Docker containers — even those deployed across multiple hosts — with a single virtual network.

But Docker developers didn’t initially build in the ability to migrate a container from one host to another, or connect one container to another on a different host.

After acquiring SocketPlane six months ago, Docker announced major upgrades in networking that allow containers to communicate across hosts.

As it stands, Docker can already link containers within a single host, the problems start when containers are spread across multiple hosts - Weave provides connectivity for this use case.

SocketPlane is one of many solutions cropping up to solve the limitations of Docker containers. Read about SocketPlane's approach.