About

About#

I’m Vladimir Mikhalev, an AWS Community Builder, HashiCorp Ambassador, Snyk Ambassador, Cypress Ambassador, GitKraken Ambassador, Notion Ambassador, and Docker Captain, but my friends can call me Valdemar.

💾 I’ve been in the IT game for over 20 years, cutting my teeth with some big names like IBM, Thales, and Amazon. These days, I wear the hat of a DevOps Engineer and Team Lead, but what really gets me going is Docker and container technology I’m kind of obsessed!

💛 I have my own IT blog, where I’ve built a community of DevOps enthusiasts who share my love for all things Docker, containers, and IT technologies in general. And to make sure everyone can jump on this awesome DevOps train, I write super detailed guides (seriously, they’re foolproof!) that help even newbies deploy and manage complex IT solutions.

🚀 My dream is to empower every single person in the DevOps community to squeeze every last drop of potential out of Docker and container tech.

🐳 As a Docker Captain, I’m stoked to share my knowledge, experiences, and a good dose of passion for the tech. My aim is to encourage learning, innovation, and growth, and to inspire the next generation of IT whizz-kids to push Docker and container tech to its limits.

Let’s do this together!

Recognized by Docker CEO#

At the Docker Captains Summit, Docker’s CEO, Scott Johnston, acknowledged my exceptional leadership and contributions.

Featured Shorts on Docker’s YouTube#

Explore my developer Shorts featured on Docker’s official YouTube channel - fast, actionable insights from real-world DevOps and container security scenarios.

🍿 Why ‘latest’ Broke Our Staging (And How We Fixed It for Good) - How a misused latest tag brought our staging down without anyone noticing. Discover how we changed our approach to Docker, avoiding the pitfalls and making production more reliable.

🍿 Caught a Major Prod Bug Too Late? Use Docker Scout - A real-world example of using Docker Scout to detect vulnerabilities early, reduce security noise, and keep production stable. Scan every image. Fix issues faster. Ship with confidence.

Featured Contributions on Docker.com#

Explore some of my key contributions to Docker’s knowledge base and resources:

🐳 How to Build, Run, and Package AI Models Locally with Docker Model Runner - Learn how to run LLMs locally with Docker - no Python setup needed. Pull, package, and deploy GGUF models via CLI or API for fast, private AI workflows.

🐳 Master Docker and VS Code: Supercharge Your Dev Workflow - A practical guide to combining Docker and VS Code for faster development, consistent environments, seamless debugging, and streamlined CI/CD workflows.

🐳 Mastering Docker and Jenkins: Build Robust CI/CD Pipelines Efficiently - A comprehensive, hands-on tutorial demonstrating how to combine Docker’s containerization strengths with Jenkins’ automation capabilities. Learn best practices for faster builds, consistent testing, and streamlined deployments that supercharge your DevOps workflows.

🐳 How to Dockerize a React App: A Step-by-Step Guide for Developers - A clear, hands-on walkthrough that simplifies containerizing React applications, creating consistent environments, streamlining deployments, and elevating front-end workflows.

🐳 Why Testcontainers Cloud Is a Game-Changer Compared to Docker-in-Docker for Testing Scenarios - An insightful exploration of how Testcontainers Cloud enhances container-based testing while addressing the complexities of Docker-in-Docker, delivering a more secure and efficient alternative.

🐳 Dockerize WordPress: Simplify Your Site’s Setup and Deployment - A comprehensive guide to streamlining WordPress environments using Docker and Traefik, ensuring secure, scalable, and efficient site deployments.

🐳 8 Top Docker Tips & Tricks - Practical insights and advanced techniques designed to elevate your Docker expertise and productivity.

🐳 How Ataccama Accelerated Its AI Journey with Docker - A behind-the-scenes perspective on how Docker fueled Ataccama’s AI initiatives, boosting developer satisfaction and driving rapid innovation.

🐳 How a Beauty Giant Achieved 25% Cost Savings with Container-First Development - A revealing case study on how a major beauty brand leveraged Docker to optimize workflows, significantly cut costs, and improve operational efficiency.

Featured Contributions on the Official Cypress Blog#

Explore some of my key contributions to Cypress’s knowledge base and resources:

🧪 Cypress Test Replay in 2025: The Ultimate Guide to Time-Travel Debugging - Discover how Cypress Test Replay turns every CI run into an interactive debugging session with DOM snapshots, network logs, and console output-perfect for tackling complex modern UIs.

🧪 Docker + Cypress in 2025: How I’ve Perfected My E2E Testing Setup - A deep dive into optimizing Cypress testing within Docker containers, ensuring stability, parallelization, and security for modern CI/CD pipelines.

2D Portfolio#

🕹️ Click into sre.gg - my virtual space is a 2D pixel-art portfolio inviting you to interact with elements that encapsulate the milestones of my DevOps career.

Learn with Me#

🎓 Check out my courses on Udemy - built for engineers who want real skills, not just theory. From Docker and Kubernetes to DevOps fundamentals, everything is hands-on and based on real-world scenarios.

🔑 Every course is created from scratch by me - no fluff, no shortcuts. Whether you’re just starting out or leveling up, you’ll get practical experience you can actually use.

Patreon Exclusives#

🏆 Join my Patreon and dive deep into the world of Docker and DevOps with exclusive content tailored for IT enthusiasts and professionals. As your experienced guide, I offer a range of membership tiers designed to suit everyone from newbies to IT experts.

Tools I Personally Trust#

If you’re building things, breaking things, and trying to keep your digital life a little saner (like every good DevOps engineer), these are two tools that I trust and use daily:

🛸 Proton VPN - My shield on the internet. It keeps your Wi-Fi secure, hides your IP, and blocks those creepy trackers. Even if I’m hacking away on free café Wi-Fi, I know I’m safe.

🔑 Proton Pass - My password vault. Proper on-device encryption, 2FA codes, logins, secrets - all mine and only mine. No compromises.

These are partner links - you won’t pay a cent more, but you’ll be supporting DevOps Compass. Thanks a ton - it helps me keep this compass pointing the right way 💜

Gear & Books I Trust#

📕 Essential DevOps books
🖥️ Studio streaming & recording kit
📡 Streaming starter kit

🎬 YouTube
🐦 X (Twitter)
🎨 Instagram
🐘 Mastodon
🧵 Threads
🎸 Facebook
🦋 Bluesky
🎥 TikTok
💻 LinkedIn
📣 daily.dev Squad
✈️ Telegram
🐈 GitHub

Community of IT Experts#

👾 Discord

Refill My Coffee Supplies#

💖 PayPal
🏆 Patreon
🥤 BuyMeaCoffee
🍪 Ko-fi
💎 GitHub
⚡ Telegram Boost

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