Docker is a framework that provides for hosting instances of software based on a small configuration file, the Dockerfile. Docker allows for multiple instances of software to be instantiated automatically as needed. So, we would have multiple instances of our notebook available to users. Users would not be able to distinguish the multiple instances as they just reference the one notebook. Docker redirects user traffic to one or the other instances based on initial connection to the system.

The Dockerfile has the environment settings that tell the Docker system what system components need to be present in an instance in order for the referenced object, in this case a notebook, can be executed.