---
advisory: swarm-standalone
hide_from_sitemap: true
description: Swarm strategies
keywords: docker, swarm, clustering, strategies
title: Docker Swarm strategies
---

The Docker Swarm scheduler features multiple strategies for ranking nodes. The
strategy you choose determines how Swarm computes ranking. When you run a new
container, Swarm chooses to place it on the node with the highest computed ranking
for your chosen strategy.

To choose a ranking strategy, pass the `--strategy` flag and a strategy value to
the `swarm manage` command. Swarm currently supports these values:

* `spread`
* `binpack`
* `random`

The `spread` and `binpack` strategies compute rank according to a node's
available CPU, its RAM, and the number of containers it has. The `random`
strategy uses no computation. It selects a node at random and is primarily
intended for debugging.

Your goal in choosing a strategy is to best optimize your cluster according to
your company's needs.

Under the `spread` strategy, Swarm optimizes for the node with the least number
of containers. The `binpack` strategy causes Swarm to optimize for the
node which is most packed. Note that a container occupies resource during its life
cycle, including `exited` state. Users should be aware of this condition to schedule
containers. For example, `spread` strategy only checks number of containers
disregarding their states. A node with no active containers but high number of
stopped containers may not be selected, defeating the purpose of load sharing.
User could either remove stopped containers, or start stopped containers to achieve
load spreading. The `random` strategy, like it sounds, chooses nodes at random
regardless of their available CPU or RAM.

Using the `spread` strategy results in containers spread thinly over many
machines. The advantage of this strategy is that if a node goes down you only
lose a few containers.

The `binpack` strategy avoids fragmentation because it leaves room for bigger
containers on unused machines. The strategic advantage of `binpack` is that you
use fewer machines as Swarm tries to pack as many containers as it can on a
node.

If you do not specify a `--strategy` Swarm uses `spread` by default.

## Spread strategy example

In this example, your cluster is using the `spread` strategy which optimizes for
nodes that have the fewest containers. In this cluster, both `node-1` and `node-2`
have 2G of RAM, 2 CPUs, and neither node is running a container. Under this strategy
`node-1` and `node-2` have the same ranking.

When you run a new container, the system chooses `node-1` at random from the
Swarm cluster of two equally ranked nodes:

      $ docker tcp://<manager_ip:manager_port> run -d -P -m 1G --name db mysql
      f8b693db9cd6

      $ docker tcp://<manager_ip:manager_port> ps
      CONTAINER ID        IMAGE               COMMAND             CREATED                  STATUS              PORTS                           NAMES
      f8b693db9cd6        mysql:latest        "mysqld"            Less than a second ago   running             192.168.0.42:49178->3306/tcp    node-1/db

Now, we start another container and ask for 1G of RAM again.


    $ docker tcp://<manager_ip:manager_port> run -d -P -m 1G --name frontend nginx
    963841b138d8

    $ docker tcp://<manager_ip:manager_port> ps
    CONTAINER ID        IMAGE               COMMAND             CREATED                  STATUS              PORTS                           NAMES
    963841b138d8        nginx:latest        "nginx"             Less than a second ago   running             192.168.0.42:49177->80/tcp      node-2/frontend
    f8b693db9cd6        mysql:latest        "mysqld"            Up About a minute        running             192.168.0.42:49178->3306/tcp    node-1/db


The container `frontend` was started on `node-2` because it was the node the
least loaded already. If two nodes have the same amount of available RAM and
CPUs, the `spread` strategy prefers the node with least containers.

## BinPack strategy example

In this example, let's say that both `node-1` and `node-2` have 2G of RAM and
neither is running a container. Again, the nodes are equal. When you run a new
container, the system chooses `node-1` at random from the cluster:


    $ docker tcp://<manager_ip:manager_port> run -d -P -m 1G --name db mysql
    f8b693db9cd6

    $ docker tcp://<manager_ip:manager_port> ps
    CONTAINER ID        IMAGE               COMMAND             CREATED                  STATUS              PORTS                           NAMES
    f8b693db9cd6        mysql:latest        "mysqld"            Less than a second ago   running             192.168.0.42:49178->3306/tcp    node-1/db


Now, you start another container, asking for 1G of RAM again.


    $ docker tcp://<manager_ip:manager_port> run -d -P -m 1G --name frontend nginx
    963841b138d8

    $ docker tcp://<manager_ip:manager_port> ps
    CONTAINER ID        IMAGE               COMMAND             CREATED                  STATUS              PORTS                           NAMES
    963841b138d8        nginx:latest        "nginx"             Less than a second ago   running             192.168.0.42:49177->80/tcp      node-1/frontend
    f8b693db9cd6        mysql:latest        "mysqld"            Up About a minute        running             192.168.0.42:49178->3306/tcp    node-1/db


The system starts the new `frontend` container on `node-1` because it was the
node the most packed already. This allows us to start a container requiring 2G
of RAM on `node-2`.

If two nodes have the same amount of available RAM and CPUs, the `binpack`
strategy prefers the node with most containers.

## Docker Swarm documentation index

- [Docker Swarm overview](../index.md)
- [Discovery options](../discovery.md)
- [Scheduler filters](filter.md)
- [Swarm API](../swarm-api.md)
