RubyMine 2026.2: Selecting Per‑Developer Docker SDKs vs. Shared Docker Compose for Zero‑Downtime Migration

Choosing the Migration Model

For a reliable zero-downtime migration that maintains debug-gem compatibility across a team, the most effective approach is a hybrid strategy:

• Shared Docker Compose Stack: Use this for common infrastructure services (e.g., PostgreSQL, Redis, RabbitMQ) to ensure data consistency.
• Per-Developer Docker SDKs: Use isolated SDKs for the Ruby interpreter and application code. This prevents gem mismatches and avoids the need to restart shared services when a single developer updates a dependency.
• CI-Driven Image Updates: Automate base image rebuilds via CI whenever Gemfile.lock changes to ensure all developers pull a synchronized environment.

Technical Explanation

Per-developer SDKs isolate the Ruby environment, ensuring that ruby-debug-ide and debase versions inside the container align perfectly with the versions bundled in RubyMine 2026.2. In a fully shared Compose stack, a gem update by one developer can break breakpoints for the entire team until the image is rebuilt and redistributed, creating downtime.

Implementation Steps

1. Deploy Shared Services: Define a docker-compose.yml containing only the supporting services.

   services:
     db:
       image: postgres:15
       ports: ["5432:5432"]
     redis:
       image: redis:7
       ports: ["6379:6379"]

2. Configure RubyMine SDK: In Project Settings > Ruby SDK and Gems, create a new Docker SDK. Mount the project directory as a volume (e.g., .:/app) and set the interpreter path to /usr/local/bin/ruby.
3. Automate Gem Synchronization: Configure a CI pipeline to trigger on Gemfile.lock changes. The pipeline should build the image, tag it with the commit SHA, and push it to a private registry. Developers then run docker pull [image]:[sha] to update.
4. Verify Debugger Connectivity: Ensure the IDE debugger is bound to 0.0.0.0. If breakpoints are missed, verify the debug port (typically 1234) is open using:

   nc -vz [container_ip] 1234

Mitigating Network and Firewall Issues

To prevent missed breakpoints due to latency or firewall restrictions:

• Use network_mode: host for the Ruby service to bypass Docker's virtual bridge.
• Expose the debug port explicitly in the Docker configuration.
• If working across a VPN, use SSH tunneling to forward the debug port from the remote container to the local IDE.

Missing Diagnostic Detail

What specific Ruby version is the project targeting? Because ruby-debug-ide and debase are highly sensitive to the Ruby version, this detail is required to confirm the exact gem versions needed for the base image.