hey, my name is Vladimir Mikhalev

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.

🎥 Watch the full video to see the transformative impact we're making!

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.