Docker Networks actually support different kinds of “Drivers” which influence the behavior of the Network.

The default driver is the “bridge” driver – it provides the behavior shown in this module (i.e. Containers can find each other by name if they are in the same Network).

The driver can be set when a Network is created, simply by adding the --driver option.

docker network create --driver bridge my-net

Of course, if you want to use the “bridge” driver, you can simply omit the entire option since “bridge” is the default anyways.

Docker also supports these alternative drivers – though you will use the “bridge” driver in most cases:

• host: For standalone containers, isolation between container and host system is removed (i.e. they share localhost as a network)

• overlay: Multiple Docker daemons (i.e. Docker running on different machines) are able to connect with each other. Only works in “Swarm” mode which is a dated / almost deprecated way of connecting multiple containers

• macvlan: You can set a custom MAC address to a container – this address can then be used for communication with that container

• none: All networking is disabled.

• Third-party plugins: You can install third-party plugins which then may add all kinds of behaviors and functionalities

As mentioned, the “bridge” driver makes most sense in the vast majority of scenarios.