Solving “It Works on My Machine” in Cross-Environment Development

Introduction

Picture this: you’ve spent days on a feature, tested it multiple times, and it works flawlessly on your setup. You push the code, confident it’s ready, but a teammate immediately finds an error you can’t replicate. You try to help, but since it runs fine on your machine, finding a fix feels like looking for a needle in a haystack. This common situation, often referred to as the “It works on my machine” problem, can become a major roadblock in collaborative development.

In this article, we’ll break down common reasons for these issues and outline simple steps to prevent them, including using consistent environments, locking dependencies, and setting up shared database and configuration files. Let’s jump in!

Step 1: Standardize Your Development Environment with Docker

To avoid setup discrepancies, many teams use Docker to “containerize” their development environment. Docker creates a consistent environment that works across any system, from your laptop to the production server.

Quick Docker Setup

• Install Docker: Download and install Docker from docker.com.
• Create a Dockerfile: In your project folder, add a file…