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Docker Complete Commands Guide
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📑 Index
- Basic Docker Commands
- Docker Image Commands
- Docker Container Commands
- Docker Network Commands
- Docker Volume Commands
- Docker Compose Commands
- Docker Swarm Commands
- Conclusion
🔧 Basic Docker Commands
| Command | Flags | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
docker info |
– | Displays system-wide information about Docker, including running containers, images, storage driver, etc. | docker info |
docker version |
– | Shows the version details of the Docker client and server (engine). | docker version |
docker login |
--username, --password, --password-stdin |
Authenticates to a Docker registry (e.g., Docker Hub or private registry). | docker login --username user123 |
docker logout |
– | Logs out from a Docker registry. | docker logout |
docker help <command> |
– | Displays help and available options for a specific Docker command. | docker help run |
docker system df |
– | Displays disk usage by Docker (containers, images, volumes, and build cache). | docker system df |
docker system prune |
-a, --volumes |
Removes all unused containers, networks, images, and optionally volumes to free space. | docker system prune -a --volumes |
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📦 Docker Image Commands
| Command | Flags | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
docker images |
-a, --digests, --no-trunc |
Lists all locally stored Docker images. | docker images -a |
docker pull <image> |
--all-tags, --platform |
Downloads an image or a repository from a registry. | docker pull nginx:latest |
docker build -t <name:tag> <path> |
--file, --no-cache, --build-arg |
Builds a Docker image from a Dockerfile located at a specified path. | docker build -t myapp:1.0 . |
docker tag <source> <target> |
– | Tags an existing image with a new name and optionally a new tag. | docker tag myapp:1.0 myrepo/myapp:1.0 |
docker push <image:tag> |
--disable-content-trust |
Uploads a tagged image to a Docker registry. | docker push myrepo/myapp:1.0 |
docker rmi <image> |
-f, --no-prune |
Deletes one or more local Docker images. | docker rmi myapp:1.0 |
docker image prune |
-a, --force, --filter |
Removes dangling or unused images. | docker image prune -a --force |
docker inspect <image> |
--format |
Displays detailed low-level information about an image in JSON format. | docker inspect myapp:1.0 |
docker history <image> |
--no-trunc, --quiet |
Shows the history of an image’s layers and commands. | docker history myapp:1.0 |
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📦 Docker Container Commands
| Command | Flags | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
docker ps |
-a, -q, --no-trunc |
Lists running containers or all containers with their status and details. | docker ps -a |
docker run <image> |
-d, -p, --name, -v, --rm, -e, --network |
Creates and starts a container from an image with specified options. | docker run -d -p 80:80 --name sping-boot-db |
docker start <container> |
-a, -i |
Starts one or more stopped containers. | docker start webserver |
docker stop <container> |
-t |
Gracefully stops a running container after a timeout. | docker stop webserver |
docker restart <container> |
– | Restarts a container by stopping and starting it again. | docker restart webserver |
docker rm <container> |
-f, -v |
Deletes one or more containers. Optionally removes volumes. | docker rm -f webserver |
docker exec -it <container> <cmd> |
-i, -t |
Runs a command inside a running container with an interactive terminal. | docker exec -it webserver /bin/bash |
docker logs <container> |
-f, --tail, --since, --timestamps |
Displays log output from a running or stopped container. | docker logs -f webserver |
docker inspect <container> |
--format |
Shows detailed configuration and status of a container in JSON. | docker inspect webserver |
docker export <container> |
– | Exports a container’s filesystem as a tar archive. | docker export webserver > webserver.tar |
docker commit <container> <image> |
-a, -m, --change |
Creates a new image from the container’s current state. | docker commit webserver myapp:1.1 |
docker rename <old> <new> |
- | Rename a container. | docker rename spring-boot spring-boot-3 |
docker cp <container>:<src> <dest> |
- | Copy files from container to host. | docker cp webserver:/var/logs ./logs |
docker stats |
- | Show real-time usage stats for containers. | docker stats |
docker top <container> |
- | Show running processes in container. | docker top webserver |
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🌐 Docker Network Commands
| Command | Flags | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
docker network ls |
– | Lists all Docker networks. | docker network ls |
docker network create <name> |
--driver, --subnet, --gateway |
Creates a new Docker network. | docker network create --driver bridge mynetwork |
docker network rm <name> |
– | Deletes one or more networks. | docker network rm mynetwork |
docker network inspect <name> |
– | Displays detailed info about a Docker network. | docker network inspect mynetwork |
docker network prune |
– | Removes all unused networks. | docker network prune |
docker network connect <net> <container> |
- | Connect container to a network. | docker network connect mynetwork webserver |
docker network disconnect <net> <container> |
- | Disconnect container from a network. | docker network disconnect mynetwork webserver |
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📁 Docker Volume Commands
| Command | Flags | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
docker volume ls |
– | Lists all Docker volumes. | docker volume ls |
docker volume create <name> |
– | Creates a new volume. | docker volume create myvolume |
docker volume inspect <name> |
– | Displays detailed info about a specific volume. | docker volume inspect myvolume |
docker volume rm <name> |
– | Deletes one or more volumes. | docker volume rm myvolume |
docker system prune --volumes |
--volumes |
Removes all unused volumes (along with other pruned items). | docker system prune --volumes |
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⚙️ Docker Compose Commands
| Command | Flags | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
docker-compose --version |
– | Shows the installed Docker Compose version. | docker-compose --version |
docker-compose up |
-d, --build, --force-recreate |
Builds, (re)creates, and starts all containers defined in docker-compose.yml. |
docker-compose up -d |
docker-compose down |
-v, --rmi, --remove-orphans |
Stops and removes all services defined in docker-compose.yml. |
docker-compose down -v |
docker-compose ps |
– | Lists containers managed by Compose. | docker-compose ps |
docker-compose images |
– | Lists images used by services. | docker-compose images |
docker-compose stop |
– | Stops running services without removing containers. | docker-compose stop |
docker-compose start |
– | Starts existing stopped services. | docker-compose start |
docker-compose restart |
– | Restarts services. | docker-compose restart |
docker-compose logs |
-f, --tail, --timestamps |
Displays logs from all services. | docker-compose logs -f |
docker-compose exec <svc> <cmd> |
– | Executes a command in a running service container. | docker-compose exec web bash |
docker-compose run <svc> <cmd> |
--rm, -p |
Runs a command in a new container for a service. | docker-compose run web bash |
docker-compose config |
--services, --volumes |
Validates and displays the Compose file. | docker-compose config |
docker-compose pull |
--ignore-pull-failures |
Pulls service images from the registry. | docker-compose pull |
docker-compose push |
--ignore-push-failures |
Pushes service images to the registry. | docker-compose push |
docker-compose scale <svc>=<num> |
– | Scales a service to a specified number of replicas. | docker-compose scale web=3 |
docker-compose rm |
-f, -s |
Removes stopped service containers. | docker-compose rm -f |
docker-compose top |
– | Displays the running processes in containers. | docker-compose top |
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🐝 Docker Swarm Commands
| Command | Flags | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
docker swarm init |
– | Initializes a new Swarm and makes the current node a manager. | docker swarm init |
docker swarm join --token <token> |
– | Adds a new node (manager/worker) to the Swarm using a join token. | docker swarm join --token SWMTKN-1-... |
docker swarm join-token worker |
– | Displays the command to add a worker node. | docker swarm join-token worker |
docker service create --name <name> -p 8080:8080 <image> |
--name, -p |
Deploys a service to the Swarm. | docker service create --name web -p 80:80 nginx |
docker service scale <service>=<replicas> |
– | Scales a service up or down to the desired number of replicas. | docker service scale web=3 |
docker service ls |
– | Lists all services running in the Swarm. | docker service ls |
docker service rm <name> |
– | Removes a specific service. | docker service rm web |
docker swarm leave |
--force |
Leaves the Swarm (manager or worker node). | docker swarm leave --force |
docker node ls |
– | Lists all nodes in the Swarm. | docker node ls |
docker node promote <node> |
– | Promotes a worker node to a manager. | docker node promote worker1 |
docker node demote <node> |
– | Demotes a manager node to a worker. | docker node demote manager1 |
docker node update --availability <availability> <node> |
– | Updates the availability of a node (active, pause, drain). | docker node update --availability drain worker1 |
docker stack deploy -c <file.yml> <stack> |
– | Deploys a stack of services defined in a Compose file. | docker stack deploy -c docker-compose.yml mystack |
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📝 Conclusion
- Docker is a powerful tool for containerization, and mastering its commands can significantly enhance your development and deployment workflows. This guide provides a comprehensive overview of the most commonly used Docker commands, helping you to efficiently manage images, containers, networks, and volumes.
- For more detailed information, refer to the official Docker documentation.
🔗 References
- Docker Official Documentation
- Docker Hub
- Docker Compose Documentation
- Docker Swarm Documentation
- Docker CLI Reference