Basic docker commands
docker compose pull
docker compose up -d
A container is a running instance of an image.
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
docker ps | List running containers |
docker ps -a | List all containers (including stopped ones) |
docker start <id_or_name> | Start a stopped container |
docker stop <id_or_name> | Gracefully stop a running container |
docker restart <id_or_name> | Restart a container |
docker rm <id_or_name> | Remove a container (must be stopped first) |
docker rm -f <id_or_name> | Force removal of a running container |
An image is the blueprint downloaded from Docker Hub.
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
docker images | List all locally stored images |
docker pull <image_name> | Download an image from Docker Hub (e.g., docker pull nginx) |
docker rmi <image_id> | Remove a local image |
Essential when a homelab service isn't working as expected.
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
docker logs <id_or_name> | Display container logs |
docker logs -f <id_or_name> | Follow logs in real-time (tail -f) |
docker exec -it <id> /bin/bash | Open an interactive terminal (bash) inside the container |
docker exec -it <id> /bin/sh | Open a terminal (sh) if bash is unavailable (common on Alpine) |
docker stats | Display live CPU/RAM usage of all containers |
docker inspect <id> | Display detailed container info (IP, network, volumes) in JSON format |
docker build -t <name> . | Build an image from the Dockerfile in the current directory |
To free up disk space on the server. Use these commands with caution!
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
docker container prune | Remove all stopped containers |
docker image prune | Remove dangling images (no tags, not associated with a container) |
docker volume prune | Remove unused volumes (risk of data loss) |
docker system prune -a | Deep clean: remove everything that is not currently in use |
To manage multi-container stacks (via a docker-compose.yml file).
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
docker compose up -d | Create and start containers in the background (detached mode) |
docker compose down | Stop and remove containers and networks defined in the stack |
docker compose pull | Pull the latest images defined in the compose file |
docker compose logs -f | Follow logs for the entire stack in real-time |