Docker commands

RunPod enables bring-your-own-container (BYOC) development. If you choose this workflow, you will be using Docker commands to build, run, and manage your containers.

note

For a Dockerless workflow, see RunPod projects.

The following is a reference sheet to some of the most commonly used Docker commands.

Login

Log in to a registry (like Docker Hub) from the CLI. This saves credentials locally.

docker login
docker login -u myusername

Images

docker push - Uploads a container image to a registry like Docker Hub. docker pull - Downloads container images from a registry like Docker Hub. docker images - Lists container images that have been downloaded locally. docker rmi - Deletes/removes a Docker container image from the machine.

docker push myuser/myimage:v1   # Push custom image
docker pull someimage           # Pull shared image
docker images                   # List downloaded images
docker rmi <image>              # Remove/delete image

Containers

docker run - Launches a new container from a Docker image. docker ps - Prints out a list of containers currently running. docker logs - Shows stdout/stderr logs for a specific container. docker stop/rm - Stops or totally removes a running container.

docker run        # Start new container from image
docker ps         # List running containers
docker logs       # Print logs from container
docker stop       # Stop running container
docker rm         # Remove/delete container

Dockerfile

docker build - Builds a Docker image by reading build instructions from a Dockerfile.

docker build                         # Build image from Dockerfile
docker build --platform=linux/amd64  # Build for specific architecture

note

For the purposes of using Docker with RunPod, you should ensure your build command uses the --platform=linux/amd64 flag to build for the correct architecture.

Volumes

note

When working with a Docker and RunPod, see how to attach a Network Volume.

docker volume create - Creates a persisted and managed volume that can outlive containers. docker run -v - Mounts a volume into a specific container to allow persisting data past container lifecycle.

docker volume create         # Create volume
docker run -v <vol>:/data    # Mount volume into container

Network

docker network create - Creates a custom virtual network for containers to communicate over. docker run --network=<name> - Connects a running container to a Docker user-defined network.

docker network create           # Create user-defined network
docker run --network=<name>     # Connect container

Execute

docker exec - Execute a command in an already running container. Useful for debugging/inspecting containers:

docker exec
docker exec mycontainer ls -l /etc     # List files in container