Docker - really want to like but...

Forums › Self-hosted › Docker - really want to like but...

xpd

Geek @ Coastguard NZ
13765 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#306000 19-Jun-2023 18:48

.... so many docker images/pulls just do not work at all. Even well known packages from the developers themselves just do not want to work for me.

Maybe I need to learn more about it..... out of about 5 I've tried today, only one has run successfully.

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

LinkTree

amanzi

Amanzi
1293 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3092183 19-Jun-2023 18:52

What are the 5 you've tried today? I run a bunch of stuff in Docker and can't remember the last time something hasn't worked.

Reanalyse

381 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3092189 19-Jun-2023 19:12

Did you correctly create the necessary volumes for the Docker container to use, and if so could it be a permissions issue if using Docker with Linux ?

Just guessing, I am no expert but most of the containers I have deployed have worked.

nzkc

1572 posts

Uber Geek

#3092192 19-Jun-2023 19:20

xpd:

.... so many docker images/pulls just do not work at all. Even well known packages from the developers themselves just do not want to work for me.

Maybe I need to learn more about it..... out of about 5 I've tried today, only one has run successfully.

What exactly is the command you're running here?

Im a pretty heavy user of docker and your issues sound bizarre TBH. Rarely does a docker pull fail - unless you hit the docker api rate limit. That is pretty hard to do for anything at a personal project limit though.

timmmay

20580 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3092199 19-Jun-2023 19:37

I find docker images quite reliable. I've never found one that doesn't work, but since I'm not a docker expert it does take me a bit of time to get them configured and working properly. I use PiHole, AppDaemon, Portainer, and a couple of others. I'll probably move to HomeAssistant container when I get around to it - HA is a pain to update but docker updates are easy to automate.

I'm also starting to like the Linux Snap package manager. Because all the dependencies are packaged up they're simpler to get working than standard packages. Disk space is cheap, my time is valuable.

nzkc

1572 posts

Uber Geek

#3092299 19-Jun-2023 20:26

timmmay:

docker updates are easy to automate.

Especially if you run the watchtower container too!

Lias

5589 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3092386 20-Jun-2023 08:21

I spent a bit of time trying to get Docker/Containers running on one of my servers. From memory I could get the base Docker but not Compose running and gave up after wasting a weekend. Probably a much smoother experience if you're using a linux OS (or a Windows Client OS) , but I was trying to get it working on Windows Server. Be nice if MS just up and purchased Docker Inc and built it into Hyper-V.

I'm a geek, a gamer, a dad, a Quic user, and an IT Professional. I have a full rack home lab, size 15 feet, an epic beard and Asperger's. I'm a bit of a Cypherpunk, who believes information wants to be free and the Net interprets censorship as damage and routes around it. If you use my Quic signup you can also use the code R570394EKGIZ8 for free setup.

xpd

Geek @ Coastguard NZ
13765 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3092390 20-Jun-2023 08:35

Im using the Windows version. I had a bit more luck using the Linux version but dont have a dedicated system to keep it going at the moment.

Using Dockers built in search, I've tried pulling quite a few systems, and while most do come in fine, a number fail for random reasons - maybe just not maintained anymore.

As for actually running them, some of the well known packages just say to spin them up and away you go, and don't mention any specific setup requirements etc. Yet once spun up, get all sorts of errors or they appear to run but just don't respond to requests as thy should.

I find it odd that packages I've have had run on Linux Docker work perfectly yet on Windows version they just fail miserably.... yet in theory should work exactly the same.

I'll keep poking at Docker until I get my head around it :)

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

LinkTree

Lenovo

Shop now for Lenovo laptops and other devices (affiliate link).

darylblake

1162 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#3092411 20-Jun-2023 10:41

Try to keep close to the original base images.

E.g.

FROM golang:latest
FROM ubuntu20.04:latest
FROM rhel9.0:latest
FROM alpine:latest

etc

If you start using all these crazy tagged up images then you are more likely to run into issues.
Write your own docker files too

Portainer is great also the guys that work on this are out in west auckland at hobsonville point, some smart cookies :D

Jase2985

13461 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Lifetime subscriber

#3092616 20-Jun-2023 15:20

xpd:

As for actually running them, some of the well known packages just say to spin them up and away you go, and don't mention any specific setup requirements etc. Yet once spun up, get all sorts of errors or they appear to run but just don't respond to requests as thy should.

I find it odd that packages I've have had run on Linux Docker work perfectly yet on Windows version they just fail miserably.... yet in theory should work exactly the same.

i find that odd as most/all of the docker packages i have have played require you do download the package then to install them, require you to create a folder for them (lower case) then specify the folder during the install. some of the packages require a timezone to be set along with other variables.

nzkc

1572 posts

Uber Geek

#3092633 20-Jun-2023 15:46

xpd:

Im using the Windows version. I had a bit more luck using the Linux version but dont have a dedicated system to keep it going at the moment.

Using Dockers built in search, I've tried pulling quite a few systems, and while most do come in fine, a number fail for random reasons - maybe just not maintained anymore.

As for actually running them, some of the well known packages just say to spin them up and away you go, and don't mention any specific setup requirements etc. Yet once spun up, get all sorts of errors or they appear to run but just don't respond to requests as thy should.

Ahh... I wondered if maybe you were using the Windows version.

My advice would be to try and stay clear of windows docker. You're basically at the whim of whether Microsoft have created an image for you or not. Obviously this comes down to the applications you are trying to run.

Importantly, and perhaps this is the missing piece of information, you cannot combine Linux and Windows docker images and host systems. The containers need to use the Kernel on the machine they're running on. And as I'm sure you're aware you cant just run a Windows app on Linux or vice versa.

Because of all the above; I'd strongly recommend using WSL2 and setting up Docker through that (Docker Desktop is good here!) And then use Linux based images. You'll get a lot more success here!

xpd:

I find it odd that packages I've have had run on Linux Docker work perfectly yet on Windows version they just fail miserably.... yet in theory should work exactly the same.

I'll keep poking at Docker until I get my head around it :)

Definitely not - as I have hopefully cleared up above :)

xpd

Geek @ Coastguard NZ
13765 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3092643 20-Jun-2023 16:20

Thanks for that :) I'll leave it be for now until I move house and can find my other system i was using for playing around on :D

Thanks all for the info :)

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

LinkTree

timmmay

20580 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3092645 20-Jun-2023 16:32

Docker works well even on small systems like a Raspberry Pi 4, if you want to experiment, and if you can find a Pi.

networkn

Networkn
32351 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3092670 20-Jun-2023 16:54

Docker for Windows says it uses Hyper-V features of Windows, but can you run HV AND docker for windows (desktop) on the same machine side by side?

nzkc

1572 posts

Uber Geek

#3092787 20-Jun-2023 20:54

networkn:

Docker for Windows says it uses Hyper-V features of Windows, but can you run HV AND docker for windows (desktop) on the same machine side by side?

Yes it uses Hyper V for docker on windows (with windows containers). To use Linux containers you need to configure WSL for that. Docker Desktop will do this for you IIRC, though its not hard to set up yourself as Microsoft instructions are very clear.

You can run and create docker containers for both Linux and Windows on Windows, however, you can only run one architecture at a time. You cant mix and match sadly. Again Docker Desktop is handy here as it gives an option to switch between the two. It does warn you if you have running containers that these will be stopped and wont run once switched (until you switch back).