Docker

Coder with Docker has the following advantages:

• Simple installation (everything is on a single box)
• Workspace images are easily configured
• Workspaces share resources for burst operations

Note that the below steps are only supported on a Linux distribution. If on macOS, please run Coder via the standalone binary.

Requirements

• A Linux machine
• A running Docker daemon

Instructions

1. Run Coder with Docker.

   export CODER_DATA=$HOME/.config/coderv2-docker
   export DOCKER_GROUP=$(getent group docker | cut -d: -f3)
   mkdir -p $CODER_DATA
   docker run --rm -it \
       -v $CODER_DATA:/home/coder/.config \
       -v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock \
       --group-add $DOCKER_GROUP \
       ghcr.io/coder/coder:latest
   

   This will use Coder's tunnel and built-in database. See our Docker documentation for other configuration options such as running on localhost, using docker-compose, and external PostgreSQL.

2. In new terminal, install Coder in order to connect to your deployment through the CLI.

   curl -L https://coder.com/install.sh | sh
   

3. Run coder login <access url> and follow the interactive instructions to create your user.

4. Pull the "Docker" example template using the interactive coder templates init:

   coder templates init
   cd docker
   

5. Push up the template with coder templates create

6. Open the dashboard in your browser to create your first workspace:

   

   Then navigate to Templates > docker > Create Workspace

   

   Now wait a few moments for the workspace to build... After the first build, the image is cached and subsequent builds will take a few seconds.

7. Your workspace is ready to go!

   

   Open up a web application or SSH in.

8. If you want to modify the Docker image or template, edit the files in the previously created ./docker directory, then run coder templates push.

Using remote Docker host

You can use a remote Docker host in 2 ways.

1. Over SSH. See here for details.
2. Over TCP. See here for details.

Troubleshooting

Docker-based workspace is stuck in "Connecting..."

Ensure you have an externally-reachable CODER_ACCESS_URL set. See troubleshooting templates for more steps.

Permission denied while trying to connect to the Docker daemon socket

See Docker's official documentation to Manage Docker as a non-root user.

Next Steps