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docker

Manage Docker containers, images, networks and volumes.

Synopsis​

xec docker [options] <subcommand>
xec d <subcommand>              # alias

Description​

The docker command wraps common Docker operations: container lifecycle, image builds, networks, volumes, Compose, Swarm, and a set of pre-configured development services (Redis, PostgreSQL, Kafka, and others) that start with one line.

Docker must be installed and the daemon running.

Global Options​

  • -o, --output <format> - Output format: text (default), json, yaml, csv
  • -c, --config <path> - Path to configuration file
  • --dry-run - Preview operations without executing them

Subcommands​

Containers​

xec docker container <cmd>      # alias: c
  • run [options] <image> - Run a new container
    • -n, --name <name>, -p, --ports <ports...>, -v, --volumes <volumes...>, -e, --env <env...>
    • --network <network>, --workdir <dir>, --user <user>, --entrypoint <cmd>
    • -d, --detached, --rm, -i, --interactive, -t, --tty
    • --restart <policy>, --label <labels...>, --privileged
  • exec [options] <container> <command...> - Execute a command in a running container
    • -i, --interactive, -t, --tty, --user <user>, --workdir <dir>
  • stop [options] <containers...> - Stop containers (-t, --time <seconds>, default 10)
  • remove [options] <containers...> - Remove containers (-f, --force); alias rm
  • logs [options] <container> - View logs (-f, --follow, --tail <lines>, --since <time>, --timestamps)

Images​

xec docker image <cmd>          # alias: i
  • build [options] <context> - Build from a Dockerfile
    • -t, --tag <tag>, -f, --file <dockerfile>, --no-cache, --pull
    • --platform <platform>, --build-arg <args...>, --target <stage>, --quiet
  • pull <image> - Pull an image from a registry
  • remove [options] <images...> - Remove images (-f, --force); alias rmi
  • list - List images; alias ls

Pre-configured Services​

xec docker service <cmd>        # alias: s

One-line development services. Each takes -p, --port, -n, --name, --version <tag>, --persistent and --data-path <path>; service-specific flags below.

--persistent alone is enough: without --data-path the data goes to a named docker volume derived from the container name, which outlives the container. (It used to mount nothing at all unless a path was given — the service started, reported itself persistent, and lost everything when the container was removed.)

Every service waits until it can answer before start returns. A service handed back before it is usable is one whose first request fails, and whether it does depends on how loaded the machine is.

  • redis - Redis (--password, --config-path)
  • postgres - PostgreSQL (--password, --user, --database)
  • mysql - MySQL (--password, --database)
  • mongodb - MongoDB (--root-user, --root-password, --database, --replica-set)
  • redis-cluster - Redis cluster (-m, --masters, -r, --replicas, -p, --base-port, --password, --network)
  • kafka - Kafka with Zookeeper (--zookeeper <connection>, --broker-id <id>, --network)
  • rabbitmq - RabbitMQ (-m, --management-port, --user, --password, --vhost)
  • elasticsearch - Elasticsearch (--single-node). One container can only run as a single node, so --no-single-node is refused rather than silently ignored; for a real cluster, describe the nodes in a compose file or as separate targets.
  • ssh - SSH server container for testing (--user, --password, --pubkey <path>, --authorized-keys <path>)
  • list - List available services; alias ls

Compose​

xec docker compose <cmd>        # alias: dc
  • up [options] - Create and start services (-f, --file, -p, --project, -d, --detached, --build, --profile <profiles...>)
  • down [options] - Stop and remove services (-f, --file, -p, --project, -v, --volumes, --rmi)

Networks​

xec docker network <cmd>        # alias: n
  • create [options] <name> - Create a network (-d, --driver, --subnet, --gateway, --ip-range, --attachable, --internal, --label <labels...>)
  • remove <name> - Remove a network; alias rm

Volumes​

xec docker volume <cmd>         # alias: v
  • create [options] <name> - Create a volume (-d, --driver, --label <labels...>, --opt <options...>)
  • remove [options] <name> - Remove a volume (-f, --force); alias rm

Swarm​

  • swarm init [options] - Initialize a swarm (--advertise-addr, --listen-addr, --data-path-addr)
  • swarm leave [options] - Leave the swarm (-f, --force)

Shortcuts​

  • ps [options] - List containers (-a, --all)
  • images - List images
  • prune [options] - Remove unused data (-a, --all images too, -v, --volumes)
  • quick-start - Interactive service starter

Examples​

Containers and Images​

# Run a container with ports and a mounted volume
xec docker container run nginx:alpine -n web -p 8080:80 -v ./html:/usr/share/nginx/html -d

# Execute a command inside it
xec docker container exec web "nginx -t"

# Follow its logs
xec docker container logs web -f

# Build and tag an image
xec docker image build . -t my-app:latest

# Clean up
xec docker container stop web
xec docker container rm web

Development Services​

# Redis on the default port
xec docker service redis

# PostgreSQL with a persistent data directory
xec docker service postgres --password secret --persistent --data-path ./pgdata

# A three-master Redis cluster
xec docker service redis-cluster --masters 3 --replicas 1

# See what is available
xec docker service list

Compose​

xec docker compose up --build
xec docker compose down -v

Housekeeping​

xec docker ps -a
xec docker prune --all --volumes
  • in - Execute commands in containers declared as targets
  • logs - Stream logs from any target
  • copy - Copy files to and from containers

See Also​