Before we can do anything interesting with our Dockerfile, we need to install Docker.
The exact installation instructions depend on your operating system.
The Docker Website contains detailed instructions for
I am a Mac user and I will show you the exact steps to install Docker on a Mac. If you use Windows or Linux, please refer to the instructions (I don’t have a Windows or Linux Desktop computer to try).
Docker Desktop for Mac is the name of the software you need to install, and you can find it here: https://hub.docker.com/editions/community/docker-ce-desktop-mac/
Once you download the installation file, which is a bit more than 400MB in size, run it and you’ll be asked to move the Docker app to the Applications folder.
Do that, then run the app:
The first thing that happens is that it asks you to install the command line tools, and it needs your permission (and password):
You will see the whale icon appearing the the Mac toolbar, initially informing you Docker Desktop is starting:
And when it’s done, you will get a green light:
Now you will have the Docker command line tools installed.
Open your terminal and run
docker version
to make sure everything worked fine.
More docker tutorials:
- Introduction to Docker
- Introduction to Docker Images
- Introduction to Docker Containers
- Dockerfiles
- Installing Docker on macOS
- First steps with Docker after the installation
- Using Docker Desktop to manage a Container
- Create a simple Node.js Hello World Docker Container from scratch
- What to do if a Docker container immediately exits
- Working with Docker Containers from the command line
- Working with Docker Images from the command line
- Sharing Docker Images on Docker Hub
- How to access files outside a Docker container
- How to commit changes to a Docker image
- Updating a deployed container based on a Docker image