Install Docker on WSL2 without Docker Desktop
Note on Docker Desktop's changing to paid subscription:
After January 31, 2022, Docker Desktop will require a paid subscription. Commercial use of Docker Desktop in larger enterprises requires a Docker Pro, Team or Business subscription for as little as 5 USD per user per month.*
The existing Docker Free subscription has been renamed Docker Personal. Docker Desktop remains free for personal use, education, non-commercial open source projects, and small businesses (fewer than 250 employees AND less than 10M USD in annual revenue).
Installation
A quick Google search shows how to install Docker in WSL2 without Docker desktop:
Remove old Docker installations.
sudo apt remove docker \
docker-engine \
docker.io \
containerd runc
Install some pre-requisites.
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y --no-install-recommends \
apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl gnupg2
Configure package repository
source /etc/os-release
curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/${ID}/gpg | sudo apt-key add -
echo "deb [arch=amd64] https://download.docker.com/linux/${ID} ${VERSION_CODENAME} stable" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list
sudo apt update
Install Docker.
sudo apt install -y docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io
Configuration
Add user to group
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
Configure dockerd
DOCKER_DIR=/mnt/wsl/shared-docker
mkdir -pm o=,ug=rwx "$DOCKER_DIR"
sudo chgrp docker "$DOCKER_DIR"
sudo mkdir /etc/docker
sudo vi /etc/docker/daemon.json
Add this to /etc/docker/daemon.json file.
{
"hosts": ["unix:///mnt/wsl/shared-docker/docker.sock"]
}
Test if it works. Run the command below. It should return "API listen on.." message.
$ sudo dockerd
INFO[2024-06-18T13:12:15.706625428+08:00] Starting up
INFO[2024-06-18T13:12:15.804318529+08:00] [graphdriver] using prior storage driver: overlay2
INFO[2024-06-18T13:12:15.804767929+08:00] Loading containers: start.
API listen on /mnt/wsl/shared-docker/docker.sock
...
INFO[2024-06-18T13:12:17.094492637+08:00] Daemon has completed initialization
INFO[2024-06-18T13:12:17.208750538+08:00] API listen on /var/run/docker.sock
Do another test. Open another terminal and run the command below.
docker -H unix:///mnt/wsl/shared-docker/docker.sock run --rm hello-world
It should return this output.
Hello from Docker!
This message shows that your installation appears to be working correctly.
To generate this message, Docker took the following steps:
1. The Docker client contacted the Docker daemon.
2. The Docker daemon pulled the "hello-world" image from the Docker Hub.
(amd64)
3. The Docker daemon created a new container from that image which runs the
executable that produces the output you are currently reading.
4. The Docker daemon streamed that output to the Docker client, which sent it
to your terminal.
To try something more ambitious, you can run an Ubuntu container with:
docker run -it ubuntu bash
Share images, automate workflows, and more with a free Docker ID:
https://hub.docker.com/
For more examples and ideas, visit:
https://docs.docker.com/get-started/
Create Launch Script for Dockerd
Create a launch script for dockerd. You can do this in two ways:
- Manual approach
- Automatic approach
Manual Approach
Add the following to .bashrc or .profile
cat >> ~/.bashrc
DOCKER_SOCK="/mnt/wsl/shared-docker/docker.sock"
test -S "$DOCKER_SOCK" && export DOCKER_HOST="unix://$DOCKER_SOCK"
Automatic Approach
We can also set dockerd to always run automatically. First, check your distro:
$ wsl.exe -l -v
NAME STATE VERSION
* Ubuntu Running 2
Ubuntu-22.04 Running 2
Add the script below to your .bashrc file. Make sure the DISTRO matches yours.
##Create Launch Script for Dockerd
DOCKER_DISTRO="Ubuntu"
DOCKER_DIR=/mnt/wsl/shared-docker
DOCKER_SOCK="$DOCKER_DIR/docker.sock"
export DOCKER_HOST="unix://$DOCKER_SOCK"
if [ ! -S "$DOCKER_SOCK" ]; then
mkdir -pm o=,ug=rwx "$DOCKER_DIR"
sudo chgrp docker "$DOCKER_DIR"
/mnt/c/Windows/System32/wsl.exe -d $DOCKER_DISTRO sh -c "nohup sudo -b dockerd < /dev/null > $DOCKER_DIR/dockerd.log 2>&1"
fi
# Check if dockerd is running
if ! pgrep -x "dockerd" > /dev/null; then
echo "Dockerd is not running. To start docker, run 'sudo dockerd'"
fi
source ~/.bashrc