Docker containers are widely used for developing and running anything from web applications to redis caches. However, they can also be useful for running what can effectively be a light VM (a container operates very differently from a VM, but we are just talking about the use case). I like to use a container for accessing the the Linux command line. However, many users do not know how to run a container in the background and access the shell. Here is a simple way to do so, with a very minimal Ubuntu container:
- Create a directory and a Dockerfile inside. Use the linked Dockerfile above for a minimal Ubuntu configuration.
- Build the container with your desired image name:
docker build -t <image_name> . - Run the container in the background:
docker run -t -d <image_name> - Identify container name:
docker container ls - Connect to the Linux shell in the container:
docker exec -i -t <container_name> /bin/bash - When done, kill the background container process:
docker kill <container_name>
Send me a message @HashedDan on Twitter for any questions or comments!