Docker Commands Cheatsheet

Running a container

• docker run --rm — deletes the container automatically once it exits.
• docker run --rm --runtime=nvidia --gpus all ubuntu nvidia-smi — run with NVIDIA GPU access. Substitute all with device=0 to target a specific GPU.
• docker run -d nginx — run in the background (detached) and leave it running.
• docker run --name web nginx — give the container a name instead of a random one.
• docker run -p 8080:80 nginx — map host port 8080 to the container's port 80.
• docker run -v /host/path:/container/path nginx — bind-mount a host directory into the container.
• docker run -e VAR=value nginx — set an environment variable inside the container.

Container commands

• docker container ls -a — list every container, running or not.

Image management

• docker build -t myimage . — build an image from the Dockerfile in the current directory.
• docker pull ubuntu — download an image without starting a container.
• docker images — list local images.
• docker rmi myimage — delete an image (add the tag if you have several, e.g. myimage:v1).
• docker tag myimage myimage:v1 — give an image an extra name/tag.
• docker image prune — remove dangling images (untagged layers no longer referenced).

Everyday operations

• docker ps -a — same as docker container ls -a: list every container, running or not.
• docker logs <container> — print the container's output.
• docker exec -it <container> bash — open an interactive shell inside a running container.
• docker cp <container>:/path/to/file ./file — copy a file out of a container (reverse the args to copy one in).
• docker stop <container> — stop a running container; docker rm <container> — delete a stopped one.
• docker system df — show disk usage, broken down by images, containers, and volumes.
• docker system prune -af — remove all stopped containers, unused networks, and every unused image, without prompting. Volumes are left alone unless you add --volumes.