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Introduction

After working with Docker for a while, I have noted there could be hundreds of different Docker commands out there. But really, in my workflow, it's the same about 20-30 of these. Here's my personal cheat sheet of the most practical Docker commands I use regularly.

Interactive Docker Commands Explorer

I've created this interactive tool to help you find and explore Docker commands more easily. You can filter by category, search for specific commands, and copy them directly to your clipboard:

Container Management

Running Containers

The most basic Docker command is docker run. Following is how I use it in various situations:

docker run -d --name webserver nginx:latest

This command starts an Nginx container in detached mode (-d) with a given name. I use this when I need a quick web server for testing.

docker run -d -p 8080:80 nginx:latest

Maps port 8080 on your host to port 80 in the container. Useful when you need to use container services from your host machine.

docker run -d \
  -e POSTGRES_PASSWORD=mysecret \
  -e POSTGRES_DB=myapp \
  -v postgres_data:/var/lib/postgresql/data \
  postgres:13

I use this pattern for database containers where persistence and configuration matter a lot.

Container Lifecycle

docker ps

All running containers are shown here. I am using this above command very frequently to check up on container status, ports, and names.

docker logs -f container_name

The -f flag follows the log output. Indispensable in debugging problems within running containers.

docker exec -it container_name bash

Gives you a shell in the container. I'm using this constantly to debugging and for one-off commands.

Docker cheat sheet: Image Management

Working with Images

docker pull nginx:latest

Pulls an image from Docker Hub. Always specify a tag to avoid getting unexpected versions.

docker build -t myapp:1.0 .

Builds an image from a Dockerfile in the current directory. The -t flag tags the image with a name and version.

docker images

Lists all local images - I use this to check available images and their sizes.

Volume Management

Volumes are vital in establishing persistence in data:

docker volume create mydata

Create a Persistent Volume. I use these for database data and other stateful applications.

docker run -d \
  -v mydata:/data \
  nginx:latest

Mounts the volume 'mydata' to /data inside the container. This is required for persistence of data.

Network Management

Networking is the key to Container Communication:

docker network create mynetwork

Creates an isolated network for container communication. This is useful when I want to establish multi-container applications.

docker run -d --network mynetwork nginx:latest

Connects a container to a certain network. Useful for container-to-container communication.

Docker Compose

This makes Docker Compose very important to manage multi-container applications:

docker-compose up -d

Starts all the services as defined in docker-compose.yml. I use this daily to start my development environments.

docker-compose down

Stops and removes all containers, networks created by docker-compose up.

Cleanup Commands

These commands clean up the Docker environment:

docker system prune

Remove all stopped containers, unused networks, dangling images and build cache. I run this once a week because it saves me some disk space.

docker rm -v container_name

Remove a container and its associated volumes. Volumes will be deleted and volume data will be lost. Done

Troubleshooting

These are some very helpful debugging commands:

docker stats container_name

Display live resource usage statistics. Great for debugging performance of containers.

docker inspect container_name

Displays detailed configuration information about a container. This is useful to debug networking and volume issues.

Best Practices

Based on my experience, here are some key practices to follow:

1. Always tag your images: Never use 'latest' in production
2. Use named volumes: Simplifies data management
3. Regular cleanup: Use system prune to keep disk space free
4. Monitor logs: Regular log checking helps catch issues early

Security and Compliance

Security has become a crucial part of my Docker workflow, especially when working with enterprise clients. Here are some essential security-focused commands I use:

SBOM (Software Bill of Materials)

docker sbom example-image:latest
docker sbom example-image:latest --output sbom.txt
docker sbom example-image:latest --format spdx-json

I generate these SBOMs to maintain transparency in our software supply chain. It's particularly important when working with security-conscious clients.

Vulnerability Scanning

docker scan example-image:latest
docker scan example-image:latest --file Dockerfile
docker scan example-image:latest --severity high

I always run these scans before deploying any container to production. It's saved me from potential security issues multiple times.

Docker Hub Operations

These are the commands I use daily for Docker Hub interactions:

docker login
docker logout
docker search nginx

Advanced Features

Resource Monitoring

For performance troubleshooting, I rely on these monitoring commands:

docker stats container_name
docker stats $(docker ps --format={{.Names}})  # Monitor all containers

Config Contexts

When working with multiple Docker environments:

docker context create my-remote --docker "host=ssh://user@remote-server"
docker context ls
docker context use my-remote
docker context rm old-context

Advanced Cleanup

Here's my detailed cleanup routine that I use to manage disk space:

docker system prune --volumes  # Remove everything unused
docker image prune -a  # Remove all unused images
docker volume prune  # Remove all unused volumes
docker container prune  # Remove all stopped containers

Quick Reference

Here's a comprehensive table of all the commands covered in this cheat sheet:

Category	Command	Description
Container Management	docker run -d --name webserver nginx:latest	Run container in detached mode
	docker run -d -p 8080:80 nginx:latest	Run with port mapping
	docker ps	List running containers
	docker logs -f container_name	Follow container logs
	docker exec -it container_name bash	Access container shell
Image Management	docker pull nginx:latest	Pull image from registry
	docker build -t myapp:1.0 .	Build image from Dockerfile
	docker images	List local images
Volume Management	docker volume create mydata	Create volume
	docker run -v mydata:/data nginx:latest	Run with volume mount
Network Management	docker network create mynetwork	Create network
	docker run --network mynetwork nginx:latest	Run with network
Docker Compose	docker-compose up -d	Start services
	docker-compose down	Stop services
Cleanup	docker system prune	Remove unused resources
	docker rm -v container_name	Remove container and volumes
	docker system prune --volumes	Remove all unused resources
	docker image prune -a	Remove unused images
	docker volume prune	Remove unused volumes
Security	docker sbom example-image:latest	Generate SBOM
	docker scan example-image:latest	Scan for vulnerabilities
Docker Hub	docker login	Log into Docker Hub
	docker logout	Log out from Docker Hub
	docker search nginx	Search images
Advanced	docker stats container_name	Monitor container resources
	docker context create my-remote	Create new context
	docker context ls	List contexts
	docker context use my-remote	Switch context
	docker inspect container_name	View container details

Conclusion

These are the essentials for my day-to-day work with Docker. Of course, Docker has many more commands, but once mastered, these will cover about 90% of your needs to manage containers. Keep this cheat sheet handy; I still refer back to it fairly often when working in different environments.