Docker Cheat Sheet: Every Command You Need

This page covers every Docker command you’re likely to need — from running containers to cleaning up disk space. It’s structured as a quick-reference card: find any command in under 10 seconds using the section headings below. All examples use Docker Engine on Linux; Docker Compose commands use the v2 syntax (docker compose with a space, not a hyphen).

Container Lifecycle

These commands control the full lifecycle of a container from creation to removal.

docker run [options] image [command]   # Create and start a container
docker start [name|id]                 # Start a stopped container
docker stop [name|id]                  # Gracefully stop a running container (SIGTERM)
docker restart [name|id]               # Stop then start a container
docker rm [name|id]                    # Remove a stopped container
docker rm -f [name|id]                 # Force-remove a running container
docker pause [name|id]                 # Suspend all processes in a container
docker unpause [name|id]               # Resume a paused container
docker kill [name|id]                  # Forcefully stop a container (SIGKILL)

Key flags for docker run:

-d                          # Detached (run in background)
-it                         # Interactive with TTY (use for shells)
--name myapp                # Assign a name to the container
-p 8080:80                  # Map host port 8080 to container port 80
-v /host/path:/container    # Bind mount a host directory
-v myvolume:/container      # Mount a named volume
-e KEY=value                # Set an environment variable
--rm                        # Automatically remove container on exit
--network mynetwork         # Connect to a specific network
--restart unless-stopped    # Restart policy (see section 10)

Examples:

docker run -d --name myapp -p 8080:80 nginx
docker run -it ubuntu bash
docker run -d --name myapp -p 8080:80 -v /data:/app/data --restart unless-stopped myimage:latest

Container status values: created, restarting, running, removing, paused, exited, dead

Container Inspection & Logs

docker ps                            # List running containers
docker ps -a                         # List all containers (including stopped)
docker ps -q                         # List only container IDs (running)
docker ps -aq                        # List only container IDs (all)

docker logs [name]                   # Print container logs
docker logs -f [name]                # Follow (tail) logs in real time
docker logs --tail 100 [name]        # Show last 100 lines
docker logs -f --timestamps [name]   # Follow logs with timestamps

docker exec -it [name] bash          # Open a bash shell in a running container
docker exec -it [name] sh            # Use sh if bash is not available
docker exec [name] [command]         # Run any command in a running container

docker inspect [name|id]             # Return full JSON metadata for a container
docker top [name]                    # Show running processes inside a container
docker stats                         # Live resource usage for all running containers
docker stats --no-stream             # Single snapshot of resource usage (non-interactive)
docker stats [name]                  # Resource usage for a specific container

Image Management

docker images                        # List all local images
docker images -a                     # Include intermediate images
docker images -q                     # List image IDs only

docker pull [image]:[tag]            # Pull an image from a registry
docker pull nginx:latest             # Example: pull latest nginx
docker pull nginx:1.25               # Example: pull a specific version

docker build -t name:tag .           # Build an image from Dockerfile in current directory
docker build --no-cache -t name:tag .  # Build without using the cache
docker build -t name:tag -f path/Dockerfile .  # Specify a custom Dockerfile path

docker rmi [image]                   # Remove an image
docker rmi [image1] [image2]         # Remove multiple images

docker tag source:tag target:tag     # Tag an image with a new name
docker push [image]:[tag]            # Push an image to a registry

docker image prune                   # Remove dangling (untagged) images
docker image prune -a                # Remove all unused images (not just dangling)

Volumes

Docker supports two types of mounts: named volumes (managed by Docker, portable) and bind mounts (map a specific host path into the container).

docker volume ls                     # List all volumes
docker volume create [name]          # Create a named volume
docker volume inspect [name]         # View volume metadata and mount point
docker volume rm [name]              # Remove a volume (must not be in use)
docker volume prune                  # Remove all unused volumes

Bind mount vs named volume in docker run:

# Bind mount — maps a host path directly
docker run -v /host/path:/container/path myimage

# Named volume — Docker manages the storage location
docker run -v myvolume:/container/path myimage

In a Compose file:

services:
  app:
    volumes:
      - /host/path:/container/path   # Bind mount
      - myvolume:/container/path     # Named volume

volumes:
  myvolume:

Networks

docker network ls                              # List all networks
docker network create [name]                   # Create a bridge network
docker network create --driver host [name]     # Create a host-mode network
docker network inspect [name]                  # Show network details and connected containers
docker network connect [network] [container]   # Connect a running container to a network
docker network disconnect [network] [container] # Disconnect a container from a network
docker network rm [name]                       # Remove a network
docker network prune                           # Remove all unused networks

Default networks: bridge (default for standalone containers), host (shares the host network stack), none (no networking).

Containers on the same user-defined bridge network can reach each other by container name. The default bridge network does not support DNS-based container discovery.

Docker Compose (v2)

Docker Compose v2 is built into Docker as a plugin. Always use docker compose (with a space). The old docker-compose command with a hyphen is deprecated and unsupported by modern tools including Immich.

Run these commands from the directory containing your docker-compose.yml or compose.yaml file.

docker compose up -d                 # Start all services in detached mode
docker compose up -d --build         # Rebuild images then start services
docker compose down                  # Stop and remove containers and networks
docker compose down -v               # Stop, remove containers, networks AND volumes

docker compose ps                    # List service containers and their status
docker compose logs -f               # Follow logs from all services
docker compose logs -f [service]     # Follow logs from a single service
docker compose logs --tail 100       # Show last 100 lines from all services

docker compose exec [service] bash   # Open a shell in a running service container
docker compose exec [service] sh     # Use sh if bash is unavailable

docker compose pull                  # Pull latest images for all services
docker compose build                 # Build or rebuild all service images
docker compose build --no-cache [service]  # Rebuild a service image without cache

docker compose restart [service]     # Restart a specific service
docker compose stop                  # Stop all services (does not remove containers)
docker compose start                 # Start stopped services

docker compose config                # Validate and view the merged Compose configuration
docker compose run --rm [service] [cmd]  # Run a one-off command in a service container

Note: When rebuilding for deployment, always use --no-cache to ensure a clean build:

docker compose build --no-cache app && docker compose up -d app

System Cleanup

Use docker system df before pruning to see what’s taking up space. Prune commands are irreversible — check carefully before running -a --volumes.

docker system df                     # Show disk usage: images, containers, volumes

# Prune commands (safe — only removes unused/stopped resources)
docker system prune                  # Remove stopped containers, dangling images, unused networks
docker system prune -a               # Also remove all unused images (not just dangling)
docker system prune -a --volumes     # Also remove unused volumes — WARNING: potential data loss

# Targeted prune commands
docker container prune               # Remove all stopped containers
docker image prune                   # Remove dangling images
docker image prune -a                # Remove all unused images
docker volume prune                  # Remove all unused volumes
docker network prune                 # Remove all unused networks

Useful One-Liners

# Stop all running containers
docker stop $(docker ps -q)

# Remove all stopped containers
docker rm $(docker ps -aq -f status=exited)

# Remove all dangling images
docker rmi $(docker images -q -f dangling=true)

# Get the IP address of a container
docker inspect -f '{{range.NetworkSettings.Networks}}{{.IPAddress}}{{end}}' [name]

# Copy a file FROM a container to the host
docker cp [name]:/path/to/file ./local

# Copy a file TO a container from the host
docker cp ./local [name]:/path/to/file

# Follow logs with timestamps
docker logs -f --timestamps [name]

# See which containers are using a specific image
docker ps -a --filter ancestor=[image]:[tag]

# Inspect a container's environment variables
docker inspect --format='{{range .Config.Env}}{{println .}}{{end}}' [name]

# Show the command a container was started with
docker inspect --format='{{.Config.Cmd}}' [name]

# Run a one-off container and remove it immediately after
docker run --rm -it ubuntu bash

Docker Run Quick Reference

Common –restart Policies