Get the Most Out of Your Raspberry Pi with Docker

Learn how to install and use Docker on your Raspberry Pi to streamline your development workflow and take advantage of containerization. …


Updated September 21, 2023

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Learn how to install and use Docker on your Raspberry Pi to streamline your development workflow and take advantage of containerization.

In this tutorial, we will walk through the process of installing Docker on a Raspberry Pi running Raspbian (the official operating system for Raspberry Pi). We’ll also cover how to use some basic Docker commands and explore some useful features.

Prerequisites

Before we begin, make sure you have the following:

  • A Raspberry Pi with the latest version of Raspbian installed.
  • An internet connection for downloading Docker and its dependencies.

Step 1: Update your system

To ensure that your Raspberry Pi has all the necessary packages, start by updating your system using the command line. Open a terminal window (you can use Ctrl+Alt+T or the menu in the upper left corner) and run:

sudo apt-get update

This will check for any updates to existing packages and install them.

Step 2: Install Docker dependencies

Docker requires some additional packages to be installed before it can run on your Raspberry Pi. Run the following command in the terminal to install these dependencies:

sudo apt-get install -y apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl software-properties-common

This will install the necessary tools for adding new repositories and downloading packages.

Step 3: Add Docker repository

Next, add the official Docker repository to your system by running:

curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/raspbian/gpg | sudo apt-key add -
sudo add-apt-repository "deb [arch=armhf] https://download.docker.com/linux/raspbian $(lsb_release -cs) stable"

This will add the Docker repository and ensure that you’re using the correct version for your Raspberry Pi’s architecture (armhf).

Step 4: Update package index and install Docker

Now, update your package index again with:

sudo apt-get update

Finally, install Docker by running:

sudo apt-get install -y docker-ce

This will download and install the latest version of Docker on your Raspberry Pi.

Step 5: Verify Docker installation

To verify that Docker has been installed correctly, run:

docker --version

You should see the Docker version number displayed in the terminal if everything went well.

Step 6: Start and enable Docker service

Docker needs to be started every time you boot your Raspberry Pi, so let’s enable it now by running:

sudo systemctl enable docker

Then start the Docker service with:

sudo systemctl start docker

You can check the status of the Docker service by running:

sudo systemctl status docker

This will show you if Docker is running and provide some useful information about its configuration.

Step 7: Test Docker

To make sure that Docker is working correctly, let’s run a simple container. We’ll use the hello-world image that comes with Docker:

sudo docker run hello-world

If everything is set up properly, you should see output similar to this:

Unable to find image 'hello-world:latest' locally
latest: Pulling from library/hello-world
1b930d010525: Pull complete 
Digest: sha256:7f7149d03bbef318a3c3bb9ff129e097c217da70ce96e572f255b9d60d29474c455
Status: Downloaded newer image for hello-world:latest
Hello from Docker!
This message shows that your installation appears to be working correctly.

Congratulations, you’ve successfully installed Docker on your Raspberry Pi! Now you can start using containers to package and deploy your applications more efficiently.

Basic Docker commands

Docker provides a powerful set of commands for managing images and containers. Here are some basic ones you should know:

  • docker pull <image>: Downloads an image from the Docker Hub.
  • docker run <image>: Runs a command in a new container based on an image.
  • docker ps: Shows all running containers.
  • docker ps -a: Shows all containers, including stopped ones.
  • docker stop <container>: Stops a running container.
  • docker rm <container>: Removes a container (must be stopped first).
  • docker rmi <image>: Removes an image (must not be used by any containers).

For more information on Docker commands, check out the official documentation.

Conclusion

Docker is a powerful tool for developing and deploying applications, and now you can use it on your Raspberry Pi! With Docker installed, you can package your applications into containers that can be run anywhere with the same configuration. This makes it easier to test and deploy code across different environments, ensuring consistent behavior and reducing the chances of bugs caused by differences in system setups.

By following this tutorial, you’ve learned how to install Docker on a Raspberry Pi running Raspbian, as well as some basic Docker commands for managing images and containers. With Docker at your fingertips, you can take advantage of the latest software development tools and streamline your workflow!