Where is docker images windows

If you are on windows 10 and running windows containers

In the above image, docker is running windows containers. So its showing switch to linux containers.

First run docker info command (more specific docker info --format “{{json .DockerRootDir}}”).

You should see root dir as

Docker Root Dir: C:\ProgramData\Docker

Now run a command to pull an image like

docker pull hello-world

After it pulls the image, you can look into the docker root dir.

Notice the current modified date time. In one of the folders you can see the sha of the layers.

Finally, you also have to take a look into the following folder, if you want to know where the images are downloaded. The two folders above and below are

• C:\ProgramData\Docker\image\windowsfilter
• C:\ProgramData\Docker\windowsfilter

Now for linux images.

If your docker is running windows containers, and then if you try to fetch a linux based container such as nginx, like so

docker pull nginx:latest

you will get a message as follows.

latest: Pulling from library/nginx
no matching manifest for windows/amd64 10.0.18363 in the manifest list entries

So switch to linux contaners. See the very first image.

Once the docker for linux is running, run the command again.

docker pull nginx:latest

You can see that image is downloading.

Now where is this image downloaded on your hard disk? docker info command may not help much in this case.

So start again. Click Settings and now «Switch to Windows Containers…»

And now see the path.

On my machine, it’s C:\ProgramData\DockerDesktop\vm-data

Note the date modified column. Notice and observe that after you pull or remove a linux based image.

That’s a diskspace reserved for linux env, so you will not be able to browse further down to see where the image is.

but if you have to, then launch a linux based VM, install docker and explore the path
/var/lib/docker/

Sometimes you may encounter permission issues. If so see this and this

If you are on windows 10 and running windows containers

In the above image, docker is running windows containers. So its showing switch to linux containers.

First run docker info command (more specific docker info --format “{{json .DockerRootDir}}”).

You should see root dir as

Docker Root Dir: C:\ProgramData\Docker

Now run a command to pull an image like

docker pull hello-world

After it pulls the image, you can look into the docker root dir.

Notice the current modified date time. In one of the folders you can see the sha of the layers.

Finally, you also have to take a look into the following folder, if you want to know where the images are downloaded. The two folders above and below are

• C:\ProgramData\Docker\image\windowsfilter
• C:\ProgramData\Docker\windowsfilter

Now for linux images.

If your docker is running windows containers, and then if you try to fetch a linux based container such as nginx, like so

docker pull nginx:latest

you will get a message as follows.

latest: Pulling from library/nginx
no matching manifest for windows/amd64 10.0.18363 in the manifest list entries

So switch to linux contaners. See the very first image.

Once the docker for linux is running, run the command again.

docker pull nginx:latest

You can see that image is downloading.

Now where is this image downloaded on your hard disk? docker info command may not help much in this case.

So start again. Click Settings and now «Switch to Windows Containers…»

And now see the path.

On my machine, it’s C:\ProgramData\DockerDesktop\vm-data

Note the date modified column. Notice and observe that after you pull or remove a linux based image.

That’s a diskspace reserved for linux env, so you will not be able to browse further down to see where the image is.

but if you have to, then launch a linux based VM, install docker and explore the path
/var/lib/docker/

Sometimes you may encounter permission issues. If so see this and this

Docker has been widely adopted and is used to run and scale applications in production. Additionally, it can be used to start applications quickly by executing a single Docker command.

Companies also are investing more and more effort into improving development in local and remote Docker containers, which comes with a lot of advantages as well.

You can get the basic information about your Docker configuration by executing:

$ docker info

...
 Storage Driver: overlay2
 Docker Root Dir: /var/lib/docker
...

The output contains information about your storage driver and your docker root directory.

The storage location of Docker images and containers

A Docker container consists of network settings, volumes, and images. The location of Docker files depends on your operating system. Here is an overview for the most used operating systems:

• Ubuntu: /var/lib/docker/
• Fedora: /var/lib/docker/
• Debian: /var/lib/docker/
• Windows: C:\ProgramData\DockerDesktop
• MacOS: ~/Library/Containers/com.docker.docker/Data/vms/0/

In macOS and Windows, Docker runs Linux containers in a virtual environment. Therefore, there are some additional things to know.

Docker for Mac

Docker is not natively compatible with macOS, so Hyperkit is used to run a virtual image. Its virtual image data is located in:  

~/Library/Containers/com.docker.docker/Data/vms/0

Within the virtual image, the path is the default Docker path /var/lib/docker.

You can investigate your Docker root directory by creating a shell in the virtual environment:

$ screen ~/Library/Containers/com.docker.docker/Data/vms/0/tty 

You can kill this session by pressing Ctrl+a, followed by pressing k and y.

Docker for Windows

On Windows, Docker is a bit fractioned. There are native Windows containers that work similarly to Linux containers. Linux containers are run in a minimal Hyper-V based virtual environment.

The configuration and the virtual image to execute linux images are saved in the default Docker root folder.

C:\ProgramData\DockerDesktop

If you inspect regular images then you will get linux paths like:

$ docker inspect nginx

...
"UpperDir": "/var/lib/docker/overlay2/585...9eb/diff"
...

You can connect to the virtual image by:

docker run -it --privileged --pid=host debian nsenter -t 1 -m -u -i sh

There, you can go to the referenced location:

$ cd /var/lib/docker/overlay2/585...9eb/
$ ls -lah

drwx------    4 root     root        4.0K Feb  6 06:56 .
drwx------   13 root     root        4.0K Feb  6 09:17 ..
drwxr-xr-x    3 root     root        4.0K Feb  6 06:56 diff
-rw-r--r--    1 root     root          26 Feb  6 06:56 link
-rw-r--r--    1 root     root          57 Feb  6 06:56 lower
drwx------    2 root     root        4.0K Feb  6 06:56 work

The internal structure of the Docker root folder

Inside /var/lib/docker, different information is stored. For example, data for containers, volumes, builds, networks, and clusters.

$ ls -la /var/lib/docker

total 152
drwx--x--x   15 root     root          4096 Feb  1 13:09 .
drwxr-xr-x   13 root     root          4096 Aug  1  2019 ..
drwx------    2 root     root          4096 May 20  2019 builder
drwx------    4 root     root          4096 May 20  2019 buildkit
drwx------    3 root     root          4096 May 20  2019 containerd
drwx------    2 root     root         12288 Feb  3 19:35 containers
drwx------    3 root     root          4096 May 20  2019 image
drwxr-x---    3 root     root          4096 May 20  2019 network
drwx------    6 root     root         77824 Feb  3 19:37 overlay2
drwx------    4 root     root          4096 May 20  2019 plugins
drwx------    2 root     root          4096 Feb  1 13:09 runtimes
drwx------    2 root     root          4096 May 20  2019 swarm
drwx------    2 root     root          4096 Feb  3 19:37 tmp
drwx------    2 root     root          4096 May 20  2019 trust
drwx------   15 root     root         12288 Feb  3 19:35 volumes

Docker images

The heaviest contents are usually images. If you use the default storage driver overlay2, then your Docker images are stored in /var/lib/docker/overlay2. There, you can find different files that represent read-only layers of a Docker image and a layer on top of it that contains your changes.

Let’s explore the content by using an example:

$ docker image pull nginx
$ docker image inspect nginx

[
    {
        "Id": "sha256:207...6e1",
        "RepoTags": [
            "nginx:latest"
        ],
        "RepoDigests": [
            "nginx@sha256:ad5...c6f"
        ],
        "Parent": "",
 ...
        "Architecture": "amd64",
        "Os": "linux",
        "Size": 126698063,
        "VirtualSize": 126698063,
        "GraphDriver": {
            "Data": {
                "LowerDir": "/var/lib/docker/overlay2/585...9eb/diff:
                             /var/lib/docker/overlay2/585...9eb/diff",
                "MergedDir": "/var/lib/docker/overlay2/585...9eb/merged",
                "UpperDir": "/var/lib/docker/overlay2/585...9eb/diff",
                "WorkDir": "/var/lib/docker/overlay2/585...9eb/work"
            },
...

The LowerDir contains the read-only layers of an image. The read-write layer that represents changes are part of the UpperDir. In my case, the NGINX UpperDir folder contains the log files:

$ ls -la /var/lib/docker/overlay2/585...9eb/diff

total 8
drwxr-xr-x    2 root     root    4096 Feb  2 08:06 .
drwxr-xr-x    3 root     root    4096 Feb  2 08:06 ..
lrwxrwxrwx    1 root     root      11 Feb  2 08:06 access.log -> /dev/stdout
lrwxrwxrwx    1 root     root      11 Feb  2 08:06 error.log -> /dev/stderr

The MergedDir represents the result of the UpperDir and LowerDir that is used by Docker to run the container. The WorkDir is an internal directory for overlay2 and should be empty.

Docker Volumes

It is possible to add a persistent store to containers to keep data longer than the container exists or to share the volume with the host or with other containers. A container can be started with a volume by using the -v option:

$ docker run --name nginx_container -v /var/log nginx

We can get information about the connected volume location by:

$ docker inspect nginx_container

...
"Mounts": [
            {
                "Type": "volume",
                "Name": "1e4...d9c",
                "Source": "/var/lib/docker/volumes/1e4...d9c/_data",
                "Destination": "/var/log",
                "Driver": "local",
                "Mode": "",
                "RW": true,
                "Propagation": ""
            }
        ],
...

The referenced directory contains files from the location /var/log of the NGINX container.

$ ls -lah /var/lib/docker/volumes/1e4...d9c/_data

total 88
drwxr-xr-x    4 root     root        4.0K Feb  3 21:02 .
drwxr-xr-x    3 root     root        4.0K Feb  3 21:02 ..
drwxr-xr-x    2 root     root        4.0K Feb  3 21:02 apt
-rw-rw----    1 root     43             0 Jan 30 00:00 btmp
-rw-r--r--    1 root     root       34.7K Feb  2 08:06 dpkg.log
-rw-r--r--    1 root     root        3.2K Feb  2 08:06 faillog
-rw-rw-r--    1 root     43         29.1K Feb  2 08:06 lastlog
drwxr-xr-x    2 root     root        4.0K Feb  3 21:02 nginx
-rw-rw-r--    1 root     43             0 Jan 30 00:00 w

Clean up space used by Docker

It is recommended to use the Docker command to clean up unused containers. Container, networks, images, and the build cache can be cleaned up by executing:

$ docker system prune -a

Additionally, you can also remove unused volumes by executing:

$ docker volumes prune

Summary

Docker is an important part of many people’s environments and tooling. Sometimes, Docker feels a bit like magic by solving issues in a very smart way without telling the user how things are done behind the scenes. Still, Docker is a regular tool that stores its heavy parts in locations that can be opened and changed.

Sometimes, storage can fill up quickly. Therefore, it’s useful to inspect its root folder, but it is not recommended to delete or change any files manually. Instead, the prune commands can be used to free up disk space.

I hope you enjoyed the article. If you like it and feel the need for a round of applause, follow me on Twitter. I work at eBay Kleinanzeigen, one of the biggest classified companies globally. By the way, we are hiring!

Happy Docker exploring

References

• Docker storagediver documentation
  https://docs.docker.com/storage/storagedriver/
• Documentation Overlay filesystem
  https://www.kernel.org/doc/Documentation/filesystems/overlayfs.txt

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Where did docker pictures keep on your docker host machine? This is often a reasonably common question and one I will be able to aim to tackle here. The solution is that it depends on what system you’re running docker on and the docker daemon command storage driver you’re using. You will be running docker on Mac, Windows, or an alternative. This article can show where does docker desktop store images on your docker host system by showing you what commands you’ll run to urge the data you want.

Many want to know the HP computers for students alongside restart docker daemon information.

Where does docker desktop store images in windows 10 & 11?

On Windows, the default location for docker images is C:\ProgramData\DockerDesktop. On a Mac, the default location for docker info images is ~/Library/Containers/com.docker.docker/Data/vms/0/. Note that on Windows and mack, docker runs Linux containers during a virtual setting.

The Storage location of Docker Images and Containers

The Docker container consists of network settings, volumes, and images. The location of docker files depends on your system. Here is a summary of the foremost used operative systems:

• Ubuntu: /var/lib/docker/
• Fedora: /var/lib/docker/
• Debian: /var/lib/docker/
• Windows: C:\ProgramData\DockerDesktop
• macOS: ~/Library/Containers/com.docker.docker/Data/vms/0/

Change Docker Images and Containers Directory

The Steps For Windows Users without WSL 2 Backend

If you’re running docker Desktop data on a mack or a Windows pc while not exploiting WSL two Backend, then you’ll amend this location by following the steps below:

• Go to your docker Desktop dashboard and choose Settings.
• Navigate to Resources > Advanced and scroll down a bit to envision the Disk image location space.
• Click the Browse button and option for a replacement root directory for your pictures and containers.
• Last but not least, click the Apply & Restart button to complete.
• Docker Desktop can take care of the rest.

The Steps For Windows Users with WSL 2 Backend

Many Windows users run docker Desktop data on WSL two, the Windows subsystem for Linux containers designed by Microsoft, because of numerous edges such as, Leveraging Linux images workspaces and avoiding having to keep up with each Linux containers and Windows build script. How long a full computer reset takes is another RSS question feed in the PC world. Improving file system sharing and boot time and permitting access to some cool new options for docker run Desktop.

To change containers and pictures directory during this case, practice the subsequent steps:

• Exit docker info Desktop.
• Export docker Desktop sharing organizational knowledge to your home screen, and you can also choose another place if you like.
• Unregister current docker Desktop VM data.
• Import the exported knowledge to your required location, for example, a folder named kind of code within the disc drive E.
• You might have to be compelled to perform this step double if you run into some network bother.

Docker Desktop

Docker Desktop is an easy-to-install docker application for your Mac, Linux, or Windows setting that allows you to create and share pack applications and microservices. It provides a straightforward interface that allows you to manage your containers, applications, and pictures directly from your machine while not having to use the command line interface to perform core actions. Gaming features aren’t available for Windows desktops, which is a widely asked query alongside the docker pull hello world images question.

Docker Desktop work connect with your alternative development tools and languages and offers you access to a colossal library of certified pictures and templates in Docker Hub. This permits development groups to increase their setting to quickly auto-build, ceaselessly integrate, and collaborate by employing a secure repository.

Key Features of Docker Desktop

• Ability to pack and share any application on any cloud platform in multiple languages and frameworks.
• Easy installation and setup of an entire docker development setting.
• Includes the new version of Kubernetes.
• The flexibility to toggle between Linux and Windows Server environments to create applications on Windows.
• Fast and reliable performance with native Windows Hyper-V virtualization.
• Ability to figure natively on Linux through WSL two on Windows machines.
• Volume mounting for code and share knowledge, log files amendment notifications, and simple access to running windows containers on the local host network.

Docker Image

For the quest of where does docker desktop store images – A docker info image is a file to execute code during the docker windows containers. Docker build pictures are a collection of directions to create a docker windows containers model. Docker pictures additionally act because the start line once using the docker engine. A picture is reminiscent of a shot in a virtual machine (VM) environment. Aesthetic desktop ideas is also in people’s minds.

Docker is employed to make, run and deploy applications in windows containers. A docker image contains application code, libraries, tools, and dependencies associated with alternative files required to form an application run. Once a user runs a picture, it will become one or several container instances RSS reader.

Docker Container vs. Docker Image

A Docker container is a virtual machine runtime setting employed in application development. it’s wont to produce, run and deploy applications isolated from the underlying hardware. Docker container will use one machine, share its kernel and virtualize the OS to run many isolated processes. As a result, docker containers are lightweight. You will also find many folks ask for the remote desktop disconnected session timeout.

A docker image is a shot in alternative styles of VM environments. It’s a record of a docker root dir for a particular purpose. Docker images are immutable. They cannot be modified, but they’ll be duplicated, shared, or deleted. It is one of the best services for sharing files among different operating systems. People use such services for the storage of their important data. They highly impress by such services and appreciate them on a large scale which may be not the answer.

Anatomy of a Docker Image

A docker image has several layers, and every image includes everything required to put together an instrumentation setting — system libraries, tools, dependencies, and alternative files. A number of the elements of a picture include:

Parent Image

As another base image, a parent image will be the primary layer during a docker image. It’s a reused image that is a foundation for all alternative layers.

Layers

Layers are else to the bottom image, using code that will alter it to run during instrumentation. Every docker command image layer is seeable via the docker root dir history command within the command-line interface (CLI).

Docker’s default standard is to indicate all top-layer pictures, repositories, tags, and file sizes. Intermediate layers are cached, creating high layers that are easier to look at. Docker root dir has storage drives that handle the management of image layer contents.

Container Layer

A docker image creates not only a replacement container but also a writable or container layer. This layer host changes created to the running container and stores freshly written and deleted files as changes to existing files. This layer is additionally wont to customize containers.

Docker Manifest

This part of the docker info image is an additional file. It uses JSON format to explain the image and uses info like image tags and digital google sign.

Conclusion

FAQS

Where are docker images stored on Mac?

The default location of the docker desktop data on Mac for restoring images is  ~/Library/Containers/com. Docker. docker/Data/vms/0/. 

Where are docker volumes stored on Mac?

On Mac, docker desktop data store volume at ~/Library/Containers/com.docker. docker/Data/vms/0/. It is quite a wonderful experience with the docker desktop on Mac.

How do I change the docker storage location?

For this purpose, the first step is to stop the docker service and change the location from the default to the new one. The above portion of this article explains each step in detail with the overflow blog featured.

How do I move the docker image to another drive?

You have to follow some steps for this purpose. These steps include the stoppage of the docker service and then moving images from the default location to the new RSS feed.

What is the default working directory for docker?

On Windows, the default location for docker images is C:\ProgramData\DockerDesktop. On a Mac, the default location for Docker images is ~/Library/Containers/com.docker.docker/Data/vms/0/. 

About Author

Jacob Smith

I am a copywriter specialized in Tech & electronic products. I enjoy analyzing articles focused on PC, Motherboards, Graphics cards, and much more. Previously, I was a contributor to Blogs Hour. In short, my greatest passion is to write about PC and how we can build pc in an easy way, but I have other hobbies such as cinema, geography, sports, and talking with my friends.

If you’re a Windows 10 user who is looking to learn more about Docker, then you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we’ll be exploring the topic of where Docker images are stored on Windows 10. We’ll discuss the benefits of using Docker images on Windows 10, how to store them, and why it’s important to know where your images are stored. We’ll also provide a guide for locating your Docker images on Windows 10.

By the end of this article, you’ll be an expert in managing and using Docker images on Windows 10. So, let’s get started.

Docker images on Windows 10 are stored in the folder «%ProgramData%\docker\windowsfilter». To access this folder, open File Explorer and enter the address in the address bar. You can also access the folder by typing «docker images» in the command prompt. The folder stores all the images you have pulled from Docker Hub and other repositories.

Where Docker Images Are Stored on Windows 10?

Docker is a popular containerization platform that simplifies the deployment and management of applications. The platform runs on many different operating systems, including Windows 10. When using Windows 10, Docker images are stored in a specific directory.

In this article, we’ll discuss where images are stored and what you need to know. When Docker is installed on Windows 10, it creates a directory to store images. This directory is located at C:\ProgramData\Docker. Inside this directory, there are several sub-directories that contain the different images. The “images” folder contains all of the downloaded images. The “containers” folder contains the containers that are running on the system.

Finally, “volumes” contains the volumes that are currently in use. When a new image is pulled from a repository, it is stored in the “images” folder. The image is stored as a .tar archive, which contains all of the files and metadata associated with the image. The image can then be extracted and used to create containers.

Understanding Docker Image Storage

When an image is pulled from a repository, it is stored in the “images” folder. The image is stored as a .tar archive, which contains all of the files and metadata associated with the image. This allows the image to be easily extracted and used to create containers.

The image can then be modified and saved back to the “images” folder. The modified image will have a new name and will be stored in a different directory than the original image. This allows the user to easily manage multiple versions of the same image.

Accessing Images from the Windows 10 Command Line

The Windows 10 Command Prompt can be used to access and manage Docker images. The “docker” command can be used to pull images from repositories and save them to the local drive.

The “docker images” command can be used to list all of the images that are stored on the local drive. The “docker rmi” command can be used to remove images from the local drive. This command can be used to delete images that are no longer needed or to clean up the local drive.

Image Backup and Restoration

Docker images can be backed up and restored using the “docker save” and “docker load” commands. The “docker save” command can be used to save an image to a .tar file. The “docker load” command can be used to restore an image from a .tar file.

These commands can be used to backup images before making changes or to restore images that have been lost or corrupted. This ensures that images are not lost if something goes wrong.

Managing Docker Images with a GUI

The Docker Desktop for Windows 10 includes a graphical user interface (GUI) for managing images. This GUI can be used to view and manage all of the images that are stored on the local drive.

It can also be used to pull images from repositories and save them to the local drive.

Few Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is Docker?

Docker is a platform that allows you to develop and deploy applications in containers. Containers are isolated environments that provide a consistent, controlled, and secure computing environment. Containers are generally lightweight, meaning they require far fewer resources than traditional virtual machines.

2. What is a Docker Image?

A Docker image is an executable package that includes all of the necessary code, libraries, configuration files, and dependencies needed to run an application. It acts as a template for creating containers. Images are built from layers and each layer represents an instruction in the image’s Dockerfile.

3. Where Are Docker Images Stored on Windows 10?

Docker images are stored in the C:\ProgramData\Docker\windowsfilter directory on Windows 10. This directory is hidden by default, so you may need to enable the ‘Show hidden files and folders’ option in the View tab of File Explorer to see it.

4. What is the File Format of Docker Images?

Docker images are stored in the Open Container Initiative (OCI) Image Format, which is an industry-standard format for creating, storing, and sharing container images. It is an open source format that is supported by most container platforms.

5. What is the Difference Between Docker Images and Containers?

Docker images are the source code for containers. Containers are instances of images that have been instantiated and are running on a host. They are essentially run-time instances of images that include an operating system, user-added files, and any running processes.

6. What is the Difference Between Docker Images and Docker Files?

Docker images are pre-built packages that contain all the necessary code, libraries, configuration files, and dependencies needed to run an application. Docker files are text files that contain instructions on how to build a Docker image. They are written in a domain-specific language and include instructions on which base image to start from, what files to copy into the image, which ports to expose, and other commands that can be used to customize the image. In conclusion, Docker images can be stored on a Windows 10 machine by downloading them from the Docker Hub, a repository of images that can be used to create and manage containers.

This is a great way to ensure that all of your images are stored safely and securely, no matter what kind of environment you are working in. With the help of Docker, you can easily store, manage and deploy your containerized applications in Windows 10 with ease.

Conclusion

When using Windows 10, Docker images are stored in a specific directory. This directory is located at C:\ProgramData\Docker and contains several sub-directories that store the different images.

The Windows 10 Command Prompt can be used to access and manage images, and the Docker Desktop for Windows 10 includes a GUI for managing images.