Docker support directly using Proxmox VE webif?

[gouster4]

Hello. I know that i can run docker in VM, or also in LXD (preffered for better performance),
but did you considered adding docker support directly to proxmox? At least as optional feature?


I know main focus of Proxmox VE is (as name stands for) Virtual Environment. And docker is not directly focus of Proxmox.
But it would be awesome to have this feature available. Then proxmox becomes universal tool to run basically anything.

Installing docker directly on proxmox (in current state when its not officially supported) inst optimal solution, specially for mainterence and updates. And also would require separate interface outside of Proxmox WebIf.

Thank you.

 

[LnxBil]

I know that i can run docker in VM, or also in LXD (preffered for better performance),

Actually, virtualization is about seperation and security, so running it in KVM/QEMU is the prefered way to run it and the documentation states this multiple times, even the FAQ.

but did you considered adding docker support directly to proxmox?

It does not make sense in an enterprise setup, which does already have orcherstration tools like k8s, that does exactly what you want from an enterprise docker run tool.

 

[groque]

While native Docker support in the Proxmox web UI would be convenient for some use cases, Proxmox VE is designed for system-level virtualization rather than the application-level containerization Docker is typically used for. Running Docker directly on the host is also not recommended due to security, maintenance, and integration concerns (FAQ).

Even for supported container technologies LXC/LXD, there are significant security considerations, as containers share the host kernel, which increases the attack surface. Proxmox documentation recommends full virtualization (VMs) over containers when handling untrusted workloads (Security Considerations).

For Docker use cases, the best practice is to run it inside a VM, where you get proper isolation, flexibility, and easier upgrades. If you want a Web UI to manage your Docker containers, you can easily deploy tools like Portainer or Dockge inside that VM.

As Docker and Kubernetes continue to grow in popularity (and if there is sufficient market demand), perhaps Proxmox Server Solutions may consider developing a dedicated containerization platform to better support application containers natively in the future.

 

[Johannes S]

This wish isn't new there is already a quite long debate:

A

Thread 'Docker support in Proxmox'

May 19, 2016

Does anyone interested to realize docker support in Proxmox?

• aik.fiend
• Replies: 152
• Forum: Proxmox VE: Installation and configuration

tldnr: Use a VM for application containers like podman or docker together with an managment interface of your choice (kubernetes, dock.ge, portainer or whatever)


Now you might argue that Inucs (which do similiar things as ProxmoxVE) has support for OCI-Containers but I still stand behind my reasoning in that thread:

P

Thread 'Incus 0.1 released - Will Proxmox adopt this?'

Oct 10, 2023

Hi there team Proxmox,

this isn't something that is related to installation or configuration, but I didn't find any better place to post this question.

The fork of LXD, the Incus Project, has announced its initial release 0.1 after the fork. Reports are here:
https://lwn.net/Articles/947136/
https://www.theregister.com/2023/10/10/incus_01_lxd_fork/
https://discuss.linuxcontainers.org/t/incus-0-1-has-been-released/18036

I wonder whether this is something that we might be seing in Proxmox VE any time soon? Is Proxmox looking into options for doing an overhaul of its...

• pschneider1968
• container incus linuxcontainers lxc lxd
• Replies: 12
• Forum: Proxmox VE: Installation and configuration

Incus OCI support is still limited compared to docker/portainer, podman et all ( see
https://discuss.linuxcontainers.org/t/incus-6-3-has-been-released/21019 and https://discuss.linuxcontainers.org/t/getting-started-with-incus-oci-containers/23284 ) so the main usecase is if you don't want to setup a whole vm just for one service.
Anything more in ProxmoxVE will need quite some development resources with limited benefit since at the end of the day you will still want to have one or more dedicated vm/s with a full blown oci runtime if you have more than a hand full of oci containers.

Please note that this is just my personal opinion I have no idea what Proxmox staff might planning

But at the moment my impression is that they priorize different things, e.g. the datacenter manager

If you prefer to use Incus for containers you can always install it in a VM though