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Docker

Interact with Docker
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Overview

This node allows you to interact with Docker, specifically enabling you to run Docker images as containers directly from n8n workflows. The "Run" operation for the "Image" resource pulls a specified Docker image and executes it with a given command array. This is useful for automating containerized tasks such as running scripts, batch jobs, or any containerized application without manually managing Docker commands.

Practical examples:

  • Running a data processing script inside a containerized environment.
  • Executing a test suite inside a specific Docker image.
  • Automating deployment steps by running containerized CLI tools.

Properties

Name Meaning
Image The name of the Docker image to pull and run (e.g., node:14-alpine, ubuntu:latest).
Command A JSON array representing the command and its arguments to execute inside the container.

Example for Command property: 

["echo", "Hello, World!"]

Output

The node outputs an array of JSON objects containing the combined standard output (stdout) and standard error (stderr) from running the Docker container. The output structure includes:

  • stdout: A string capturing all standard output generated by the container during execution.
  • stderr: A string capturing all error messages or logs sent to standard error by the container.

No binary data output is produced by this node.

Dependencies

  • Requires a valid Docker API connection configured via credentials that provide access to a Docker daemon.
  • The node uses the Dockerode library to communicate with Docker.
  • The Docker daemon must be accessible from where n8n is running.

Troubleshooting

  • Error: No credentials got returned!
    Ensure that Docker API credentials are properly set up and linked in n8n.

  • Error: Command must be an array!
    The "Command" input must be a valid JSON array. For example, ["ls", "-la"]. Passing a non-array JSON or string will cause this error.

  • Docker pull failures or timeouts
    Verify network connectivity to Docker registries and that the image name is correct.

  • Permission issues connecting to Docker daemon
    Make sure the user running n8n has permission to access the Docker socket or API endpoint.

Links and References

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