Docker Windows Server 2016 Linux

As a side learning of this topic i also got some ideas about the windows server semi annual channel.

Docker windows server 2016 linux. In this model docker client runs on windows desktop but calls into docker daemon on the linux vm. Before you can run linux distros on windows you must enable the windows subsystem for linux optional feature and reboot. Running docker on your windows server 2016 should be similar to doing it on our linux based devices. Windows server 2016 1709 contains several enhancements for docker customers.

Enable the windows subsystem for linux. Because linux containers on win10 does some smoke and mirrors with a linux vm. It means that you can now run windows and linux containers at the same time on a windows server container host running windows server 1709 or windows 10 with the fall creators update 1709. It turns out the linux containers on windows lcow server is a preview feature of both windows server version 1709 and docker ee.

This guide will walk through the steps of enabling wsl on your machine. Docker has been able to run linux containers on windows desktop since it was first released in 2016 before hyper v isolation or linux containers on windows were available using a linuxkit based virtual machine running on hyper v. Docker cli api image format and docker registry services remain identical to windows and linux. The linux containers feature is only available on docker for windows on win 10.

Docker engine enterprise is available at no additional cost to all windows server 2019 and 2016 customers and native windows applications have access to the same advanced container management features as linux based applications including image scanning overlay networking and secret management. Last september microsoft and docker launched docker enterprise edition ee a containers as a service platform for windows server 2016. Linux containers on windows server 2016 using linuxkit. The windows subsystem for linux is available for installation on windows server 2019 version 1709 and later.

It won t work on windows server 2016 of which the version is older than 1709.