Oracle Linux 6 and 7

You do not require an Oracle Linux Support subscription to install Docker on Oracle Linux.

For Oracle Linux customers with an active support subscription: Docker is available in either the ol6_x86_64_addons or ol7_x86_64_addons channel for Oracle Linux 6 and Oracle Linux 7 on the Unbreakable Linux Network (ULN).

For Oracle Linux users without an active support subscription: Docker is available in the appropriate ol6_addons or ol7_addons repository on Oracle Public Yum.

Docker requires the use of the Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel Release 3 (3.8.13) or higher on Oracle Linux. This kernel supports the Docker btrfs storage engine on both Oracle Linux 6 and 7.

Due to current Docker limitations, Docker is only able to run only on the x86_64 architecture.

To enable the addons channel via the Unbreakable Linux Network:

  1. Enable either the ol6_x86_64_addons or ol7_x86_64_addons channel via the ULN web interface. Consult the Unbreakable Linux Network User's Guide for documentation on subscribing to channels.

To enable the addons repository via Oracle Public Yum:

The latest release of Oracle Linux 6 and 7 are automatically configured to use the Oracle Public Yum repositories during installation. However, the addons repository is not enabled by default.

To enable the addons repository:

  1. Edit either /etc/yum.repos.d/public-yum-ol6.repo or /etc/yum.repos.d/public-yum-ol7.repo and set enabled=1 in the [ol6_addons] or the [ol7_addons] stanza.

Installation

  1. Ensure the appropriate addons channel or repository has been enabled.

  2. Use yum to install the Docker package:

     $ sudo yum install docker
    

Starting Docker

  1. Now that it's installed, start the Docker daemon:

    1. On Oracle Linux 6:

       $ sudo service docker start
      
    2. On Oracle Linux 7:

       $ sudo systemctl start docker.service
      
  2. If you want the Docker daemon to start automatically at boot:

    1. On Oracle Linux 6:

       $ sudo chkconfig docker on
      
    2. On Oracle Linux 7:

       $ sudo systemctl enable docker.service
      

Done!

Custom daemon options

If you need to add an HTTP Proxy, set a different directory or partition for the Docker runtime files, or make other customizations, read our systemd article to learn how to customize your systemd Docker daemon options.

Using the btrfs storage engine

Docker on Oracle Linux 6 and 7 supports the use of the btrfs storage engine. Before enabling btrfs support, ensure that /var/lib/docker is stored on a btrfs-based filesystem. Review Chapter 5 of the Oracle Linux Administrator's Solution Guide for details on how to create and mount btrfs filesystems.

To enable btrfs support on Oracle Linux:

  1. Ensure that /var/lib/docker is on a btrfs filesystem.
  2. Edit /etc/sysconfig/docker and add -s btrfs to the OTHER_ARGS field.
  3. Restart the Docker daemon:

You can now continue with the Docker User Guide.

Uninstallation

To uninstall the Docker package:

$ sudo yum -y remove docker

The above command will not remove images, containers, volumes, or user created configuration files on your host. If you wish to delete all images, containers, and volumes run the following command:

$ rm -rf /var/lib/docker

You must delete the user created configuration files manually.

Known issues

Docker unmounts btrfs filesystem on shutdown

If you're running Docker using the btrfs storage engine and you stop the Docker service, it will unmount the btrfs filesystem during the shutdown process. You should ensure the filesystem is mounted properly prior to restarting the Docker service.

On Oracle Linux 7, you can use a systemd.mount definition and modify the Docker systemd.service to depend on the btrfs mount defined in systemd.

SElinux support on Oracle Linux 7

SElinux must be set to Permissive or Disabled in /etc/sysconfig/selinux to use the btrfs storage engine on Oracle Linux 7.

Further issues?

If you have a current Basic or Premier Support Subscription for Oracle Linux, you can report any issues you have with the installation of Docker via a Service Request at My Oracle Support.

If you do not have an Oracle Linux Support Subscription, you can use the Oracle Linux Forum for community-based support.