Sample Chapter – Desktop Docker

Published June 6, 2026 | By Adam Craig Johnston

Using WordPress on AWS Lightsail and Docker

Summary

For Local Docker Development. We could use Docker Engine, which is the primary container runtime that runs directly on Linux and Windows servers. It is built for production use because it is lightweight, stable, and can be automated with command-line tools, system services, and CI/CD pipelines. This setup provides the performance and control necessary to run applications at scale. On the other hand, Docker Desktop is meant for development on macOS, Windows, and Linux desktops. It includes Docker Engine inside a small virtual machine and adds a graphical dashboard, resource controls, Docker Compose, and optional Kubernetes for local testing. In short, Docker Engine runs containers in production, while Docker Desktop provides the developer with an easy way to build, test, and debug containers locally before deploying them to production.

We will install Docker Desktop for our development work on either Windows, Linux, or macOS.

Installing Docker Desktop

Windows 11 or higher

1. Prerequisites

Before installing Docker Desktop on Windows:

Windows Version: You need Windows 11 or a newer version. Docker Desktop uses Hyper-V and WSL2.
Hardware Requirements: Your system must support virtualization technology enabled in BIOS. Docker Desktop for Windows requires at least 4GB RAM and recommends SSD storage for optimal performance.
Licensing: Docker Desktop is free for individuals, education, and small businesses (< 250 employees or < $10 million revenue). Large enterprises need a paid plan.

2. Install WSL2:

1. Open PowerShell as an Administrator, then enter the following command.

dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux /all /norestart

This enables the core WSL feature on your system.

1. Enable Virtual Machine Platform

WSL 2 requires the Virtual Machine Platform feature to run the Linux kernel:

dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:VirtualMachinePlatform /all /norestart

1. Set WSL 2 as the Default Version

wsl --install
wsl --set-default-version 2

If prompted, please reboot your system and launch Ubuntu from the Microsoft Store once to complete the setup.

3. Download and install Docker Desktop for Windows.

1. Install via GUI (Recommended for Most Users) – Download Manually

The simplest and most popular way to install Docker Desktop on Windows 11 or higher is described here.

Go to the official download page:

Install Docker Desktop on Windows

1. Click Download Docker Desktop for Windows.
1. Save the file (for example, Docker Desktop Installer.exe).
1. Double-click the installer to start setup.

2. Curl with CMD or Powershell

Below is a single CMD command to download and silently install Docker Desktop with the WSL 2 backend. Please run as Administrator.

curl -L "https://desktop.docker.com/win/main/amd64/Docker%%20Desktop%%20Installer.exe" -o "%TEMP%\DockerDesktopInstaller.exe" && start /w "" "%TEMP%\DockerDesktopInstaller.exe" install --accept-license --quiet --backend=wsl-2

3. Chocolatey

To install Docker Desktop on Windows using Chocolatey, run the following, Open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

1. Check if Chocolatey is installed

choco -v

If a version number, such as 2.2.2, appears, the process is complete. If not, please install it using the following command:

Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force; [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol -bor 3072; iex ((New-Object System.Net.WebClient).DownloadString('https://community.chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))

2. Install Docker Desktop

choco install docker-desktop -y

choco Chocolatey command-line tool.
install Checks for a lastest version of the package and installs it.
docker-desktop The name of the Docker Desktop package.
-y automatically accepts prompts.

3. Update Docker Desktop

 choco upgrade docker-desktop -y
`

choco Chocolatey command-line tool.
upgrade Checks for a newer version of the package and installs it.
docker-desktop The name of the Docker Desktop package.
-y automatically accepts prompts.

Install on macOS

1. Prerequisites

Before installing Docker Desktop on macOS:

MacOS Version Requires macOS Monterey (12) or newer.
Hardware Requirements You need an Intel or Apple Silicon (M1, M2, M3, or newer) CPU, at least 4 GB of RAM, and 2 GB of free disk space.
Virtualization Make sure Rosetta 2 is enabled for Apple Silicon, or Hypervisor Framework is enabled for Intel.
Licensing Same free-tier rules apply as Windows.

Docker Desktop for macOS can be installed in three ways:

1. Install via GUI (Recommended for Most Users)

1. Download Installer – Visit the official Docker Desktop for Mac download page Install Docker Desktop on Mac.
1. Choose the correct version and download:
  - Apple Silicon Docker.dmg Apple Chip
  - Intel Docker.dmg Intel Chip
1. Open the Installer
  - Double-click the downloaded .dmg file.
  - Drag the Docker.app icon into the Applications folder.
1. Launch Docker Desktop
  - Open Applications folder and launch Docker.app.
  - The first time you open the program, you might be asked to enter your system password.
  - Wait for the whale docker icon to appear in the macOS status bar.

2. Using Homebrew (Command Line Install) Homebrew

Homebrew is a package manager for macOS that simplifies installing applications from the command line.

1. Open the Terminal App, in Terminal run:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

1. Once installed, verify:

brew --version

1. Install Docker Desktop via Homebrew

Homebrew downloads and installs the latest version of Docker Desktop that works with your Mac�s architecture, whether it is Intel or Apple Silicon.

brew install --cask docker

1. Once the installation is complete, open Docker Desktop. Wait until you see the whale Docker icon in the macOS status bar.

open /Applications/Docker.app

3. Using Mac App Store (Apple Silicon only)

1. Open the Mac App Store
1. In the top-left corner of the App Store window, click the Search bar.
1. Type Docker Desktop and press Return.
1. You should see the official app listed as Docker Desktop Developer Tools by Docker Inc.
1. macOS will automatically download and install Docker Desktop in your Applications folder. Please wait until the download finishes.
1. Once the installation is complete, open Docker Desktop. Wait until you see the whale Docker icon in the macOS status bar.

open /Applications/Docker.app

Install on Linux (Ubuntu 24.04)

1. Add Official Docker Repository

Before you install Docker Desktop, you need Docker’s CLI and daemon packages to be available through its official repositories

Open a terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run the following:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl gnupg -y

These packages enable HTTPS access to repositories and manage trusted keys.

Now, import the Docker GPG key and add the official Ubuntu repo:

sudo apt install apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl gnupg
curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/debian/gpg | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/docker.gpg
echo "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/docker.gpg] https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu noble stable" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list > /dev/null

Then update your package index:

sudo apt update

1. Download the Docker Desktop .deb Package

Docker Desktop for Linux comes as a .deb file. To get the latest version, you can use curl

curl -fsSL -o docker-desktop.deb https://desktop.docker.com/linux/main/amd64/docker-desktop-latest.deb

1. Install Docker Desktop

After you download the package, use apt to install it. This will make sure all the needed dependencies are installed automatically.

sudo apt install ./docker-desktop.deb

This process installs Docker Desktop and its main components, such as:

    * Docker Engine
    * Docker CLI (docker command)
    * Docker Compose
    * Docker Desktop system service

1. Enable User Access to Docker

If you want to run Docker commands without using sudo, add your user to the docker group. The newgrp command lets you apply your group changes right away, so you do not need to log out first.

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
newgrp docker
`

1. Launch Docker Desktop

Now you can start Docker Desktop with

systemctl --user start docker-desktop
`

Verify Docker Desktop Installation

1. Start Docker Desktop
Windows: Find “Docker Desktop” in the Start Menu and open it. You should then see the Docker whale icon in the system tray.
Mac: Open your Applications folder, find “Docker Desktop,” and start it. The Docker whale icon will show up in the menu bar.
Linux (Ubuntu 24.04): The location and icon for launching Docker Desktop can vary depending on your Linux distribution. Check your distribution’s documentation or search for “Docker Desktop” in your application launcher for more information.
1. Verify Docker Engine and Client

Open your terminal, command prompt, then run this command.

docker --version

This command shows the version of the Docker client and engine, so you can check that Docker is installed and working from your command line.

1. Run a Test Container

Execute the “hello-world” container to verify that Docker can pull images, create and run containers, then run this command.

docker run hello-world

If the process works correctly, you will see a message

Hello from Docker!
This message shows that your installation appears to be working correctly.

This confirms that the Docker engine, container networking, image pulling, and runtime execution are functioning correctly.

Monthly Archives: June 2026

Sample Chapter – Desktop Docker

Using WordPress on AWS Lightsail and Docker

Summary

Installing Docker Desktop

Windows 11 or higher

1. Prerequisites

2. Install WSL2:

3. Download and install Docker Desktop for Windows.

1. Install via GUI (Recommended for Most Users) – Download Manually

2. Curl with CMD or Powershell

3. Chocolatey

1. Check if Chocolatey is installed

2. Install Docker Desktop

3. Update Docker Desktop

Install on macOS

1. Prerequisites

1. Install via GUI (Recommended for Most Users)

2. Using Homebrew (Command Line Install) Homebrew

3. Using Mac App Store (Apple Silicon only)

Install on Linux (Ubuntu 24.04)

Verify Docker Desktop Installation

Further Reading