Install with Docker

Run Dagu in Docker and keep your workflows, history, logs, and settings on a host volume.

Choose the required access

The standard commands below run shell and built-in steps without exposing the host Docker daemon. If a workflow uses container:, action: docker.run, or a containerized harness.run, use Run container steps when Dagu runs in Docker.

One-off run

docker run --rm \
  -p 8080:8080 \
  -v ~/.dagu:/var/lib/dagu \
  ghcr.io/dagucloud/dagu:latest \
  dagu start-all

Visit http://localhost:8080.

Detached

docker run -d \
  --name dagu \
  -p 8080:8080 \
  -v ~/.dagu:/var/lib/dagu \
  ghcr.io/dagucloud/dagu:latest \
  dagu start-all

Docker Compose

services:
  dagu:
    image: ghcr.io/dagucloud/dagu:latest
    ports:
      - "8080:8080"
    environment:
      - DAGU_TZ=America/New_York
      - DAGU_PORT=8080        # optional, default 8080
      - PUID=1000             # optional, default 1000
      - PGID=1000             # optional, default 1000
    volumes:
      - dagu:/var/lib/dagu
volumes:
  dagu: {}

Start with docker compose up -d.

The image defaults DAGU_HOME to /var/lib/dagu, matching the volume mount. If DAGU_HOME is customized, mount the persistent volume at the same path and ensure it is writable by PUID/PGID.

Remote CLI contexts use the HTTP API exposed on port 8080. Include the API path in the context URL:

dagu context add docker \
  --server http://docker-host:8080/api/v1 \
  --api-key dagu_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
dagu context test docker

Coordinator port 50055 is unrelated to remote CLI contexts. Publish it only when dagu worker processes outside the Compose network need to connect.

Run container steps when Dagu runs in Docker

Container steps need a Docker-compatible daemon. Mount the host socket into the Dagu container so Dagu can create sibling containers through the host engine.

Docker Run

docker run -d \
  --name dagu \
  -p 8080:8080 \
  -v dagu-data:/var/lib/dagu \
  -v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock \
  --user 0:0 \
  --entrypoint /usr/local/bin/tini \
  ghcr.io/dagucloud/dagu:latest \
  -g -- dagu start-all

The named data volume avoids creating root-owned files in a host directory. Keep an existing data mount when converting an existing installation.

Docker Compose

services:
  dagu:
    image: ghcr.io/dagucloud/dagu:latest
    ports:
      - "8080:8080"
    volumes:
      - dagu-data:/var/lib/dagu
      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
    entrypoint: ["/usr/local/bin/tini", "-g", "--"]
    command: ["dagu", "start-all"]
    user: "0:0"
volumes:
  dagu-data: {}

Both examples bypass /entrypoint.sh so Dagu runs as root regardless of the socket's group ownership. Tini remains PID 1 for signal forwarding and process reaping. Docker is the default runtime; DAGU_CONTAINER_RUNTIME=docker is not required.

For a remote daemon, omit the socket mount and configure DOCKER_HOST and any required Docker TLS variables on the Dagu container. In distributed setups, configure daemon access on every worker that can receive container steps. See Docker.

Security

Mounting /var/run/docker.sock grants workflows control of the host Docker daemon, including the ability to mount host files or start privileged containers. Use it only for trusted workflows on an authenticated Dagu server.

For AI and coding-agent CLI sandboxes, see Harness Sandboxed Execution.

Image tags

Tag	Contents
latest	Latest stable release
<version>	Specific release, such as 2.11.1
alpine, <version>-alpine	Alpine-based runtime image
dev, <version>-dev	Development image with compilers, SDKs, and common CLI tools

Full list: Docker Images.

Running one-off DAG commands

# Validate
docker run --rm -v ~/.dagu:/var/lib/dagu ghcr.io/dagucloud/dagu:latest \
  dagu validate hello

# Start
docker run --rm -v ~/.dagu:/var/lib/dagu ghcr.io/dagucloud/dagu:latest \
  dagu start hello

# History
docker run --rm -v ~/.dagu:/var/lib/dagu ghcr.io/dagucloud/dagu:latest \
  dagu history hello

Verify

docker exec dagu dagu version

Next: Quickstart.