This guide explains how to run StackRender using Docker.

The easiest way to run StackRender:

docker-compose up -d

The application will be available at http://localhost:8080

To stop the application:

docker-compose down

Build the image:

docker build -t stackrender .

Run the container:

docker run -d -p 8080:80 --name stackrender stackrender

Stop and remove the container:

docker stop stackrender
docker rm stackrender

By default, the application runs on port 80 inside the container and is mapped to port 8080 on the host. You can change this in docker-compose.yml:

ports:
  - "YOUR_PORT:80"

Or when using Docker CLI:

docker run -d -p YOUR_PORT:80 --name stackrender stackrender

The Docker Compose configuration includes a health check that verifies the application is responding correctly:

healthcheck:
  test: ["CMD", "wget", "--quiet", "--tries=1", "--spider", "http://localhost:80/"]
  interval: 30s
  timeout: 10s
  retries: 3
  start_period: 40s

The Dockerfile uses a multi-stage build approach:

1. Builder Stage: Uses Node.js 20 to install dependencies and build the application
2. Production Stage: Uses Nginx Alpine to serve the static files

This approach minimizes the final image size by excluding build tools and dependencies.

The application uses a custom Nginx configuration (nginx.conf) that:

• Enables gzip compression for better performance
• Sets security headers (X-Frame-Options, X-Content-Type-Options, X-XSS-Protection)
• Handles client-side routing (React Router)
• Configures caching for static assets

If you encounter SSL certificate issues during the build, the Dockerfile includes a workaround:

RUN npm config set strict-ssl false && npm install

This is necessary in some build environments with certificate validation issues.

Check the logs:

docker logs stackrender

Or with Docker Compose:

docker-compose logs

If port 8080 is already in use, you can change it in docker-compose.yml or use a different port with Docker CLI:

docker run -d -p 8081:80 --name stackrender stackrender

For development, it's recommended to run the application directly with Node.js instead of Docker:

npm install
npm run dev

Docker is primarily intended for production deployments or testing the production build locally.

For production deployments:

1. Build the image:

   docker build -t stackrender:production .

2. Push to your container registry:

   docker tag stackrender:production your-registry/stackrender:latest
   docker push your-registry/stackrender:latest

3. Deploy using your orchestration tool (Kubernetes, Docker Swarm, etc.)

• Docker Documentation
• Docker Compose Documentation
• Nginx Documentation