Stopping, Removing Containers, and Naming Conventions

$ docker ps -a CONTAINER ID IMAGE COMMAND CREATED STATUS PORTS NAMES d75e61fcad1e docker-gs-ping "/docker-gs-ping" 2 minutes ago Up 5 seconds 0.0.0.0:8080->8080/tcp inspiring_ishizaka f65dbbb9a548 docker-gs-ping "/docker-gs-ping" 4 minutes ago Exited (2) 2 minutes ago wizardly_joliot aade1bf3d330 docker-gs-ping "/docker-gs-ping" 4 minutes ago Exited (2) 4 minutes ago magical_carson 52d5ce3c15f0 docker-gs-ping "/docker-gs-ping" 10 minutes ago Exited (2) 4 minutes ago gifted_mestorf ``` Notice that the container you just restarted has been started in detached mode and has port `8080` exposed. Also, note that the status of the container is `Up X seconds`. When you restart a container, it will be started with the same flags or commands that it was originally started with. Stop and remove all of your containers and take a look at fixing the random naming issue. Stop the container you just started. Find the name of your running container and replace the name in the following command with the name of the container on your system: ```console $ docker stop inspiring_ishizaka inspiring_ishizaka ``` Now that all of your containers are stopped, remove them. When a container is removed, it's no longer running nor is it in the stopped state. Instead, the process inside the container is terminated and the metadata for the container is removed. To remove a container, run the `docker rm` command passing the container name. You can pass multiple container names to the command in one command. Again, make sure you replace the containers names in the following command with the container names from your system: ```console $ docker rm inspiring_ishizaka wizardly_joliot magical_carson gifted_mestorf inspiring_ishizaka wizardly_joliot magical_carson gifted_mestorf ``` Run the `docker ps --all` command again to verify that all containers are gone. Now, address the pesky random name issue. Standard practice is to name your containers for the simple reason that it's easier to identify what's running in the container and what application or service it's associated with. Just like good naming conventions for variables in your code makes it simpler to read. So goes naming your containers. To name a container, you must pass the `--name` flag to the `run` command: ```console $ docker run -d -p 8080:8080 --name rest-server docker-gs-ping 3bbc6a3102ea368c8b966e1878a5ea9b1fc61187afaac1276c41db22e4b7f48f ``` ```console $ docker ps CONTAINER ID IMAGE COMMAND CREATED STATUS PORTS NAMES 3bbc6a3102ea docker-gs-ping "/docker-gs-ping" 25 seconds ago Up 24 seconds 0.0.0.0:8080->8080/tcp rest-server ``` Now, you can easily identify your container based on the name. ## Next steps In this module, you learned how to run containers and publish ports. You also learned to manage the lifecycle of containers. You then learned the importance of naming your containers so that they're more easily identifiable. In the next module, you’ll learn how to run a database in a container and connect it to your application.

This section explains how to stop and remove Docker containers using `docker stop` and `docker rm`, respectively. It also covers how to name containers using the `--name` flag during the `docker run` command, which makes it easier to identify and manage them. It then previews the next module about running a database in a container.