Pausing Docker Desktop to Conserve Resources

content/manuals/desktop/use-desktop/pause.md

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---
description: understand what pausing Docker Desktop Dashboard means
keywords: Docker Desktop Dashboard, manage, containers, gui, dashboard, pause, user manual
title: Pause Docker Desktop
weight: 60
---

Pausing Docker Desktop temporarily suspends the Linux VM running Docker Engine. This saves the current state of all containers in memory and freezes all running processes, significantly reducing CPU and memory usage which is helpful for conserving battery on laptops.

To pause Docker Desktop, select the **Pause** icon to the left of the footer in the Docker Dashboard. To manually resume Docker Desktop, select the **Resume** option in the Docker menu, or run any Docker CLI command.

When you manually pause Docker Desktop, a paused status displays on the Docker menu and on the Docker Desktop Dashboard. You can still access the **Settings** and the **Troubleshoot** menu.

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> The Resource Saver feature is enabled by default and provides better CPU and memory savings than the manual Pause feature. See [Resource Saver mode](resource-saver.md) for more info.

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Title: Pausing Docker Desktop to Conserve Resources

Summary

Pausing Docker Desktop suspends the Linux VM running Docker Engine, freezing all containers and processes to reduce CPU and memory usage. This can be done via the pause icon in the Docker Dashboard. Docker Desktop can be resumed manually or via the CLI. A paused status will display in the menu and dashboard. The Resource Saver feature is recommended over manual pausing for better resource management.