Docker daemon is not running windows 10

Docker is now one of the most popular platform for developing, packaging and running applications using container virtualization. The Docker daemon (dockerd) enables building images and managing containers.

However, Windows users often encounter the error «the Docker daemon is not running» during Docker operations. Let‘s analyze this issue and troubleshoot solutions systematically like experienced developers.

Demystifying Containers and the Docker Daemon

Before jumping into troubleshooting, it‘s important to unwrap key concepts on how Docker functions:

Containers allow packaging applications with just their runtime dependencies as isolated processes. This makes them lightweight and fast to spawn.

Virtual machines (VMs) virtualize an entire operating system on top of hardware. This provides strong isolation but incurs huge memory overhead.

As industry thought leader Solomon Hykes, the original creator of Docker puts it:

«A container runs natively on Linux and shares the kernel of the host machine. It runs a discrete process, taking no more memory than any other executable, making it lightweight.»

Whereas VMs bundle in the guest OS, containers directly leverage the host OS kernel via constructs like namespaces and cgroups. This makes them very fast and efficient.

Now the Docker daemon (dockerd) is the background management process that handles:

• Pulling image files and container templates
• Building container runtime environments
• Deploying applications inside containers
• Managing container lifecycle

But here is the challenge with Windows…

The Docker daemon relies heavily on Linux kernel features like namespaces, cgroups, file systems etc.

Windows and Linux have radically different architectures. Hence Docker cannot directly interface with the Windows kernel!

This leads us to the core solutions that make Docker possible on Windows…

Two Paths to Running Docker on Windows

There are two approaches to running Docker on Windows machines:

1. Docker Desktop with Hyper-V VMs

The official Docker website recommends Docker Desktop for Windows 10/11 versions.

Docker Desktop exploits the built-in Hyper-V virtualization to run a tiny embedded Linux VM invisible to the user.

This Linux VM hosts the Docker daemon and runs containers within it.

The Docker CLI sends management commands to dockerd inside this VM. Images, volumes, networking get passed through as well.

2. Using the Linux WSL 2 Backend

The second option is to set Docker‘s backend to WSL 2 (Windows Subsystem for Linux).

Introduced in Windows 10 version 2004, WSL 2 runs a lightweight Linux environment natively developed by Microsoft optimized for Docker compatibility.

So with the WSL 2 backend, Docker directly communicates with a WSL 2 distro instead of needing a Hyper-V VM.

Now let‘s analyze the infamous error plaguing Windows Docker users…

Why «Docker Daemon not Running» Errors Occur

As Microsoft developer advocate Jessica Deen sums up:

«The Docker daemon runs inside a Linux VM image, on top of the Windows hypervisor. If that VM fails, the daemon fails.»

Here are key reasons for failure that blockchain expert Gigi Sayfan also cites:

• Docker service not started – Backend crashes or initialization bugs
• Hyper-V/WSL 2 issues – Virtualization dependencies missing
• Docker Desktop outages – Upgrades breaking management process
• Permission errors – Running CLI as admin vs normal user

In summary, you face «docker daemon not running» when connectivity between the Docker CLI and dockerd breaks.

We will methodically diagnose these failure points and troubleshoot solutions.

The Growth of Docker on Windows

Before diving into fixing Docker issues on Windows, it‘s worth noting the massive developer adoption of containers on the Microsoft platform:

• As per the 2022 StackOverflow survey, over 50% of Windows developers now use Docker actively compared to just 35% in 2019.
• Docker Desktop installs top 75 million, indicating wide mainstream usage amongst enterprise and hobbyist developers.
• On Docker Hub, 56% of image pulls are from Windows clients. And the MSFT maintained Windows base OS image has over 60 million pulls itself!
• Leading platforms like Visual Studio 2022 tightly integrate Docker support for local development.

These metrics signals Docker is no longer just a Linux technology. Deep Windows compatibility is now pivotal to Docker Inc and Microsoft‘s mutual growth.

As John Gossman, lead architect for Azure Server confirms:

«Enabling Docker & containers on Windows was a joint effort across Microsoft, involving our Windows and Azure teams closely collaborating with the Docker engineering group.»

Now let‘s tackle debugging techniques for the pesky «docker daemon not running» issue plaguing these Windows users…

Step 1 – Check Docker Service Status

Confirm whether the core Docker Desktop Service is actually running in Windows first:

Windows Services > Docker Desktop Service

Check the service status shown here:

If Stopped, the Linux VM has failed to start. If Running, then some other connectivity issue is interfering with dockerd access.

Restarting Failed Docker Service

When finding the service stopped, restart Docker Desktop:

This reinitializes the VM. Then recheck the status after restart to see if Docker Desktop Service restarts.

Step 2 – Validate Hyper-V and WSL 2

The Docker Desktop VM relies on Hyper-V and WSL 2 for the Linux environment. Validate both are active and enabled.

Fixing Hyper-V Issues

Check Hyper-V status under Windows Features:

If missing, enable Hyper-V and restart. This requires:

• CPU with virtualization extensions
• Hardware assisted virtualization enabled in BIOS

Troubleshooting WSL Problems

Equally important is Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) which provides Linux ABI compatibility:

wsl.exe -l -v

Output:

  NAME      STATE           VERSION
* Ubuntu    Stopped         2

The required state here is Running on WSL 2.

If missing or version 1, run this command that handles install and upgrade:

wsl --install

Now retry starting Docker Desktop to see if Linux VM boots successfully.

Step 3 – Inspect Docker Desktop Logs

The Docker Desktop app logs errors related to the Linux VM, WSL connectivity etc under:

C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\Docker\dockerd-desktop.log 

Review the last 50-100 lines for messages like:

Here the Linux kernel version is outdated indicating WSL connectivity trouble.

Based on any specific error found, resolve the corresponding VM or WSL issue.

Step 4 – Switch to Docker WSL 2 Backend

If fighting Docker Desktop issues becomes too frustrating, consider switching the backend directly to WSL 2 instead of the Linux VM.

Edit daemon.json config file:

Notepad %programdata%\docker\config\daemon.json

And set the wsl2 engine:

{
  "exec-opts": ["native.cgroupdriver=systemd"],
  "log-driver": "json-file",
  "log-opts": {
    "max-size": "10m"
  },
  "storage-driver": "overlay2",

  "wsl-integration-path": "//wsl$/docker-desktop-data/version-pack-data/community",
  "dns": ["1.1.1.1"],

  "debug": true,
  "experimental": false,

  "wsl-engine": "wsl2"
}

This switches Docker to directly leverage WSL 2 as the backend for running containers without needing Hyper-V virtualization.

Now restart Docker service after editing daemon.json:

sc.exe stop com.docker.service
sc.exe start com.docker.service

Many Windows developers find this more stable and higher performance for container workloads.

Summary

In this comprehensive guide, we did an in-depth walkthrough of diagnosing and troubleshooting the «docker daemon not running error» plaguing Windows:

• Dived into how containers function versus virtual machines
• Discussed the role and importance of the Docker daemon
• Analyzed the Docker Desktop and WSL integration approaches
• Identified why connectivity loss causes the error
• Showed debugging techniques via logs inspection
• Suggested switching to pure WSL 2 backend

With 36% of Fortune 500 companies now leveraging Docker in production, solving Docker Desktop crashes with robust techniques like above has become a crucial Windows developer skill.

I hope this gives you a way forward to resolving Docker daemon failures and seamlessly using container development workflows on Windows machines. Let me know if have any persisting problems in the comments!