Set a Docker restart policy on the Restreamer container and make sure Docker starts when the VPS boots. For most deployments, use unless-stopped: Docker will restart the container after a daemon restart unless you deliberately stopped it. Preserve the container’s existing settings if you recreate it, and do not combine a restart policy with --rm—Docker reports an error for that combination.
1. Confirm how Restreamer is installed
These steps apply when Restreamer runs in a Docker container on a Linux VPS. Restreamer’s Linux installation guide documents Docker deployment on 64-bit Intel/AMD systems, including Ubuntu and Debian. If you installed it another way, Docker container commands will not manage that installation.
Before changing anything, identify the current container and how it was created:
docker ps -aFind the Restreamer container name or ID in the output. Check its current restart policy and startup configuration:
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docker inspect --format='{{.Name}} restart={{.HostConfig.RestartPolicy.Name}}' <container>
docker inspect <container>Replace <container> with the name or ID. The detailed inspection output includes the image, environment, port bindings, mounts, and other container settings. Keep a record of the configuration before making changes.
2. Set a restart policy on the existing container
If the container already exists and was not created with --rm, you can change its restart policy without recreating it:
docker update --restart unless-stopped <container>Docker documents restart policies as a way to control whether containers start automatically when they exit or when Docker restarts. Docker’s container run reference also documents docker update --restart for changing a container’s policy.
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Choose between unless-stopped and always
unless-stopped: Restarts the container after Docker or the VPS restarts, but keeps it stopped if you deliberately stopped it before the daemon restarted. This is usually the better choice when a manual stop should remain in effect.always: Restarts the container when it stops and after Docker restarts. If you manually stop it, Docker does not restart it until the container or daemon is manually restarted; after that, the policy applies again.
To use always instead, run:
docker update --restart always <container>The difference matters when you use docker stop for maintenance: choose the policy that matches whether you want a deliberate stop to persist through a VPS reboot.
3. If you must recreate the container, preserve its configuration
If you cannot update the existing container—for example, it was created with --rm—you will need to recreate it without that flag and include a restart policy. Docker explicitly says that combining --restart with --rm results in an error. The Restreamer Quick Start example includes both flags; do not use that combination when you need a restart policy.
Do not replace a working container with a bare example command. Reuse the image and all deployment-specific settings from your existing setup, including:
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- Configuration and data mounts. Restreamer’s Linux guide shows host directories mounted at
/core/configand/core/dataso configuration and data persist. - Port mappings required by your setup. The guide’s common examples include web access on ports 8080 and 8181, RTMP on 1935, RTMPS on 1936, and SRT on UDP 6000. Your existing host-side ports may differ; keep the actual mappings your deployment uses.
- Environment variables, hardware-specific runtime options, and any other options needed by the container.
Add one of the restart flags to the preserved run configuration, such as --restart unless-stopped. Restreamer’s official recommendations recommend its official Docker images to reduce dependency and operating-system mismatch issues; that recommendation does not establish a single image tag as best for every VPS.
4. Ensure Docker starts when the VPS boots
A container restart policy only helps if the Docker daemon starts. Docker says the daemon starts at boot by default on Debian and Ubuntu. For other systemd-based Linux distributions, Docker’s Linux post-installation steps give these commands:
sudo systemctl enable docker.service
sudo systemctl enable containerd.serviceUse them only after checking your distribution and Docker installation method. To check Docker’s service state on a systemd host, run:
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sudo systemctl status docker5. Reboot and verify recovery
Once the policy and daemon startup are configured, reboot the VPS during a suitable maintenance window:
sudo rebootAfter reconnecting, check whether the container is running and whether its restart policy is set:
docker ps
docker inspect --format='{{.State.Status}} restart={{.HostConfig.RestartPolicy.Name}}' <container>If it is not running, inspect its logs and Docker’s recorded state rather than repeatedly rebooting:
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docker logs --tail 100 <container>
docker inspect --format='status={{.State.Status}} exit={{.State.ExitCode}} error={{.State.Error}} restarts={{.RestartCount}}' <container>Troubleshoot a container that still does not return
The container has no restart policy
Check the policy with docker inspect. If the container was not created with --rm, apply one with docker update --restart unless-stopped <container>. If it was created with --rm, recreate it without --rm and retain its original settings.
Docker is not starting at boot
Check sudo systemctl status docker. Docker documents that Debian and Ubuntu start the daemon at boot by default; for other systemd distributions, consult its post-installation guidance and enable the services if appropriate for your installation.
The container exits immediately
Read docker logs and inspect the exit state. Docker says a restart policy takes effect only after a container has started successfully and Docker has monitored it for at least 10 seconds. A restart policy does not correct invalid settings, repair missing files or mounts, or resolve application startup errors.
Restreamer runs but the stream is unavailable
A running container does not prove that Restreamer’s application is ready, that the VPS network is available, or that an upstream streaming source is working. Check the container logs, the Restreamer configuration, and the network or source separately. Docker’s restart policy requests container restarts under its documented conditions; it is not an application-readiness or stream-availability guarantee.
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