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DRY is an interactive terminal application for Docker and Docker Compose. It keeps containers, images, networks, volumes, logs, live statistics and lifecycle actions in one keyboard-driven interface, while still allowing connections to local or remote Docker daemons. Use it when you need fast visual inspection from a shell; use the Docker CLI when the task must be scripted, automated or run headlessly.

What DRY does

DRY (the project is commonly invoked as dry) is distributed as a single binary and presents Docker resources in terminal views. The project README describes it as “a terminal application for Docker and Docker Compose.” Instead of remembering a separate command for every object, you navigate lists and open context-specific actions with the keyboard.

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Its coverage includes:

  • Containers and their lifecycle state
  • Images, networks and volumes
  • Docker Compose projects and services
  • Container logs, resource statistics and daemon events
  • Swarm nodes, services and stacks when the connected daemon runs Swarm

DRY is a client for Docker; it does not replace the Docker daemon. The account running it must be able to reach the selected daemon endpoint and have permission to use that endpoint.

Install DRY and connect it to Docker

Choose an installation method

The project documents several ways to obtain DRY. Pick the method that matches how you maintain software on the machine:

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Project shell installer Installs the project’s binary using its documented installer A quick setup on a supported Unix-like system
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Arch package Distribution package Arch Linux package-managed environments
Docker image Runs DRY in a container while exposing the host Docker socket Hosts where you prefer not to install a local binary

The documented Docker-image pattern uses an interactive, temporary container and mounts the host socket:

docker run --rm -it -v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock moncho/dry

The socket mount is powerful: commands issued in DRY can control the Docker daemon represented by that socket. Treat the mounted socket as administrative access and only run this container where that level of access is acceptable.

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Understand endpoint selection

DRY chooses a Docker endpoint in this order:

  1. An endpoint supplied with the -H option
  2. The value of the DOCKER_HOST environment variable
  3. The local default unix:///var/run/docker.sock

This order matters when a shell already exports DOCKER_HOST. A command-line -H value takes precedence, while an unset variable allows DRY to fall back to the local Unix socket.

For a local daemon, confirm that the socket exists and that your user can access it before opening the interface. For a remote daemon, verify the host and transport settings independently, then launch DRY with the intended endpoint. A successful DRY start against the wrong endpoint can look like an empty installation even though it is simply showing another daemon.

Check permissions before troubleshooting the interface

  • Confirm Docker itself works for the same user by running a basic Docker command.
  • Check that the Unix socket path is present when using the default endpoint.
  • When using a Dockerized DRY, confirm the socket is mounted inside the DRY container.
  • For remote connections, check network reachability and the daemon’s listening configuration before changing DRY settings.
  • Do not grant broad socket access casually; Docker socket access generally permits administrative control over the host.

Navigate the container view

Open and refresh the list

Press 1 to open the container list. The list is the central place to select a container and perform inspection, monitoring or lifecycle operations.

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  • F5 refreshes the current list.
  • % filters the list so you can narrow a long inventory.
  • F1 sorts the current list.

Filtering is especially useful on hosts with many stopped containers. Refresh after starting, stopping or removing a container so the displayed state matches the daemon.

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Actions for a selected container

Key Action What to use it for
i Inspect Read the container’s detailed Docker metadata and configuration
l Logs View application output from the container
s Stats Open live resource readings
x Execute Run a command inside the container; the default shell is /bin/sh
Enter Command menu Open the available actions for the selected container
Ctrl+r Start or restart Start a stopped container or restart a running one
Ctrl+t Stop Request a normal container stop
Ctrl+k Kill Immediately terminate the container when a normal stop is not sufficient
e Remove Delete the selected container
Ctrl+e Remove all stopped containers Clean up every stopped container after confirming the destructive operation

Use the command menu when you are unsure which operation is available for the current state. DRY keeps the resource list visible while you work, reducing the need to copy container IDs between separate commands.

Inspect failures, output and shell state

Inspect configuration with i

Inspection is the right first step when a container exits unexpectedly or exposes the wrong port. Select the container and press i to examine Docker’s metadata. Check its state, image, networking and configured mounts before changing anything. This is safer than repeatedly restarting a container without understanding why it stopped.

Read application output with l

Press l to open the container’s logs. Logs show what the application emitted, which can distinguish an application-level failure from a Docker lifecycle problem. If the output indicates a bad environment variable, missing file or failed dependency, fix that underlying issue rather than cycling the container indefinitely.

Open a shell or command with x

Press x to execute a command in the selected container. DRY uses /bin/sh by default. This is useful for checking files, environment values and connectivity from the container’s own network and filesystem context. Minimal images may not contain a shell or common utilities; in that case, an execution attempt can fail even though the container itself is healthy.

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Use an interactive shell for diagnosis, not as a substitute for rebuilding an image or correcting its Compose definition. Changes made manually inside a container normally disappear when that container is replaced.

Monitor CPU, memory and daemon activity

Container monitor and live statistics

Press s on a selected container to open its live statistics. DRY’s monitor view exposes status and resource information, and recent release notes describe CPU% and MEM% columns rendered as visual progress bars. The bars make a rapidly changing value easier to scan than a column of numbers, but they are still a point-in-time view: refresh or continue watching when diagnosing a sustained problem.

Use stats to answer questions such as:

  • Is one container consuming disproportionate CPU?
  • Is memory usage climbing while the application appears idle?
  • Did resource use change immediately after a restart or deployment?

Stats show usage; they do not explain the cause. Pair them with logs and inspection so you can relate a spike to a request, configuration change or failing dependency.

Use the global diagnostic views

Key View Best use
F7 Docker daemon information Check daemon-level details when containers behave differently from expectations
F8 Disk usage Look for storage pressure from images, containers, volumes or other Docker data
F9 Last 10 Docker events Correlate starts, stops, destroys and other recent daemon activity with an incident

Logs describe application output, stats describe live container resource use, and events provide daemon-level context. Looking at all three prevents a common mistake: treating an application crash, an out-of-disk condition and an operator-initiated stop as the same problem.

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Manage Docker Compose projects

Open project and service views

Press 8 to open Compose projects. DRY can show project services, health, published ports, images and container counts. Select a project to see its services, then drill into a service for logs and lifecycle operations.

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Project discovery works from container labels, including labels on stopped containers, or from a Compose file in the directory where DRY was started. Discovery is not recursive. If a project is missing, start DRY in the directory containing the Compose file or verify that the project’s containers carry the expected labels.

Apply service- or project-level actions

Release notes document start, stop, restart and remove operations at both service and project levels. DRY presents confirmation prompts for destructive actions and provides summaries when only some operations succeed. Read the summary instead of assuming that a project-wide action was completely successful: a single service can fail while the remaining services complete their requested operation.

A practical Compose recovery sequence is:

  1. Open the project with 8 and check service health, ports and container counts.
  2. Open logs for the affected service and identify whether the failure is in the application or its dependencies.
  3. Use a service restart when one service is unhealthy and its dependencies are stable.
  4. Use a project-level restart only when several services need coordinated recovery.
  5. Review the operation summary for partial failures, then inspect the specific service that did not complete.

Use DRY with Docker Swarm

When the connected daemon runs Swarm, DRY exposes nodes, services and stacks in addition to ordinary Docker resources. This gives an operator a terminal view of Swarm objects without switching to a separate dashboard.

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Remember that the endpoint determines what you see. Connecting to a standalone Docker daemon shows that daemon’s local objects; connecting to a Swarm manager exposes Swarm information. If nodes, services or stacks are absent, verify that you connected to the intended Swarm-aware daemon and that the account has the necessary permissions.

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When the Docker CLI is the better tool

The Docker CLI remains the correct fallback for repeatable, automated or headless work. Docker’s container reference documents commands including:

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Need CLI command family Why use it instead of an interactive UI
List containers docker container ls Easy to embed in scripts and filter with shell tools
Inspect metadata docker container inspect Produces machine-readable output for automation
Read output docker container logs Works in remote sessions and pipelines
Run a command docker container exec Explicit, reproducible command invocation
Read resource usage docker container stats Suitable for terminal scripts and monitoring jobs
Start or stop docker container start, stop Can be placed in deployment and recovery scripts
Restart docker container restart Repeatable operational action
Remove docker container rm Explicit cleanup in controlled automation

Docker describes its CLI as scriptable and suitable for automation and headless operation. Use DRY for interactive inspection and quick lifecycle work; use the CLI for CI jobs, scheduled maintenance, incident scripts and any procedure that must produce the same result every time.

DRY versus the Docker CLI: practical trade-offs

Decision axis DRY Docker CLI
Interaction model Keyboard-driven navigation with lists and menus Typed commands that can be composed in a shell
Docker object coverage Containers, images, networks, volumes, Compose and Swarm views in one application Broad command surface, including operations not exposed in DRY’s menus
Logs, events and stats Dedicated interactive views, including daemon events and visual CPU/MEM bars Separate commands that are easy to redirect or parse
Compose management Project and service navigation with lifecycle actions and partial-failure summaries Explicit commands suited to deployment files and automation
Remote daemon use Uses -H, DOCKER_HOST or the local socket according to its precedence rules Uses Docker’s endpoint configuration and command options
Destructive operations Confirmation prompts and visible context before removal Scriptable and precise, but safeguards must be designed into the command or script
Installation footprint Single binary, package or Docker image Docker CLI installation already present on most Docker hosts

The available primary documentation does not provide an authoritative performance benchmark comparing DRY with the Docker CLI or another dashboard. Choose based on workflow and operational requirements rather than an unverified speed claim.

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Common problems and recovery steps

DRY shows no containers

  • Press F5 to refresh.
  • Check the endpoint precedence: a command-line -H or exported DOCKER_HOST may point to another daemon.
  • Confirm Docker permissions for the current user.
  • If you expected a Compose project, remember that discovery is not recursive and that DRY must start in the directory containing the Compose file when labels are not available.

A container action fails

Open the container with i, review its state and then check l for application output. A stop may be refused or delayed by the application; a kill is immediate and should be reserved for cases where normal shutdown is not working. For removal failures, check whether the container is still running or referenced by another operation before retrying.

Stats or logs appear stale

Refresh the view and confirm that you are watching the intended container. Stats are live readings, while logs depend on what the application writes. Use F9 to check recent daemon events when the displayed state does not match an action you just performed.

A Compose project is incomplete

Check whether all services have been discovered, including stopped containers. Verify the working directory used to launch DRY and inspect the project’s service labels. After a project-level action, read DRY’s operation summary: a partial failure identifies which service needs separate inspection.

A safe daily workflow

  1. Verify the endpoint and permissions before making changes.
  2. Open the container list with 1, filter with % and refresh with F5.
  3. Inspect configuration with i before restarting a failing container.
  4. Read logs with l and watch resource use with s.
  5. Use x for temporary in-container diagnostics, remembering that manual changes are not durable image changes.
  6. Choose start, restart, stop, kill or remove deliberately; use the confirmation prompt as a final safety check.
  7. For Compose, use 8, inspect service health and review partial-failure summaries.
  8. Use F7, F8 and F9 when the problem appears daemon-wide rather than application-specific.
  9. Translate a proven manual fix into Docker CLI commands when it must run repeatedly or without an interactive terminal.

That division of labor is DRY’s main value: it gives an operator a fast, contextual terminal control panel, while Docker’s CLI remains the dependable interface for automation and reproducibility.

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