How to Install Docker Using Homebrew

Docker containers have, without a doubt, revolutionized the way we develop and deploy our applications. They provide developers with the ability to package applications and dependencies in an isolated environment.

We have seen widespread adoption of Docker as the ultimate containerization platform in the recent past. Due to this, setting up Docker across all platforms has incredibly been simplified, including macOS and Windows.

Use Homebrew to Install Docker in macOS

Docker supports the most recent versions of macOS, including macOS Big Sur, macOS Monterey, and macOS Catalina. Docker offers a native application that we can install under the Applications directory and create symlinks in /usr/local/bin.

Use Homebrew to install Docker. It’s an open-source software package management system that we can use to install applications on macOS.

Homebrew installs packages to their directory and then symlinks their files into /usr/local. Homebrew can be installed by running the command below in the terminal.

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install.sh)"

Now that Homebrew is installed to install Docker, execute the below command.

brew cask install docker

This command will download the docker package, run the Docker installer, and open the GUI to set up configurations. Use the command below to verify the installation was successful.

docker --version

As mentioned before, Homebrew installs packages to their directory and then symlinks their files into /usr/local (on macOS Intel). However, after Brew has installed Docker, the docker command (symbolic link) may not be available at /usr/local/bin.

To resolve this, follow the following steps.

Code:

$ ls -l /usr/local/bin/docker*

Now click on the Docker icon and wait for Docker to start.

Finally, we will run the command below to test that your Docker installation is properly set up.

$ docker run hello-world

Output:

We have pulled the hello-world image from the Docker registry and successfully created a Docker container with this command. This signifies that Docker is now properly set up in your system.