How to install Docker in Centos 7

Post Date: December 26, 2018
Last Updated: October 02, 2026

Introduction

This guide explains how to install and uninstall Docker CE on CentOS 7.

One note upfront: CentOS 7 reached end-of-life in June 2024 and no longer receives security updates. The steps below still work on CentOS 7 if you’re maintaining an existing system, but for a new server, AlmaLinux or Rocky Linux (both RHEL-compatible, currently supported) are the better foundation — Docker’s installation process is identical on either.

Prerequisites

• A maintained/currently supported version of CentOS 7 (archived/EOL repo mirrors aren’t tested or supported by Docker)
• Root or sudo access

Architecture

• The Docker daemon (dockerd) runs as a background service, managing containers, images, and networks
• The Docker CLI (docker command) talks to that daemon to start, stop, and manage containers
• Containers share the host’s kernel, which is why they start much faster and use fewer resources than a full virtual machine

Steps

1. Uninstall Older Docker Versions (If Present)

yum remove docker \
    docker-client \
    docker-client-latest \
    docker-common \
    docker-latest \
    docker-latest-logrotate \
    docker-logrotate \
    docker-selinux \
    docker-engine-selinux \
    docker-engine

It’s fine if yum reports none of these are installed. Anything already in /var/lib/docker/ (images, containers, volumes) is preserved.

2. Set Up the Docker Repository

yum install -y yum-utils device-mapper-persistent-data lvm2
yum-config-manager --add-repo https://download.docker.com/linux/centos/docker-ce.repo

3. Install Docker CE

yum install docker-ce

If prompted to accept a GPG key, verify the fingerprint matches 060A 61C5 1B55 8A7F 742B 77AA C52F EB6B 621E 9F35 before accepting.

If you have multiple Docker-related repositories enabled, installing without specifying a version always pulls the latest available — which is usually fine, but worth knowing if you need a specific version for stability reasons (see the next step).

4. Install a Specific Version (Optional)

List available versions:

yum list docker-ce --showduplicates | sort -r

Then install a specific one:

yum install docker-ce-<VERSION>

5. Start Docker

systemctl start docker

6. Verify the Installation

docker run hello-world

7. Enable Docker to Start on Boot

systemctl enable docker

Note: The original guide had systemctl Enable docker with a capital “E” — Linux commands are case-sensitive, so systemctl doesn’t recognize Enable as a valid subcommand. It must be lowercase.

Tip: You can combine Steps 5 and 7 into one command: systemctl enable --now docker.

8. Run Docker Without sudo (Optional)

By default, Docker commands require root/sudo. To run them as your regular user:

usermod -aG docker $USER

Log out and back in for the group change to take effect.

Uninstalling Docker CE

Remove the package:

yum remove docker-ce

To also delete all images, containers, and volumes:

sudo rm -rf /var/lib/docker

Any manually edited configuration files aren’t removed automatically — delete those separately if needed.

Conclusion

Installing Docker CE on CentOS 7 is a straightforward repository-based install, with one real gotcha: systemctl enable must be lowercase, unlike the original guide’s Enable. Keep in mind CentOS 7 itself is past end-of-life, so treat this as maintenance for an existing system rather than a foundation for a new one.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did “systemctl Enable docker” fail for me? Linux commands and their subcommands are case-sensitive — systemctl only recognizes the lowercase enable, not Enable.

Do I need to restart the server after installing Docker? No — starting and enabling the service (Steps 5 and 7) is enough; a full restart isn’t required.

Can I run Docker on CentOS Stream instead of CentOS 7? Yes — the same repository and install steps work on CentOS Stream, AlmaLinux, and Rocky Linux, since they’re all RHEL-compatible.

Related Articles

How to Convert a Docker Container to Image

How to Save Docker Images as a TAR File

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