Install Docker Desktop on Arch-based distributions

Table of contents

Docker Desktop terms

Commercial use of Docker Desktop in larger enterprises (more than 250 employees OR more than $10 million USD in annual revenue) requires a paid subscription.

This page contains information on how to install, launch and upgrade Docker Desktop on an Arch-based distribution. Docker has not tested or verified the installation.

Prerequisites

To install Docker Desktop successfully, you must meet the general system requirements.

Additionally, for non-Gnome Desktop environments, gnome-terminal must be installed:

$ sudo pacman -S gnome-terminal

Install Docker Desktop

  1. Install client binaries. Docker does not have an Arch package repository. Binaries not included in the package must be installed manually before installing Docker Desktop.

  2. Install Docker client binary on Linux. On Arch-based distributions, users must install the Docker client binary. Static binaries for the Docker client are available for Linux (as docker).

  3. Download the latest Arch package from the Release notes.

  4. Install the package:

    $ sudo pacman -U ./docker-desktop-<arch>.pkg.tar.zst

    Don't forget to substitute <arch> with the architecture you want.

    By default, Docker Desktop is installed at /opt/docker-desktop.

Launch Docker Desktop

To start Docker Desktop for Linux:

  1. Open your Applications menu in Gnome/KDE Desktop and search for Docker Desktop.

  2. Select Docker Desktop to start Docker.
    The Docker menu ( whale menu ) displays the Docker Subscription Service Agreement.

  3. Select Accept to continue. Docker Desktop starts after you accept the terms.

    Note that Docker Desktop won't run if you do not agree to the terms. You can choose to accept the terms at a later date by opening Docker Desktop.

    For more information, see Docker Desktop Subscription Service Agreement. It is recommended that you also read the FAQs.

Alternatively, open a terminal and run:

$ systemctl --user start docker-desktop

When Docker Desktop starts, it creates a dedicated context that the Docker CLI can use as a target and sets it as the current context in use. This is to avoid a clash with a local Docker Engine that may be running on the Linux host and using the default context. On shutdown, Docker Desktop resets the current context to the previous one.

The Docker Desktop installer updates Docker Compose and the Docker CLI binaries on the host. It installs Docker Compose V2 and gives users the choice to link it as docker-compose from the Settings panel. Docker Desktop installs the new Docker CLI binary that includes cloud-integration capabilities in /usr/local/bin/com.docker.cli and creates a symlink to the classic Docker CLI at /usr/local/bin.

After you’ve successfully installed Docker Desktop, you can check the versions of these binaries by running the following commands:

$ docker compose version
Docker Compose version v2.29.1

$ docker --version
Docker version 27.1.1, build 6312585

$ docker version
Client: 
 Version:           23.0.5
 API version:       1.42
 Go version:        go1.21.12
<...>

To enable Docker Desktop to start on sign in, from the Docker menu, select Settings > General > Start Docker Desktop when you sign in to your computer.

Alternatively, open a terminal and run:

$ systemctl --user enable docker-desktop

To stop Docker Desktop, select the Docker menu icon to open the Docker menu and select Quit Docker Desktop.

Alternatively, open a terminal and run:

$ systemctl --user stop docker-desktop

Next steps