Docker Network Commands

Source: Dev.to

Docker network Command Overview

The docker network command is used to manage Docker networks. It lets you create, inspect, list, connect, disconnect, and remove networks.

1. List Networks

docker network ls

Sample output

Explanation

2. Inspect a Network

docker network inspect <name-or-id>

Replace <name-or-id> with the actual name or ID.

Example

docker network inspect my-network

Sample JSON output (truncated for brevity)

[
    {
        "Name": "my-network",
        "Id": "abcdef1234567890",
        "Created": "2022-01-01T12:00:00Z",
        "Scope": "local",
        "Driver": "bridge",
        "EnableIPv6": false,
        "IPAM": {
            "Driver": "default",
            "Options": null,
            "Config": [
                {
                    "Subnet": "172.18.0.0/16",
                    "Gateway": "172.18.0.1"
                }
            ]
        },
        "Internal": false,
        "Containers": {
            "container1": {
                "Name": "container1",
                "EndpointID": "xyz123456789",
                "MacAddress": "02:42:ac:11:00:02",
                "IPv4Address": "172.18.0.2/16",
                "IPv6Address": ""
            },
            "container2": {
                "Name": "container2",
                "EndpointID": "abc987654321",
                "MacAddress": "02:42:ac:11:00:03",
                "IPv4Address": "172.18.0.3/16",
                "IPv6Address": ""
            }
        },
        "Options": {},
        "Labels": {}
    }
]

The inspection provides details such as creation time, driver, IPAM configuration, connected containers, and more—useful for troubleshooting and understanding network settings.

3. Create a Network

Simple creation (default bridge driver)

docker network create my-network

Custom creation with options

docker network create \
  --driver bridge \
  --subnet 172.18.0.0/16 \
  --gateway 172.18.0.1 \
  --ip-range 172.18.0.0/24 \
  my-custom-network

Verify creation with docker network ls.

4. Connect a Container to a Network

docker network connect my-network my-container

• my-network – target network name
• my-container – container name or ID

The container can now communicate with other containers on my-network using their names or IP addresses.

5. Disconnect a Container from a Network

docker network disconnect my-network my-container

• my-network – network to disconnect from
• my-container – container name or ID

After disconnecting, the container loses communication with peers on that network (though it may remain attached to other networks).

6. Remove a Network

docker network rm <network>

Replace <network> with the network you wish to delete.

Example

docker network rm my-network

Note: A network cannot be removed while containers are still attached to it. Disconnect or stop those containers first.

Docker Network Commands Cheat‑Sheet

Below is a cleaned‑up reference for the most common Docker network commands, their usage, and examples.

1. Remove a Network

docker network rm <network>

Example

docker network rm my-network

my-network is the name (or ID) of the Docker network you want to delete. Docker removes the specified network; containers exclusively attached to it are disconnected, while those attached to multiple networks stay connected to the others.

2. Prune Unused Networks

docker network prune

Running the command without options prompts for confirmation:

WARNING! This will remove all unused networks.
Are you sure you want to continue? [y/N] y

Skip Confirmation

docker network prune -f   # or --force

Only unused networks (those not attached to any container) are removed. Networks still in use are left untouched.

3. Create a Custom IPAM Configuration

docker network create-ipam --subnet=<subnet> <network-name>

Example

docker network create-ipam --subnet=192.168.1.0/24 my-custom-network

• --subnet=192.168.1.0/24 – defines the IP address range for the network.
• my-custom-network – name of the Docker network that will use this IPAM configuration.

If you omit custom IPAM, Docker applies its default settings.

4. Connect a Container Using a Custom IPAM

docker network connect-ipam --ip=<ip> <network-name> <container>

Example

docker network connect-ipam --ip=192.168.1.10 my-custom-network my-container

• --ip=192.168.1.10 – static IP for the container on that network.
• my-custom-network – the network with the custom IPAM configuration.
• my-container – the target container.

5. Disconnect a Container from a Custom IPAM Network

docker network disconnect-ipam <network-name> <container>

Example

docker network disconnect-ipam my-custom-network my-container

Important: disconnect-ipam is only for networks that use a custom IPAM configuration. For default‑IPAM networks, use the regular docker network disconnect command.

6. Example: Creating a Bridge Network and Testing Connectivity

# List running containers (none at this point)
docker container ls
#> CONTAINER ID   IMAGE   COMMAND   CREATED   STATUS   PORTS   NAMES

# List existing networks
docker network ls
#> NETWORK ID   NAME      DRIVER   SCOPE
#> 6c51373f78ad bridge    bridge   local
#> 3a33f83c3664 host      host     local
#> e4ebd601732e none      null     local

# Run two Ubuntu containers in detached mode
docker container run -itd ubuntu:14.04 bash
#> 7b1af2ee48e43f8018c4324bbcb9f52a27f741bd7a0437ddd0f6766bd7ca6b10

docker container run -itd ubuntu:14.04 bash
#> c3ce5dbe5d859705f139e811bc11367d02bf0969492e9d515a3cc6cc636ddfbb

# Verify they are running
docker container ls
#> CONTAINER ID   IMAGE          COMMAND   CREATED          STATUS         NAMES
#> c3ce5dbe5d85   ubuntu:14.04   "bash"    8 seconds ago    Up 7 seconds   unruffled_sinoussi
#> 7b1af2ee48e4   ubuntu:14.04   "bash"    10 seconds ago   Up 9 seconds   trusting_joliot

# Try to ping one container from the other (fails because they are on the default bridge)
docker container exec -it 7b1af2ee48e4 bash
#> root@7b1af2ee48e4:/# ping c3ce5dbe5d85
#> ping: unknown host c3ce5dbe5d85

# Create a custom bridge network (DNS is enabled by default on custom bridges)
docker network create test
#> b1e05c1afdb2f901e

Now you can attach the containers to the test network (using docker network connect or by launching them with --network test) and they will be able to resolve each other by name.

Quick Reference Table

Additional Commands & Examples

81a66a52d64a9dcdca9c5cab98433cdaed2faa83c5b3e6b

List containers (none running)

localhost:~$ docker container ls
CONTAINER ID   IMAGE   COMMAND   CREATED   STATUS   PORTS   NAMES

Create a container with the ubuntu image on the test network

localhost:~$ docker container run -itd --network=test ubuntu:14.04 bash
c7b07b61bb20cdbb6e1b54a165aed0f8907d95d563fdd7a60940d004694c4557

List the containers again

localhost:~$ docker container ls
CONTAINER ID   IMAGE   COMMAND   CREATED               STATUS               PORTS   NAMES
c7b07b61bb20   ubuntu  "bash"    About a minute ago   Up About a minute

Inspect the container (excerpt)

{
  "Networks": {
    "host": {
      "IPAMConfig": null,
      "Links": null,
      "Aliases": null,
      "NetworkID": "b1e05c1afdb2f901e81a66a52d64a9dcdca9c5cab98433cdaed2faa83c5b3e6b",
      "EndpointID": "b860ca4fdda3e0732367949cb94fd2eded08a4f2e46715a6c125b1bf336c102f",
      "Gateway": "",
      "IPAddress": "",
      "IPPrefixLen": 0,
      "IPv6Gateway": "",
      "GlobalIPv6Address": "",
      "GlobalIPv6PrefixLen": 0,
      "MacAddress": "",
      "DriverOpts": null
    }
  }
}

Delete a network

localhost:~$ docker network ls
NETWORK ID     NAME   DRIVER   SCOPE
6c51373f78ac   bridge  bridge   local
3a33f83c3663   host    host     local
e4ebd601732c   none    null     local
348f7295d3ca   test    bridge   local

localhost:~$ docker network rm test
test

localhost:~$

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