Run Docker containers with the Plesk Docker extension

The Docker extension turns a Plesk server into a simple container host. You can launch images such as Redis, Uptime Kuma or a Node.js app, keep their data in volumes and publish them through a normal Plesk domain with a Let's Encrypt certificate. This guide is for Plesk administrators on a VPS or dedicated server.

Before you start

• Administrator access to Plesk on a Linux VPS or dedicated server. Docker is not available on shared Plesk hosting.
• A supported OS (current AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux, Ubuntu or Debian) and enough RAM for your containers.
• A domain or subdomain in Plesk if you want to publish the container on the web.

Install the Docker extension

1. Go to Extensions → Extensions Catalog.
2. Search for Docker and click Get It Free.
3. Plesk installs the Docker engine and the extension. Open it from Docker in the left menu.

Run a container

1. In Docker → Images, search Docker Hub for an image, for example louislam/uptime-kuma.
2. Pick a tag (prefer a specific version over latest) and click Run.
3. In the container settings:
   • Untick Automatic port mapping and set Manual mapping, binding the container port (for example 3001) to a local host port such as 127.0.0.1:3001. Binding to localhost keeps it off the public internet.
   • Under Volume mapping, map a host folder such as /var/docker/uptime to the container's data path (/app/data) so data survives updates.
   • Add Environment variables the image needs.
   • Tick Automatic start after system reboot.
4. Click Run. The container appears under Docker → Containers.

Publish the container on a domain

1. Create a domain or subdomain such as status.example.com in Websites & Domains.
2. Under the domain, click Docker Proxy Rules and then Add Rule.
3. Set URL to /, choose the container and its port, and click OK. Plesk configures Nginx to forward requests.
4. Issue a certificate with SSL It! and enable the HTTPS redirect.

Manage containers

• Logs: open the container and click Log to see its output.
• Restart, stop, recreate: use the buttons on the container page. Recreate keeps settings but starts a fresh container – data survives only in mapped volumes.
• Update an image: pull the newer tag, then recreate the container using it.
• Docker Compose: recent versions of the extension let you upload a docker-compose.yml under Docker → Stacks.

Security notes

• Do not publish database ports such as 3306 or 6379 to the internet.
• Docker can bypass firewall rules for published ports; binding to 127.0.0.1 avoids surprises.
• Only use trusted images and keep them updated.

Troubleshooting

• 502 Bad Gateway on the domain: the container is stopped or the proxy rule points to the wrong port. Check Containers and the log.
• Container exits immediately: a required environment variable is missing. See why Docker containers exit immediately.
• Disk filling up: remove unused images and stopped containers, or see free disk space with docker prune.

Next steps

• Docker basics: containers and images.
• Docker volumes and bind mounts.
• Deploy from Git in Plesk.