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Developer containers

Developer containers are a local development option that uses Docker and VS Code to run local containerized environments. Containers are isolated from the rest of your local environment, and files within a container cannot be used by applications outside of the container unless explicitly mounted and given access. Developer containers are a good option for developers on Windows systems, since dfx is not natively supported for local development on Windows.

Dev containers have additional benefits, including:

  • Reproducibility: Containers make it easy to build and run in a consistent way across multiple computers since they contain the entire development environment within a portable format. Team members can interact with the same container without needing to set up their own personal developer environment and replicate the build themselves.

  • Security: By default, containers do not have access to the other files or applications on your system, making project development secure. It's also possible to give restricted (e.g. read-only or write-only) access to specific files and directories.

Using developer containers​

To use developer containers, you must download and install:

Make sure Docker is running, then navigate into your project's directory. Create a file called devcontainer.json that contains the following:

{
  "name": "ICP Dev Environment",
  "image": "ghcr.io/dfinity/icp-dev-env-slim:13",
  "forwardPorts": [4943, 5173],
  "portsAttributes": {
    "4943": {
      "label": "dfx",
      "onAutoForward": "ignore"
    },
    "5173": {
      "label": "vite",
      "onAutoForward": "openBrowser"
    }
  },
  "customizations": {
    "vscode": {
      "extensions": ["dfinity-foundation.vscode-motoko"]
    }
  }
}

Then, start the developer container by opening the VS Code command palette (F1 or Ctrl+Shift+P), then select Dev-Containers: Reopen in Container.

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