containers

`docker stop`

Gracefully stops one or more running containers by sending SIGTERM and then SIGKILL after a timeout. Use docker kill for an immediate SIGKILL.

Syntax

docker stop [OPTIONS] CONTAINER [CONTAINER...]

Common flags

Flag	Purpose
-t, --timeout	Seconds to wait before killing (default 10)
-s, --signal	Signal to send to the container (default SIGTERM)
CONTAINER	One or more container names or IDs to stop

Examples

docker stop web

Graceful stop with default 10s grace period

docker stop -t 30 db

Allow 30 seconds for graceful shutdown

docker stop $(docker ps -q)

Stop every running container

docker stop web api worker

Stop several containers in one call

Gotcha

Apps ignoring SIGTERM get SIGKILL'd after -t seconds — long-running graceful shutdowns need a larger timeout. Docker sends signals to PID 1, so shell-wrapped entrypoints often swallow them; use exec form in Dockerfile CMD.

Related commands

docker start

Starts one or more previously created or stopped containers using their existing configuration. Unlike docker run it does not create a new container.

docker restart

Stops and then starts one or more containers, preserving their configuration. Equivalent to docker stop followed by docker start.

docker rm

Removes one or more stopped containers from the host. Use -f to force-remove a running container.

docker ps

Lists containers along with their status, ports, and identifiers. By default it shows only running containers unless -a is passed.

docker run

Creates and starts a new container from a specified image in a single step. This is the primary command for launching workloads and supports extensive configuration for networking, storage, and process control.

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