Install Docker and Docker Compose in Debian 12

Prerequisites

Update your system’s package list and install the necessary packages for a secure connection to the Docker repository:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install ca-certificates curl gnupg

1. Set Up the Docker Repository 

To set up the Docker repository, you need to add Docker’s official GPG key and the repository to your system’s APT sources.
Create the directory for Docker’s GPG key:

sudo install -m 0755 -d /etc/apt/keyrings

Add Docker’s official GPG key and set up the stable repository:

sudo curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/debian/gpg -o /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc
sudo chmod a+r /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc
echo \
"deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc] https://download.docker.com/linux/debian \
$(. /etc/os-release && echo "$VERSION_CODENAME") stable" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list > /dev/null

Update the package index:

sudo apt update

2. Install Docker and Docker Compose 

Install Docker Engine, CLI, containerd, and the Docker Compose plugin using the following command:
sudo apt install docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io docker-buildx-plugin docker-compose-plugin

The Docker service starts automatically after installation.

3. Verify the Installation

Check that the Docker service is running:bash

sudo systemctl status docker

Verify the installation by running a test container:bash

sudo docker run hello-world

Confirm the Docker Compose version (note that the command for v2 does not include a hyphen):

docker compose version

4. Manage Docker as a Non-Root User (Optional, Recommended)

By default, root privileges are needed to run Docker commands. To use Docker without sudo, add your user to the docker group:

sudo usermod -aG docker $USE