How to run an electron app on docker

Question

I've created a fork of a repository hosting an electron app which is a chat client: https://github.com/Serkan-devel/BetterDiscordApp-docker.

What I'm trying to do is to create a docker container with a GUI hooked to the own screen like at https://blog.jessfraz.com/post/docker-containers-on-the-desktop/ .

The dockerfile I've created goes like:

FROM node:slim

COPY . /usr/scr/app

#RUN rm bdstart.sh

RUN npm install --save-dev electron

RUN npm install

#ENV FRESHINSTALL=true

CMD ["/usr/scr/app/start.sh"]

The start.sh file goes like:

./node_modules/.bin/electron ./src

After building the docker image and execute it with

docker run -it -v /tmp/.X11-unix:/tmp/.X11-unix -e DISPLAY=unix$DISPLAY --device /dev/snd dixord

I get the error code:

standard_init_linux.go:175: exec user process caused "exec format error"

although I made the file executable and used the right amd64 architecture.

Has anyone figured it out how to make electron GUI's naitively over docker work?

Answer 1

I will try to help you here in this answer - too long for comment.

I tried your Docker file on my Win10 and with the same problems. But I figured it out by adding required packages and successfully created docker image. Here is Dockerfile

   FROM node:slim

   COPY . /usr/scr/app

   #RUN rm bdstart.sh
   RUN apt-get update

   # I think you need to install following 
   RUN apt-get -y install libgtkextra-dev libgconf2-dev libnss3 libasound2 libxtst-dev libxss1
   RUN npm install --save-dev electron

   RUN npm install

   CMD ["/usr/scr/app/start.sh"]

and here is your start.sh

   #!/bin/sh
   ./node_modules/.bin/electron ./src

Actually I don't have access to your files and so on, but with this DockerFile was able to create docker image without problems. I also went inside docker container and check whether is possible to run electron - worked.

If you want to go into container, you just need to build docker image. I have done it by (simplest way) following command (open console where Dockerfile is located and run):

   docker build -t test-image .

After Successfully build of image you can run container. If any problems I recommend you to run container with bash entrypoint and debug what fails - bash will open in the same console where you type following script)

   docker run -it test-image bash