Convert a docker container into an image using docker commit command

Docker run vs Docker commit

• Docker run command is used to create a container based on a docker image.
• Docker commit command is used to create a new image based on the file changes done inside the container.

Diagram: Docker run vs Docker commit

Syntax:

docker commit [options] container-id-or-name [image-name]:[image-tag]

Example:
To convert a container ubuntu_container into an image ubuntu_image with the image tag as version3:

docker commit ubuntu_container ubuntu_image:version3

Note: Any data present in the mounted volumes of the container are not committed in the new image.

Options available in Docker commit

The below table shows the options available within docker commit command:

Options available	Description
-a or --author	Author name
-c or --change	Apply Dockerfile instruction to the new image Eg: CMD, ENTRYPOINT, ENV etc.
-m or --message	Add a custom message in the image
--no-pause	Don’t pause container/processes during the commit operation

Pause option in Docker commit

The default behavior of docker commit uses a “pause” i.e. it makes the container and the processes within it to be “paused” while it is being converted to an image. This pause is used to prevent data corruption during the commit operation. If you don’t want the pause operation, you can use the option docker commit --no-pause.

Note: Previously, there used to be a option called --pause true or --pause false. But since docker engine version 29, the --pause flag has been deprecated in favor of the new --no-pause option. By default, docker commit uses the pause operation. PR link source: deprecate “--pause” flag on docker commit in favor of “--no-pause” (PR#6460)

Pause option in docker commit command

Youtube tutorial - Docker commit: Convert a docker container into a new image
Note: At the time of recording of the Youtube tutorial, the old pause option was used (--pause true or --pause false). The new pause option is --no-pause.

Reference:

Docker official documentation on docker commit and docker run

Thank you!