Multiple hosts

[jp-keros]

Hello RA341,

On the local Host, we can set the DOCKMAN_COMPOSE_ROOT. How does it work for the remote hosts ?

I tried to use the same path, but it is not seen the files on the remote host.

Would it be possible to have a parameter in hosts.yaml to set the DOCKMAN_COMPOSE_ROOT folder for each host ?

Thank you

Keros

[RA341]

Hi Keros,

How it currently works:
Dockman doesn't actually transfer your compose files to the remote host. Instead, it sends the compose configuration directly to the Docker API on the remote machine. Only certain bind mounts that are within the compose root directory get transferred to the remote host - your actual compose files never leave your local machine.

Example:
Let's say you have this structure locally:

/home/user/my-project/  (DOCKMAN_COMPOSE_ROOT)
├── docker-compose.yml
├── config/
│   └── nginx.conf
└── data/
    └── app-data/

And your compose file has:

services:
  nginx:
    image: nginx
    volumes:
      - ./config/nginx.conf:/etc/nginx/nginx.conf
      - ./data:/var/lib/data

When you deploy to a remote host:

• docker-compose.yml stays on your local machine and gets sent to Docker API
• config/nginx.conf and data/ get transferred to the same relative path on the remote host
• The remote host ends up with /home/user/my-project/config/nginx.conf and /home/user/my-project/data/

Why you're not seeing the files:
The remote host will only have the specific bind mount files/directories that Dockman identified as needing to be transferred. Your compose files themselves remain local and are sent directly to the Docker daemon via the API.

[jp-keros]

Thank you RA341 for your detailled reply.

You are working at the "docker level" and not at the OS level even if you use SSH.

I have one LXC container for each of my docker app : one host = one docker-compose.yaml = one app to manage (restart / update). I thought Dockman could help me centralize and manage my other hosts. As it is not meant to manage the compose file on the remote host, it fits not my need.

Sorry for my misunderstanding.

I was pleased to test your app. Thank you

[RA341]

No worries at all!

Although if I understand you correctly, I believe Dockman could still work for your setup. Let me clarify how it handles remote management:

Your Current Setup:

LXC Container 1 (Host A) → docker-compose.yaml (App 1)
LXC Container 2 (Host B) → docker-compose.yaml (App 2)  
LXC Container 3 (Host C) → docker-compose.yaml (App 3)

How Dockman Would Manage This:

┌─────────────────┐
│   Dockman       │
│   Instance      │
│                 │
│ ┌─────────────┐ │
│ │ Git Repo    │ │
│ │ ├─ host-a/  │ │ ── compose.yaml for Host A
│ │ ├─ host-b/  │ │ ── compose.yaml for Host B
│ │ └─ host-c/  │ │ ── compose.yaml for Host C
│ └─────────────┘ │
└─────────────────┘
         │
    ┌────▼────┐ SSH + Compose Files
    │   SSH   │
    └────┬────┘
         │
    ┌────▼────┐    ┌─────────┐    ┌─────────┐
    │ Host A  │    │ Host B  │    │ Host C  │
    │ (LXC)   │    │ (LXC)   │    │ (LXC)   │
    └─────────┘    └─────────┘    └─────────┘

Each LXC container's docker-compose.yaml would be stored in Dockman's Git repository as separate branches or directories. When you execute commands, Dockman sends the compose configuration from its local Git repo to the target host via SSH.

This means you get centralized management of all your remote docker-compose setups from one interface, with all configurations version-controlled in Git.

The key point is that Dockman stores all your compose files in its Git repository and pushes them to remote hosts via SSH when needed.