dex

dex allows you to run applications without installing them or their dependencies.
- dex is a docker package manager for applications and tooling (like git, ffmpeg, and javac) as well as daemons (like redis, selenium, and caddy).
dex is like whalebrew, except in bash for extra pain.
- dex images are built from regular Dockerfiles, and use labels to specify runtime behavior. If your app is dockerized, it can be dexified in seconds.

quickstart

install dex

curl -L http://get.iceburg.net/dex/latest-0.12.x/dex > /usr/local/bin/dex && \
chmod +x /usr/local/bin/dex

list available images

dex ls

play sed pong

echo 'ping' | dex run sed 's/ping/pong/'
# ^^^ sed from the 'sed' container, not your host machine!

run 'ag' (the grep replacement!) from the "extra" repository

echo "hello" > world.txt
dex run extra/ag "hello"

WTF is dex doing?

DEX_DEBUG=true dex run extra/ag "hello"

bind mount a host path by passing arbitrary volume flag

$ mkdir -p /tmp/ping/pong
$ DEX_DOCKER_FLAGS="-v /tmp/ping:/tmp/ping" ./main.sh run debian ls /tmp/ping
pong

see v1-runtime docs for more runtime variables.

use DOS like a boss

mkdir dos-test
cd dos-test
dex run edit enjoy-edit.com.txt
cd ..
dex run deltree dost-test
# ^^^ yay 1984

install macos-sed to /usr/local/bin, with a'macos-' prefix

DEX_BIN_DIR=/usr/local/bin DEX_BIN_PREFIX=macos- dex install sed:macos
macos-sed --help
# ^^^ yay 1994

register your custom repository and install all images from it

dex repo add acme-tools git@github.com/acme-tools/bootstrap.git
dex install acme-tools/
# ^^^ super useful in bootstrap scripts

docs/usage.md for more.

requirements

dex can run anywhere docker works, including Windows 10.

installation

Use one of the below methods to install dex.

from a release

dex is periodically packaged as a monolithic script and published to;

download a release and copy it to a folder in your $PATH;

curl -L http://get.iceburg.net/dex/latest-0.12.x/dex > /usr/local/bin/dex && \
chmod +x /usr/local/bin/dex

from source

git clone git@github.com:dockerland/dex.git
cd dex
# run dex,
./main.sh
# -or- install to /usr/local/bin/dex
sudo make install

from a series of tubes (no installation)

Diehards run dex from the Al Gore provided Cloud

curl -L http://get.iceburg.net/dex/latest-0.12.x/dex | bash -s 'install' 'ag'
# ^^^ installs 'ag' without installing dex

contribute to dex

By all means! Before you submit a PR, please include tests and make sure they pass. See tests for more.

containerize your application

The process is the same as providing a normal Dockerfile, except you use label(s) to effect runtime behavior.

Others may find your image useful! Please publish to one of our repositories.

core
extra

Use existing Dockerfiles in the above repositories as reference, or see docs/HOWTO.md for more details.

why dex?

Dex provides consistency and convenience around the installation and execution of application containers, and we we wrote it as part of a "modern" bootstrap to improve tooling management.

dex is safe

Dex applications are independent, portable, and non-intrusive. Gone are the days of mucking up a developer's machine and fiddling with versions. You no longer need java, node, ruby, python, or even make locally installed to be productive.

dex is easy

Dex remains consistent with docker command line behavior. Users and tool authors can containerize, distribute, and consistently execute applications as intended.

dex is fun

We also wanted to try fun things like executing MacOS commands to test flag behavior or seeing if we could use edit.com from DOS (hint: it works!). We also want to support windowed/X11 applications, so expect dex run firefox.

See other use cases for ideas on leveraging dex.

license

Dex is licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0. See LICENSE for the full license text.