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DOCKER

Section: Docker User Manuals (1)
Updated: Jun 2025
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NAME

docke-containe-kill- Kill one or more running containers

SYNOPSIS

docker container kill [OPTIONS] CONTAINER [CONTAINER...]

DESCRIPTION

The docker kill subcommand kills one or more containers. The main process inside the container is sent SIGKILL signal (default), or the signal that is specified with the -signal option. You can reference a container by its ID, I-prefix, or name.

The -signal flag sets the system call signal that is sent to the container. This signal can be a signal name in the format SIG<NAME>, for instance SIGINT, or an unsigned number that matches a position in the kernel's syscall table, for instance 2.

While the default (SIGKILL) signal will terminate the container, the signal set through -signal may be no-terminal, depending on the container's main process. For example, the SIGHUP signal in most cases will be no-terminal, and the container will continue running after receiving the signal.

Note

ENTRYPOINT and CMD in the shell form run as a child process of /bin/sh-c, which does not pass signals. This means that the executable is not the container’s PID 1 and does not receive Unix signals.

OPTIONS

-s, -signal="" Signal to send to the container