Here’s a practical Lab Guide/Tutorial for each Docker command you listed, with clear explanations and step-by-step examples using httpd (Apache) and ubuntu images.
This is designed so a student can follow on their laptop and actually practice each command.

Docker Command Lab Guide

1. cp — Copy files/folders between a container and the local filesystem

What it does:

Copies files/folders from your computer to a container or from the container to your computer.

Example:

a. Copying from local to container:

# Start an ubuntu container in detached mode
docker run -dit --name test-ubuntu ubuntu

# Create a test file on your host
echo "Hello from your host!" > myfile.txt

# Copy file into the container's /tmp directory
docker cp myfile.txt test-ubuntu:/tmp/
Code language: PHP (php)

b. Copying from container to local:

docker cp test-ubuntu:/tmp/myfile.txt ./copied_from_container.txt
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

2. diff — Inspect changes to files or directories on a container’s filesystem

What it does:

Shows changes (added/modified/deleted files) made to the container since it started.

Example:

docker run -dit --name diff-ubuntu ubuntu
docker exec diff-ubuntu touch /root/newfile.txt
docker diff diff-ubuntu
# Output will show A /root/newfile.txt (A = Added)
Code language: PHP (php)

3. inspect — Return low-level information on Docker objects

What it does:

Displays detailed JSON info about containers, images, networks, etc.

Example:

docker run -dit --name inspect-httpd httpd
docker inspect inspect-httpd
# Look for "IPAddress", "Mounts", "Config" in the output
Code language: PHP (php)

4. port — List port mappings or a specific mapping for the container

What it does:

Shows how the container’s ports are mapped to your host.

Example:

docker run -d -p 8080:80 --name httpd-port httpd
docker port httpd-port
# Output: 80/tcp -> 0.0.0.0:8080
Code language: PHP (php)

5. update — Update configuration of one or more containers

What it does:

Change resource limits (like CPU, memory) for running containers.

Example:

docker run -dit --name update-ubuntu ubuntu
# Update CPU shares to 512 (default is 1024)
docker update --cpu-shares 512 update-ubuntu
Code language: PHP (php)

6. wait — Block until one or more containers stop, then print their exit codes

What it does:

Waits for a container to stop and prints its exit code.

Example:

docker run --name wait-ubuntu ubuntu sleep 5
docker wait wait-ubuntu
# Output: 0 (means sleep exited successfully)
Code language: PHP (php)

7. logs — Fetch the logs of a container

What it does:

Shows the output (stdout/stderr) of the main process (PID 1) in a container.

Example:

docker run -d --name logs-httpd httpd
docker logs logs-httpd

docker run --name logs-ubuntu ubuntu echo "Hello from Ubuntu"
docker logs logs-ubuntu
# Output: Hello from Ubuntu
Code language: PHP (php)

8. ps — List containers

What it does:

Shows all running containers.

Example:

docker ps                 # Running containers only
docker ps -a              # All containers, including stopped
Code language: PHP (php)

9. stats — Display a live stream of container(s) resource usage statistics

What it does:

Shows CPU, memory, network, and disk stats live.

Example:

docker run -dit --name stats-httpd httpd
docker stats stats-httpd
# Press Ctrl+C to stop viewing stats
Code language: PHP (php)

10. top — Display the running processes of a container

What it does:

Lists the active processes inside a container.

Example:

docker run -dit --name top-ubuntu ubuntu bash
docker top top-ubuntu

11. events — Get real time events from the server

What it does:

Shows real-time Docker events (container start/stop, image pull, etc).

Example:

docker events
# In another terminal, start/stop containers to see events in real time
Code language: PHP (php)

12. Detach from container without stopping it:

When you’re attached to a container (e.g., after docker attach), use:

CTRL + P + Q

(This detaches your terminal from the container, but leaves the container running!)

Lab Flow Example (httpd & ubuntu)

# 1. Start containers
docker run -dit --name myubuntu ubuntu
docker run -d -p 8080:80 --name myhttpd httpd

# 2. Practice each command:
docker cp myfile.txt myubuntu:/tmp/
docker diff myubuntu
docker inspect myhttpd
docker port myhttpd
docker update --cpu-shares 512 myhttpd
docker wait myubuntu
docker logs myhttpd
docker ps
docker ps -a
docker stats myhttpd
docker top myubuntu
docker events
Code language: PHP (php)

Summary Table

Rajesh Kumar

I’m Rajesh Kumar, a DevOps, SRE, DevSecOps, Cloud, and Platform Engineering expert passionate about sharing practical knowledge, real-world experiences, and industry best practices. I have worked at Cotocus and regularly write about technology, travel, investing, health, product reviews, and digital marketing through my various platforms.

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