Package MATLAB Standalone Applications into Docker Images
Supported Platform: Linux® only.
This example shows how to package a MATLAB® standalone application into a Docker® image.
This option is best for developers who want to distribute an application in a standardized format with all dependencies included, or to run batch jobs in an orchestrator. To create a microservice Docker image that provides an HTTP/HTTPS endpoint, see Create Microservice Docker Image (MATLAB Compiler SDK).
Prerequisites
Verify that you have Docker installed on your Linux machine by typing
docker
in the terminal. If you do not have Docker installed, you can follow the instructions on the Docker website to install and set up Docker.Test your Docker installation by typing the following at the system terminal:
If your Docker installation is working correctly, you see the following message:docker run hello-world
Hello from Docker! This message shows that your installation appears to be working correctly.
Verify that the MATLAB Runtime installer is available on your machine. You can verify its existence by executing the
compiler.runtime.download
function at the MATLAB command prompt. If there is an existing installer on the machine, the function returns its location. Otherwise, it downloads the MATLAB Runtime installer matching the version and update level of MATLAB from where the command is executed.If the computer you are using is not connected to the Internet, you need to download the MATLAB Runtime installer from a computer that is connected to the Internet. After downloading the MATLAB Runtime installer, you need to transfer the installer to the computer that is not connected to the Internet. You can download the installer from the MathWorks website.
https://www.mathworks.com/products/compiler/matlab-runtime.html
Create Function in MATLAB
Write a MATLAB function called mymagic
and save it with the
file name mymagic.m
.
function mymagic(x)
y = magic(x);
disp(y)
Test the function at the MATLAB command prompt.
mymagic(5)
17 24 1 8 15 23 5 7 14 16 4 6 13 20 22 10 12 19 21 3 11 18 25 2 9
Create Standalone Application
Make the mymagic
function into a standalone application
using the compiler.build.standaloneApplication
function.
res = compiler.build.standaloneApplication('mymagic.m', 'TreatInputsAsNumeric', true)
res = Results with properties: BuildType: 'standaloneApplication' Files: {3×1 cell} Options: [1×1 compiler.build.StandaloneApplicationOptions]
Once the build is complete, the function creates a folder named
mymagicstandaloneApplication
in your current directory to
store the standalone application. The Results
object
res
returned at the MATLAB command prompt contains information about the build.
Package Standalone Application into Docker Image
Create DockerOptions
Object
Prior to creating a Docker image, create a DockerOptions
object using
the compiler.package.DockerOptions
function and pass the
Results
object res
and an image name
mymagic-standalone-app
as input arguments. The
compiler.package.DockerOptions
function lets you
customize Docker image packaging.
opts = compiler.package.DockerOptions(res,'ImageName','mymagic-standalone-app')
opts = DockerOptions with properties: EntryPoint: 'mymagic' ExecuteDockerBuild: on ImageName: 'mymagic-standalone-app' DockerContext: './mymagic-standalone-appdocker'
Create Docker Image
Create a Docker image using the compiler.package.docker
function and pass the
Results
object res
and the
DockerOptions
object opts
as input
arguments.
compiler.package.docker(res, 'Options', opts)
Generating Runtime Image Cleaning MATLAB Runtime installer location. It may take several minutes... Copying MATLAB Runtime installer. It may take several minutes... ... ... ... Successfully built 6501fa2bc057 Successfully tagged mymagic-standalone-app:latest DOCKER CONTEXT LOCATION: /home/user/MATLAB/work/mymagic-standalone-appdocker SAMPLE DOCKER RUN COMMAND: docker run --rm -e "DISPLAY=:0" -v /tmp/.X11-unix:/tmp/.X11-unix mymagic-standalone-app
Once packaging is complete, the function creates a folder named
mymagic-standalone-appdocker
in your current
directory. This folder is the Docker context and contains the Dockerfile.
The compiler.package.docker
function also returns the
location of the Docker context and a sample Docker run command. You can use the sample Docker run command to test whether your image executes
correctly.
During the packaging process, the necessary bits for MATLAB Runtime are packaged as a parent Docker image and the standalone application is packaged as a child Docker image.
Test Docker Image
Open a Linux terminal and navigate to the Docker context folder. Verify that the
mymagic-standalone-app
Docker image is listed in your list of Docker images.
$ docker
images |
REPOSITORY TAG IMAGE ID CREATED SIZE
mymagic-standalone-app latest 6501fa2bc057 23 seconds ago 1.03GB
matlabruntime/r2022b/update0/4000000000000000 latest c6eb5ba4ae69 24 hours ago 1.03GB
After verifying that the mymagic-standalone-app
Docker image is listed in your list of Docker images, execute the sample run command with the input argument
5
:
$ docker run --rm
-e "DISPLAY=:0" -v /tmp/.X11-unix:/tmp/.X11-unix
mymagic-standalone-app 5 |
No protocol specified out = 17 24 1 8 15 23 5 7 14 16 4 6 13 20 22 10 12 19 21 3 11 18 25 2 9
The standalone application is packaged and can now be run as a Docker image.
Note
When running applications that generate plots or graphics, execute the
xhost
program with the +
option
prior to running your Docker image.
xhost +
xhost
program controls access to the X display
server, thereby enabling plots and graphics to be displayed. The
+
option indicates that everyone has access to the X
display server. If you run the xhost
program with the
+
option prior to running applications that do not
generate plots or graphics, the message No protocol
specified
is no longer displayed.Share Docker Image
You can share your Docker image in various ways.
Push your image to the Docker's central registry DockerHub, or to your private registry. This is the most common workflow.
Save your image as a tar archive and share it with others. This workflow is suitable for immediate testing.
For details about pushing your image to Docker's central registry or your private registry, consult the Docker documentation.
Save Docker Image as Tar Archive
To save your Docker image as a tar archive, open a Linux terminal, navigate to the Docker context folder, and type the following.
$ docker save
mymagic-standalone-app -o
mymagic-standalone-app.tar |
A file named mymagic-standalone-app.tar
is created in
your current folder. Set the appropriate permissions using
chmod
prior to sharing the tarball with other
users.
Load Docker Image from Tar Archive
Load the image contained in the tarball on the end-user's machine and then run it.
$ docker load
--input mymagic-standalone-app.tar |
Verify that the image is loaded.
$ docker
images |
Run Docker Image
$ xhost + $ docker run --rm -e "DISPLAY=:0" -v /tmp/.X11-unix:/tmp/.X11-unix mymagic-standalone-app 5 |
See Also
compiler.package.docker
| compiler.package.DockerOptions
| compiler.build.standaloneApplication
| compiler.runtime.download
Related Topics
- Create Microservice Docker Image (MATLAB Compiler SDK)