Docker Agent Run

DockerOfficialPublished by Docker

Skill
Tool integration
Software development
Apache-2.0
No issues found

From the author

Use this skill when running a Docker Agent with `docker agent run`, choosing a safety/approval mode, using the `--sandbox` isolation flag, setting up aliases, or troubleshooting a run (missing credentials, worktrees). Even if the user just says they want to "run my agent", "make my agent auto-approve tool calls", "run this agent safely", or "why can't my agent see my API key", this skill applies. Covers `--safety` (strict/balanced/restricted/autonomous), `--yolo`, `--sandbox` and its network allowlist, `--worktree`, `docker agent alias`, and `docker agent doctor`.

— the description by Docker

AutoGineer summary

Written by AutoGineer from the skill’s own files, not by the author

This skill provides the operational framework for running Docker Agents. It covers the full lifecycle of agent execution, including interactive and headless runs, safety and approval configurations, sandbox isolation for secure execution, and diagnostic procedures for resolving common runtime issues like credential or network policy failures.

What it does

Executes agents using docker agent run with support for interactive or headless modes.
Configures safety and tool-call approval modes including strict, balanced, restricted, and autonomous.
Manages sandbox isolation via the --sandbox flag to run agents in secure microVMs.
Handles network allowlisting for sandbox environments to resolve connectivity issues.
Provides shortcuts through agent aliasing and git worktree management for isolated file edits.
Diagnoses runtime failures such as missing credentials or model availability using docker agent doctor.

When to use it

When you need to run an agent interactively or in a headless CI/CD environment.
When you need to restrict an agent's ability to execute tool calls for security.
When you encounter network policy errors or need to isolate an agent's filesystem access.
When you need to troubleshoot why an agent cannot access a model or API key.
When you want to create reusable shortcuts for specific agent configurations.

Advantages

Ensures secure execution by providing granular control over tool-call approvals.
Prevents host system contamination through microVM-based sandbox isolation.
Simplifies complex agent invocations with persistent aliases and worktree management.
Provides clear diagnostic paths for common configuration and environment issues.

Usage examples

“Run my agent in restricted mode for a CI pipeline.”: The agent executes with --safety restricted, ensuring unreviewed tool calls are denied rather than executed.
“Why is my agent failing to connect to my internal API?”: The agent identifies a network policy block and suggests using docker agent sandbox allow to add the host to the allowlist.
“Create a shortcut for my coder agent with balanced safety.”: Registers an alias using docker agent alias add that defaults to balanced safety mode for future runs.
“Check why my agent says the model is not available.”: Runs docker agent doctor to verify credential resolution and model availability, providing actionable steps to fix the environment.

Install

Download the skill as a ZIP:
https://autogineer.com/agent-skills/docker/docker-agent-run/download

Unzip it into the cross-client skills folder of your project:

mkdir -p .agents/skills && unzip docker-agent-run.zip -d .agents/skills

Documentation by Docker

Docker Agent: Running and Operating Agents

Overview

This skill owns the operational side of Docker Agent: invoking docker agent run against a local config, an alias, or a registry reference; choosing how much autonomy the agent gets over tool calls; isolating it in a sandbox VM; and diagnosing why a run fails. It assumes the agent.yaml already exists — see Related skills for authoring it.

When to use this skill

Activate this skill when:

The user wants to run an agent interactively or headlessly (--exec).
The user is choosing or debugging --safety, --yolo, or approval behavior for tool calls.
The user wants to isolate an agent's shell/filesystem access with --sandbox, or hit a sandbox network-policy error.
The user wants a reusable shortcut (docker agent alias), a scoped git worktree (--worktree), or is debugging credentials/model availability (docker agent doctor).

Do not use this skill when

Do not use this skill when:

The task uses standalone sbx run/create/stop/rm rather than docker agent run --sandbox — use docker-sandboxes-lifecycle.
The task is standalone sbx policy or sbx secret configuration — use docker-sandboxes-network-credentials. Establish which CLI is in use before recommending commands when the request only says "my sandbox".
The task is writing or editing the agent.yaml itself (models, toolsets, sub_agents) — use docker-agent-config.
The task is exposing an agent as a server (serve), sharing it via a registry (share), or evaluating it (evaluation sessions, --baseline regression gates) — use docker-agent-deploy.

Core guidance

Safety modes

docker agent run supports four --safety modes; choose the least permissive one that still lets the task finish:
- strict — ask for approval before every tool call.
- balanced — auto-approve calls classified as safe, ask for the rest.
- restricted — auto-approve safe calls, deny the rest outright. Use for unattended/CI runs where no human can answer a prompt.
- autonomous — approve everything automatically. Equivalent to --yolo.
Never default an unattended run (cron, CI, a server endpoint) to autonomous/--yolo. Use restricted for unattended runs so an unexpected tool call fails closed instead of running unreviewed; reserve autonomous/--yolo for a sandboxed or fully trusted interactive session.
```
# CI-safe: unreviewed tool calls are denied, not silently approved.
docker agent run --exec --safety restricted ./agent.yaml "Triage the failing test"
```
Bake a safety default into an alias so callers don't have to remember it, and note that an explicit CLI --safety/--yolo on docker agent run still overrides the alias:
```
docker agent alias add safe-coder myorg/coder --safety balanced
```

Sandbox isolation

--sandbox runs the agent inside an isolated microVM managed by the sbx CLI (a separate prerequisite — install and configure it first). All shell, filesystem, and process activity started by built-in toolsets happens inside the VM; only the working directory (and, unless --no-kit, a staged "kit" of skills/prompt files) is mounted in. Exception: a local stdio MCP server declared on the agent runs as a host process outside the sandbox VM — treat any such MCP server as a trusted host integration, not a sandboxed one.
```
docker agent run --sandbox ./agent.yaml
```
The sandbox network proxy is default-deny: only the model provider, models.dev, and hosts the toolset resolver can infer are open. A custom MCP server or third-party API often needs an explicit allowlist entry — add it permanently rather than re-discovering it every run:
```
docker agent sandbox allow api.example.com
docker agent sandbox list
docker agent sandbox deny api.example.com
```
Prefer baking runtime: {sandbox: true} into the agent's own agent.yaml over remembering --sandbox on every invocation of that agent; an explicit --sandbox=false on the CLI still overrides the config default for a single debug run.
Sandboxes persist and are reused across runs from the same workspace — they are not torn down when the session ends. Don't expect a clean VM on every run; if you need one, change the mount set (e.g. a new kit) to force recreation.

Aliases and default agent

docker agent alias add code myorg/notion-expert
docker agent run code

For a local run with no agent argument, docker agent run discovers docker-agent.yaml, then docker-agent.yml, then docker-agent.hcl in the current directory (first match wins). Only if none exists does it resolve the default alias, falling back to the built-in default agent. The agent.yaml examples in these skills pass a filename explicitly; agent.yaml is not an auto-discovery name.
Set the fallback for directories without a project config with a default alias. To select it even when a project config exists, pass default explicitly:
```
docker agent alias add default ./my-agent.yaml
docker agent run default
```
CLI flags on docker agent run <alias> always override the alias's own stored options (e.g. docker agent run yolo-coder --yolo=false).

Worktrees

Use --worktree (-w) to isolate an agent's file edits from your current checkout — it runs the agent inside a fresh git worktree. For an interactive session, a clean worktree (no uncommitted changes, untracked files, or new commits) is removed automatically when the session ends; one with work prompts you to keep or remove. A headless run (--exec) never auto-cleans its worktree, regardless of state — it is left in place for inspection:
```
docker agent run ./agent.yaml --worktree=auth-refactor --worktree-base origin/main
```
--worktree cannot be combined with --remote or --sandbox. To resume a worktree run, pass --session -1 (or the session id) — do not re-pass --worktree, which fails because the worktree already exists.

Troubleshooting

"No model is currently available" or "model ... is not pulled" means the agent's provider has no usable credential, or (for dmr/) the model hasn't been pulled. Run docker agent doctor ./agent.yaml first — it reports the resolved model/provider and whether credentials were found — before touching the YAML. If credentials are missing, export the provider's API key; if a DMR model is missing, run docker model pull <model>. Rerun doctor before retrying the task.
An agent that only describes a plan instead of executing it is usually missing the tool it needs (add type: shell or type: todo in agent.yaml), not a model failure — hand this back to docker-agent-config.
A 403 Blocked by network policy error inside a sandbox run means the destination isn't allowlisted; use docker agent sandbox allow <host>.

For standalone sbx lifecycle commands, use docker-sandboxes-lifecycle.
For standalone sbx policy and sbx secret, use docker-sandboxes-network-credentials.
For writing or changing the underlying agent.yaml (models, toolsets, sub_agents), use docker-agent-config.
For serving, sharing, or evaluating the agent, use docker-agent-deploy.

References

references/safety-and-sandbox.md — full safety-mode/flag interaction table and sandbox trust-boundary details.
references/sources.md — provenance of every rule in this skill.

Assets

None.

Checks

checks/verification.md — Verification runbook for a docker agent run invocation.

Files

ATTRIBUTION.mdAdded by AutoGineer824 B
LICENSELicence file added by AutoGineer11.1 KiB
SKILL.md8.5 KiB
agents/openai.yaml404 B
checks/verification.md1.7 KiB
references/safety-and-sandbox.md2.1 KiB
references/sources.md1.6 KiB
skill.yaml1.1 KiB

LICENSE


                                 Apache License
                           Version 2.0, January 2004
                        http://www.apache.org/licenses/

   TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR USE, REPRODUCTION, AND DISTRIBUTION

   1. Definitions.

      "License" shall mean the terms and conditions for use, reproduction,
      and distribution as defined by Sections 1 through 9 of this document.

      "Licensor" shall mean the copyright owner or entity authorized by
      the copyright owner that is granting the License.

      "Legal Entity" shall mean the union of the acting entity and all
      other entities that control, are controlled by, or are under common
      control with that entity. For the purposes of this definition,
      "control" means (i) the power, direct or indirect, to cause the
      direction or management of such entity, whether by contract or
      otherwise, or (ii) ownership of fifty percent (50%) or more of the
      outstanding shares, or (iii) beneficial ownership of such entity.

      "You" (or "Your") shall mean an individual or Legal Entity
      exercising permissions granted by this License.

      "Source" form shall mean the preferred form for making modifications,
      including but not limited to software source code, documentation
      source, and configuration files.

      "Object" form shall mean any form resulting from mechanical
      transformation or translation of a Source form, including but
      not limited to compiled object code, generated documentation,
      and conversions to other media types.

      "Work" shall mean the work of authorship, whether in Source or
      Object form, made available under the License, as indicated by a
      copyright notice that is included in or attached to the work
      (an example is provided in the Appendix below).

      "Derivative Works" shall mean any work, whether in Source or Object
      form, that is based on (or derived from) the Work and for which the
      editorial revisions, annotations, elaborations, or other modifications
      represent, as a whole, an original work of authorship. For the purposes
      of this License, Derivative Works shall not include works that remain
      separable from, or merely link (or bind by name) to the interfaces of,
      the Work and Derivative Works thereof.

      "Contribution" shall mean any work of authorship, including
      the original version of the Work and any modifications or additions
      to that Work or Derivative Works thereof, that is intentionally
      submitted to Licensor for inclusion in the Work by the copyright owner
      or by an individual or Legal Entity authorized to submit on behalf of
      the copyright owner. For the purposes of this definition, "submitted"
      means any form of electronic, verbal, or written communication sent
      to the Licensor or its representatives, including but not limited to
      communication on electronic mailing lists, source code control systems,
      and issue tracking systems that are managed by, or on behalf of, the
      Licensor for the purpose of discussing and improving the Work, but
      excluding communication that is conspicuously marked or otherwise
      designated in writing by the copyright owner as "Not a Contribution."

      "Contributor" shall mean Licensor and any individual or Legal Entity
      on behalf of whom a Contribution has been received by Licensor and
      subsequently incorporated within the Work.

   2. Grant of Copyright License. Subject to the terms and conditions of
      this License, each Contributor hereby grants to You a perpetual,
      worldwide, non-exclusive, no-charge, royalty-free, irrevocable
      copyright license to reproduce, prepare Derivative Works of,
      publicly display, publicly perform, sublicense, and distribute the
      Work and such Derivative Works in Source or Object form.

   3. Grant of Patent License. Subject to the terms and conditions of
      this License, each Contributor hereby grants to You a perpetual,
      worldwide, non-exclusive, no-charge, royalty-free, irrevocable
      (except as stated in this section) patent license to make, have made,
      use, offer to sell, sell, import, and otherwise transfer the Work,
      where such license applies only to those patent claims licensable
      by such Contributor that are necessarily infringed by their
      Contribution(s) alone or by combination of their Contribution(s)
      with the Work to which such Contribution(s) was submitted. If You
      institute patent litigation against any entity (including a
      cross-claim or counterclaim in a lawsuit) alleging that the Work
      or a Contribution incorporated within the Work constitutes direct
      or contributory patent infringement, then any patent licenses
      granted to You under this License for that Work shall terminate
      as of the date such litigation is filed.

   4. Redistribution. You may reproduce and distribute copies of the
      Work or Derivative Works thereof in any medium, with or without
      modifications, and in Source or Object form, provided that You
      meet the following conditions:

      (a) You must give any other recipients of the Work or
          Derivative Works a copy of this License; and

      (b) You must cause any modified files to carry prominent notices
          stating that You changed the files; and

      (c) You must retain, in the Source form of any Derivative Works
          that You distribute, all copyright, patent, trademark, and
          attribution notices from the Source form of the Work,
          excluding those notices that do not pertain to any part of
          the Derivative Works; and

      (d) If the Work includes a "NOTICE" text file as part of its
          distribution, then any Derivative Works that You distribute must
          include a readable copy of the attribution notices contained
          within such NOTICE file, excluding those notices that do not
          pertain to any part of the Derivative Works, in at least one
          of the following places: within a NOTICE text file distributed
          as part of the Derivative Works; within the Source form or
          documentation, if provided along with the Derivative Works; or,
          within a display generated by the Derivative Works, if and
          wherever such third-party notices normally appear. The contents
          of the NOTICE file are for informational purposes only and
          do not modify the License. You may add Your own attribution
          notices within Derivative Works that You distribute, alongside
          or as an addendum to the NOTICE text from the Work, provided
          that such additional attribution notices cannot be construed
          as modifying the License.

      You may add Your own copyright statement to Your modifications and
      may provide additional or different license terms and conditions
      for use, reproduction, or distribution of Your modifications, or
      for any such Derivative Works as a whole, provided Your use,
      reproduction, and distribution of the Work otherwise complies with
      the conditions stated in this License.

   5. Submission of Contributions. Unless You explicitly state otherwise,
      any Contribution intentionally submitted for inclusion in the Work
      by You to the Licensor shall be under the terms and conditions of
      this License, without any additional terms or conditions.
      Notwithstanding the above, nothing herein shall supersede or modify
      the terms of any separate license agreement you may have executed
      with Licensor regarding such Contributions.

   6. Trademarks. This License does not grant permission to use the trade
      names, trademarks, service marks, or product names of the Licensor,
      except as required for reasonable and customary use in describing the
      origin of the Work and reproducing the content of the NOTICE file.

   7. Disclaimer of Warranty. Unless required by applicable law or
      agreed to in writing, Licensor provides the Work (and each
      Contributor provides its Contributions) on an "AS IS" BASIS,
      WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or
      implied, including, without limitation, any warranties or conditions
      of TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, MERCHANTABILITY, or FITNESS FOR A
      PARTICULAR PURPOSE. You are solely responsible for determining the
      appropriateness of using or redistributing the Work and assume any
      risks associated with Your exercise of permissions under this License.

   8. Limitation of Liability. In no event and under no legal theory,
      whether in tort (including negligence), contract, or otherwise,
      unless required by applicable law (such as deliberate and grossly
      negligent acts) or agreed to in writing, shall any Contributor be
      liable to You for damages, including any direct, indirect, special,
      incidental, or consequential damages of any character arising as a
      result of this License or out of the use or inability to use the
      Work (including but not limited to damages for loss of goodwill,
      work stoppage, computer failure or malfunction, or any and all
      other commercial damages or losses), even if such Contributor
      has been advised of the possibility of such damages.

   9. Accepting Warranty or Additional Liability. While redistributing
      the Work or Derivative Works thereof, You may choose to offer,
      and charge a fee for, acceptance of support, warranty, indemnity,
      or other liability obligations and/or rights consistent with this
      License. However, in accepting such obligations, You may act only
      on Your own behalf and on Your sole responsibility, not on behalf
      of any other Contributor, and only if You agree to indemnify,
      defend, and hold each Contributor harmless for any liability
      incurred by, or claims asserted against, such Contributor by reason
      of your accepting any such warranty or additional liability.

   END OF TERMS AND CONDITIONS

   APPENDIX: How to apply the Apache License to your work.

      To apply the Apache License to your work, attach the following
      boilerplate notice, with the fields enclosed by brackets "[]"
      replaced with your own identifying information. (Don't include
      the brackets!)  The text should be enclosed in the appropriate
      comment syntax for the file format. We also recommend that a
      file or class name and description of purpose be included on the
      same "printed page" as the copyright notice for easier
      identification within third-party archives.

   Copyright 2026 Docker, Inc.

   Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
   you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
   You may obtain a copy of the License at

       http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

   Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
   distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
   WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
   See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
   limitations under the License.

Requirements and compatibility

Works with: Claude Code, Claude apps, OpenAI Codex, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Gemini CLI, Kiro, OpenCode, Goose, Amp, Roo Code, JetBrains Junie, Factory Droid, Devin (ex-Windsurf), Mistral Vibe, OpenHands, Letta

“Works with” means the tool reads the open Agent Skills format; a skill written for one tool may use features others lack.

Needs: Needs an MCP server, Needs an API key, Needs a command-line tool

The author says: Requires the docker-agent CLI plugin (Docker Desktop 4.63+, or standalone via Homebrew/GitHub releases). Sandbox mode (`--sandbox`) additionally requires the `sbx` CLI. Verified against docker-agent as shipped with Docker CLI 29.7.2.

Security

No issues found by our static scan· No issues found

A static scan is not a guarantee. Skills are third-party content: review a skill before you let an agent use it.

Attribution and licence

Published by

Docker

Publisher

Docker (Official)

Source

docker/skills · skills/docker-agent-run · commit 9f04a05

Licence

Apache License 2.0 (redistribution allowed)

LICENSE (added by AutoGineer from LICENSE)
ATTRIBUTION.md (written by AutoGineer)

Synced

2026-11-09

AutoGineer is not affiliated with or endorsed by Docker or Docker.

Download ZIP

The ZIP holds the skill’s files, its licence files and an ATTRIBUTION.md. Download docker-agent-run.zip