this post was submitted on 25 Feb 2026
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Why isn't installing docker from the Debian repositories recommended? (feddit.uk)
submitted 2 days ago by alonsohmtz@feddit.uk to c/debian@lemmy.world
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It's a bit strange how The Debian Way recommends installing software from the official repository, but not in the case of a crucial program like Docker.

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[–] moonpiedumplings@programming.dev 3 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Because it's not an official piece of documentation and doesn't actually represent best practices.

https://wiki.debian.org/DontBreakDebian#Don.27t_make_a_FrankenDebian

I generally prefer to get docker.io from Debian's official repos because it's the fastest and easiest way to do it. Yes, debian's policy of only doing security or critical bugfixes to packages (and no minor bugfixes or new features) means it's an oldee version of docker, but there is nothing I particularly need from a newer docker that makes me care.

I do care about new features in Incus, a virtualization manager so I happily throw best practices out the window to add their repository to my debian server. The repo also packages the Incus web UI, whereas debian repos do not. But unless you have a need to deviate I would recommend following best practices. The more you interact with software the way developers expect you to interact with it, the smoother your experience will be and you will run into less issues in the long run.