How to get docker-compose to always re-create containers from fresh images?

docker-compose up --force-recreate is one option, but if you're using it for CI, I would start the build with docker-compose rm -f to stop and remove the containers and volumes (then follow it with pull and up).

This is what I use:

docker-compose rm -f
docker-compose pull
docker-compose up --build -d
# Run some tests
./tests
docker-compose stop -t 1

The reason containers are recreated is to preserve any data volumes that might be used (and it also happens to make up a lot faster).

If you're doing CI you don't want that, so just removing everything should get you want you want.

Update: use up --build which was added in docker-compose 1.7

The only solution that worked for me was the --no-cache flag:

docker-compose build --no-cache

This will automatically pull a fresh image from the repo. It also won't use the cached version that is prebuilt with any parameters you've been using before.

By current official documentation there is a short cut that stops and removes containers, networks, volumes, and images created by up, if they are already stopped or partially removed and so on, then it will do the trick too:

docker-compose down

Then if you have new changes on your images or Dockerfiles use:

docker-compose build --no-cache

Finally:docker-compose up

In one command: docker-compose down && docker-compose build --no-cache && docker-compose up

docker-compose up --build

OR

docker-compose build --no-cache

You can pass --force-recreate to docker compose up, which should use fresh containers.

I think the reasoning behind reusing containers is to preserve any changes during development. Note that Compose does something similar with volumes, which will also persist between container recreation (a recreated container will attach to its predecessor's volumes). This can be helpful, for example, if you have a Redis container used as a cache and you don't want to lose the cache each time you make a small change. At other times it's just confusing.

I don't believe there is any way you can force this from the Compose file.

Arguably it does clash with immutable infrastructure principles. The counter-argument is probably that you don't use Compose in production (yet). Also, I'm not sure I agree that immutable infra is the basic idea of Docker, although it's certainly a good use case/selling point.

I claimed 3.5gb space in ubuntu AWS through this.

clean docker

docker stop $(docker ps -qa) && docker system prune -af --volumes

build again

docker build . docker-compose build docker-compose up

docker-compose up --build --force-recreate

Also if the compose has several services and we only want to force build one of those:

docker-compose build --no-cache <service>

$docker-compose build

If there is something new it will be rebuilt.