[Solved] ERROR: Cannot connect to the Docker daemon. Is the docker daemon running?

If you encounter the error Cannot connect to the Docker daemon, it means the Docker daemon is not running or is inaccessible.

[Solved] ERROR: Cannot connect to the Docker daemon. Is the docker daemon running?

Follow these steps to resolve the issue.

1. Ensure Docker is Installed

Verify that Docker is installed on your system. If not, download and install Docker Desktop from the official Docker website.

After installation, you can use Docker commands to manage your containers and images. If Docker is already installed, proceed to the next step.

2. Start Docker Desktop

On macOS, Docker Desktop is the easiest way to manage Docker.

Open the Docker Desktop application.

Once Docker is running, the daemon should be active and ready to accept commands.

3. Verify Docker Daemon

Run the following command to check if Docker is running:

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docker version
Running docker version command to check if docker daemon is running

If the Docker daemon is running, you should see version information for the client and server. If not, continue with the next steps.

4. Restart Docker Desktop

If the issue persists, restart Docker Desktop.

    5. Check Permissions

    Ensure your user has the correct permissions to access the Docker daemon. On macOS, this is rarely an issue, but you can try running Docker commands with sudo to rule out permission problems:

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    sudo docker version

    6. Verify Docker Socket

    If the problem persists, check the Docker socket location and permissions:

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    ls -l /var/run/docker.sock

    The output should show that the socket exists and is accessible. If it doesn’t, restarting Docker Desktop usually resolves the issue.

    7. Restart Your System

    As a final step, restart your system to ensure all services are correctly initialized. After the restart, ensure Docker Desktop is running and try the command again.

    8. Check for Updates

    Outdated Docker versions can sometimes cause issues. Check for updates in Docker Desktop and ensure you’re running the latest version.

    By following these steps, you should be able to resolve the “Cannot connect to the Docker daemon” error and continue using Docker effectively.