Volumes & Mounts

Manage persistent storage, bind mounts, and file mounts for containers

Mounts in Dokploy provide persistent storage and file injection for your applications and services. You can create volume mounts, bind mounts to host directories, or inject configuration files directly into containers.

Create Mount

cURL (Volume)

curl -X POST https://your-dokploy-instance.com/api/trpc/mount.create \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "volume",
    "volumeName": "app-data",
    "mountPath": "/data",
    "serviceId": "app_abc123",
    "serviceType": "application"
  }'

Request Body

type · enum · required

Type of mount to create.

Show Mount Types

• volume - Docker volume (managed by Docker, persists data)
• bind - Bind mount from host filesystem
• file - Inject a file with custom content

mountPath · string · required

Path inside the container where the mount will be attached (e.g., /data, /etc/nginx/nginx.conf).

serviceId · string · required

ID of the service (application, database, or compose) to attach this mount to.

serviceType · enum · required

Type of service this mount is for.

Show Service Types

• application - Application service
• postgres - PostgreSQL database
• mysql - MySQL database
• mariadb - MariaDB database
• mongo - MongoDB database
• redis - Redis database
• compose - Docker Compose service

volumeName · string

Name of the Docker volume. Required when type is volume.

hostPath · string

Absolute path on the host filesystem. Required when type is bind.

filePath · string

Virtual path for the file. Required when type is file.

content · string

File content to inject. Required when type is file.

Get Mount

cURL

curl -X GET "https://your-dokploy-instance.com/api/trpc/mount.one?mountId=mount_xyz789" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"

Query Parameters

mountId · string · required

ID of the mount to retrieve.

Response

mountId · string

Unique identifier for the mount.

type · string

Mount type: volume, bind, or file.

mountPath · string

Container path where the mount is attached.

volumeName · string

Docker volume name (for volume mounts).

hostPath · string

Host filesystem path (for bind mounts).

filePath · string

Virtual file path (for file mounts).

content · string

File content (for file mounts).

serviceType · string

Type of service this mount belongs to.

applicationId · string

Application ID (if applicable).

List Mounts by Service

cURL

curl -X GET "https://your-dokploy-instance.com/api/trpc/mount.listByServiceId?serviceId=app_abc123&serviceType=application" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"

Query Parameters

serviceId · string · required

ID of the service.

serviceType · enum · required

Type of service: application, postgres, mysql, mariadb, mongo, redis, or compose.

Response

Returns an array of all mounts configured for the specified service.

Update Mount

cURL

curl -X POST https://your-dokploy-instance.com/api/trpc/mount.update \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "mountId": "mount_xyz789",
    "mountPath": "/data/updated",
    "content": "{\"updated\": true}"
  }'

Request Body

mountId · string · required

ID of the mount to update.

type · enum

Updated mount type.

mountPath · string

Updated container path.

volumeName · string

Updated volume name (for volume mounts).

hostPath · string

Updated host path (for bind mounts).

filePath · string

Updated file path (for file mounts).

content · string

Updated file content (for file mounts).

Delete Mount

cURL

curl -X POST https://your-dokploy-instance.com/api/trpc/mount.remove \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "mountId": "mount_xyz789"
  }'

Request Body

mountId · string · required

ID of the mount to delete.

Deleting a mount does not delete the underlying volume or data. To remove a Docker volume, use Docker CLI commands.

Mount Types Explained

Volume Mounts

Docker-managed volumes that persist data independently of containers.

Use cases:

• Database storage
• Application data that needs to persist across deployments
• Shared data between multiple containers

Example:

{
  "type": "volume",
  "volumeName": "postgres-data",
  "mountPath": "/var/lib/postgresql/data",
  "serviceId": "postgres_123",
  "serviceType": "postgres"
}

Bind Mounts

Direct mounts from the host filesystem into the container.

Use cases:

• Development with live code updates
• Sharing configuration files from host
• Accessing host directories for logging

Example:

{
  "type": "bind",
  "hostPath": "/opt/app/uploads",
  "mountPath": "/app/public/uploads",
  "serviceId": "app_123",
  "serviceType": "application"
}

Bind mounts require the host path to exist before container startup. Ensure proper permissions are set on the host directory.

File Mounts

Inject configuration files directly into containers without managing separate config files on the host.

Use cases:

• Configuration files (nginx.conf, app.json)
• Environment-specific settings
• Small static files

Example:

{
  "type": "file",
  "filePath": "/config/nginx.conf",
  "content": "server {\n  listen 80;\n  server_name example.com;\n}",
  "mountPath": "/etc/nginx/conf.d/default.conf",
  "serviceId": "app_123",
  "serviceType": "application"
}

Best Practices

Volume Management

Use named volumes for production data. Docker manages their lifecycle and they’re easier to backup and restore.

• Use volumes for database storage
• Name volumes descriptively (e.g., myapp-postgres-data)
• Regularly backup volume data
• Monitor volume disk usage

Bind Mount Security

• Avoid binding sensitive host directories
• Use read-only mounts when possible
• Set appropriate file permissions
• Be cautious with root-owned directories

File Mount Limitations

• Keep file content small (< 1MB recommended)
• For large configurations, use volumes or bind mounts
• File mounts are stored in the database
• Changes require container restart

Path Considerations

• Always use absolute paths for mountPath
• Ensure container processes have appropriate permissions
• Avoid mounting over system directories
• Check for conflicts with existing container files

Common Patterns

Database Persistence

{
  "type": "volume",
  "volumeName": "myapp-postgres",
  "mountPath": "/var/lib/postgresql/data",
  "serviceId": "postgres_id",
  "serviceType": "postgres"
}

Nginx Configuration

{
  "type": "file",
  "filePath": "/nginx/default.conf",
  "content": "server { listen 80; root /usr/share/nginx/html; }",
  "mountPath": "/etc/nginx/conf.d/default.conf",
  "serviceId": "app_id",
  "serviceType": "application"
}

Shared Upload Directory

{
  "type": "volume",
  "volumeName": "shared-uploads",
  "mountPath": "/app/uploads",
  "serviceId": "app_id",
  "serviceType": "application"
}