I've been using Docker on my old MacBook Pro from 2015 with a Dual Core i5 and 8GB of RAM, and it's been pretty painful. I tried running a Minecraft server with Docker Desktop and everything was running at 100% CPU usage—it was awful! I eventually switched to Ubuntu and installed Docker Engine there, and it's a night-and-day difference; the usage is down to about 10%. I'm curious if this slowness is because of Docker Desktop versus Docker Engine, or does macOS just perform poorly with Docker in general?
5 Answers
Honestly, the biggest issue is the virtualization. macOS needs to run Docker containers through this added layer, and that can really slow things down. If you're looking for a workaround, try using a lightweight Linux distro like Alpine instead of Docker Desktop.
I’ve heard good things about Alpine! Might give it a shot to see if it feels any snappier.
Docker on macOS doesn't run containers natively; instead, it uses a Linux virtual machine. This extra layer can really slow things down since the OS has to support the VM instead of running the containers directly. That's why you're seeing high CPU usage on your older Mac.
Yeah, I noticed that too! When I checked my processes, it looked like the VM was always the top resource hog. Makes sense why performance suffers.
Exactly! I didn't realize how much of an impact that would have until I started monitoring my system stats.
Definitely check out OrbStack; I switched to it, and it's been a smoother experience compared to Docker Desktop. Seems to be way less resource-intensive!
Cool, I’ve been meaning to check it out. Thanks for the recommendation!
OrbStack sounds interesting! I'm curious how it performs compared to Docker.
Your Mac is quite old now; upgrading to an Apple Silicon Mac could give you a big boost in performance, especially with resource-heavy applications like Docker.
That sounds like overkill for just running a Minecraft server! There are cheaper options that might work without needing a new computer.
Completely agree! For just one instance, a newer Mac might be overboard.
Having only 8GB of RAM isn’t helping either. That can really bottleneck your performance, especially with the demands of Docker on Mac.
Right? 8GB isn't cutting it for modern tasks. Even just running macOS and Docker at the same time can be a lot.
Or you could look into alternatives like OrbStack or Colima. I’ve heard they might work better than Docker Desktop.