Go in Docker

The golang image

The golang image ships a ready to use toolchain, so you can try Go without installing anything on the host.

Tags such as golang:1 follow the major release line, which keeps local experiments close to current stable builds.

Run one-liners

Ask the container for its Go version with a single disposable run.

docker run --rm golang:1 go version

go version go1.21 linux/amd64

The remove flag deletes the container after exit, while the image itself stays cached for the next run.

Mount your module

Mount the current project into the container and set it as the working directory for live runs.

docker run --rm -v "$PWD":/app -w /app golang:1 go run .

This command shares the host folder with the container, so edits on the host are visible to go run at once.

It is ideal for quick checks on machines where the native toolchain is not installed.

Build inside the container

Use the same image to compile a static binary, then copy the result out through the mounted folder.

Keep multi stage builds for production images, and use plain mounted builds while learning and testing ideas.

Next: Go course

Article author: Arthur Isaev