Since docker for windows server 2016 doesn’t support building a base image FROM scratch, is it possible to use any other base images besides nanoserver, nanoserver-insider, windowsservercore and windowsservercore-insider?
What sort of base image are you looking to use a base?
Something like the default Windows 2016 image that includes a desktop/GUI… although I think I know the answer to that already based on what I know of linux containers… Containers on windows are strictly command line and headless by their very nature, aren’t they?
Correct, not much different from that point of view from Linux containers
It is possible to run a GUI in a linux container. I’ve seen a very useful demo of this during DockerCon 2018. See also: http://wiki.ros.org/docker/Tutorials/GUI.
So, I imagine it will be possible to do something likewise with a windows Docker container.
Thank you-- I think it’s probably this demo you’re referring to…https://youtu.be/RnWXOAplvjY?t=783
Also, the official answer as far as Windows goes (so far) is that no, nothing other than nanoserver and windowsservercore are supported, and they are both headless.
https://success.docker.com/article/does-docker-for-windows-server-2016-support-gui-based-applications
The windows GUI subsystem is not available from Docker containers, no.
The reason the linux GUIs work is because the X11 protocol is network based. You aren’t able to run a linux wayland GUI process in a container, for example. The architecture of wayland and the windows gui system does not include a remote network protocol, hence the disconnect from remote X11 guis.