Docker Desktop on Debian 13

A step-by-step guide to installing Docker Desktop on Debian 13 with proper credential management.

Prerequisites

Debian 13 (or 12) system
Internet connection
Terminal access

Step 1: Add Docker’s Official Repository

First, install required dependencies:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install ca-certificates curl

Create the keyrings directory and add Docker’s GPG key:

sudo install -m 0755 -d /etc/apt/keyrings
sudo curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/debian/gpg -o /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc
sudo chmod a+r /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc

Add Docker’s official repository:

echo \
  "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc] https://download.docker.com/linux/debian \
  $(. /etc/os-release && echo "$VERSION_CODENAME") stable" | \
  sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list > /dev/null

Step 2: Remove Conflicting Packages

If you have Docker installed from Debian’s repositories, there may be conflicting packages. Remove them:

sudo apt remove docker-buildx docker-compose

Step 3: Install Docker CE CLI

Update your package list and install the official Docker CLI:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install docker-ce-cli

Clean up any unused dependencies:

sudo apt autoremove

Step 4: Download and Install Docker Desktop

Download the Docker Desktop DEB package from the Docker Desktop release page or using wget:

cd ~/Downloads
wget https://desktop.docker.com/linux/main/amd64/docker-desktop-amd64.deb

Install Docker Desktop:

sudo apt install ./docker-desktop-amd64.deb

Step 5: Set Up GPG Key for Credential Management

Generate a GPG key (required for secure credential storage):

gpg --generate-key

Follow the prompts to enter your details. The output will show your GPG key ID, which looks like:

E64B253FC0A9C047E6FAD55E8B1D86868A885711

Save this key ID — you’ll need it in the next step.

Step 6: Configure Docker Credentials

Edit your Docker config file:

nano ~/.docker/config.json

Change "credsStore": "desktop" to "credsStore": "pass":

{
    "auths": {},
    "credsStore": "pass",
    "currentContext": "desktop-linux"
}

Save the file (Ctrl+O, Enter, Ctrl+X in nano).

Step 7: Initialize Pass Password Manager

Initialize pass with your GPG key (replace with your actual key ID):

pass init E64B253FC0A9C047E6FAD55E8B1D86868A885711

Verify that docker-credential-pass is installed:

which docker-credential-pass

It should show /usr/bin/docker-credential-pass.

Step 8: Start Docker Desktop

As your regular user (not root), start Docker Desktop:

systemctl --user start docker-desktop

Check that it’s running:

systemctl --user status docker-desktop

Step 9: Log In to Docker

Open Docker Desktop from your applications menu (under “Development” in KDE). Click the “G” icon to sign in with Google and complete the authentication process.

Your credentials will now be securely stored using pass and your GPG key.

Step 10: Verify Installation

Test that Docker is working:

docker version
docker run hello-world

Optional: Enable Docker Desktop on Startup

To automatically start Docker Desktop when you log in:

systemctl --user enable docker-desktop

Troubleshooting

Docker Desktop won’t start:

Make sure you’re running commands as your regular user, not root
Check status with: systemctl --user status docker-desktop

Login fails:

Verify pass is initialized: pass
Check GPG key: gpg --list-keys
Restart Docker Desktop: systemctl --user restart docker-desktop

Permission denied errors:

Add your user to the docker group: sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
Log out and log back in for changes to take effect