domoticz and docker

[edwin1234]

i have just installed a new pi with complete setup of domoticz with zigbee2mqtt plugwise etc etc
its working perfectly.

but no i am reading about docker, and my question is : is it possible to have a domoticz docker with all the plugins and usb ports next to my normal domoticz? and what are the benefits?
for testing it out.

thanks

[JackD]

A USB port can only be used with 1 Domoticz(generally speaking).
I have tried this with a Z-wave USB dongel and a USB 433Mhz transceiver, and it can be used with the Docker Domoticz or the "native" Docker. But not with both Domoticz at the same time.

Running a Docker Domoticz and a native Domoticz at the same time on the same machine will function properly. But using the same connected hardware and interfaces can/will be a problem.

[edwin1234]

Thanks for your answer

What are the benefits of domoticz docker against normal Domoticz?

[JackD]

I run Docker Domoticz on a Synology NAS, and like the easy update and the possibility to also easily make a backup of the whole container. And just rollback to your previous version of Domoticz if the new beta Domoticz has a bug or something else nasty..
But this is manly because of the very easy Docker User Interface on the Synology NAS.

I don't know if running Docker Domoticz on a pure Linux-like system also is that user friendly.

If you have a very complex Domoticz setup it will be a bit more difficult to setup a Docker one, than just running natively on Linux.

I like the Docker Domoticz more than a native Domoticz setup on my Synology, but this is just my personal opinion.

[heggink]

The key benefit from running anything in a docker container is that the container 'contains' (pun intended) everything you need to run. The container is effectively its own system with NO dependencies on the host system. So if your pi requires python version x but a plugin in domoticz requires version y AND version y is included by default in the container then that plugin will have no conflicts with the host system because it doesn't even see the host system.

There is little or no overhead so performance should be fine
Everything you need to run is included in the image so every time you update, just install the new image and it will run.

BUT

1) You still need storage to store files such as the database. They can be stored in the container but better on local storage that you 'give' to the container so that you can easily access it for backups. Also, when you update domoticz (by installing a new version of teh container), domoticz may well update the database in a way that is not backwards compatible so you will still need to backup before any upgrade (but that should be a no brainer).

2) whilst the container has everything it needs to run domoticz, it will not have everything YOU need. If you have pythong plugins that have python dependencies then these will not be installed by default and you need to install them by hand. And reinstall them every time you update the container.

That, for me, means that I run a lot of things in containers (zigbee2mqtt, zwavejs2mqtt, dashticz, portainer) but domoticz isn't one since I have too many plugins with dependencies and other scripts being called from dzvents so it would be too much hassle for me to run domoticz in a container.

If your complexity is low then it may be well worth it.

[edwin1234]

Thanks for the answers,
Its clear to me now.