Opa Jan's Homelab

update-service

2 min read

How to Update a Service

Update Docker images and containers for a service.

When to use

  • Regular maintenance
  • Security updates available
  • New features needed

Prerequisites

  • Know the service container CT ID
  • Service is currently running

Steps

1. Check current status

# Check container is running
pct status <CT_ID>
 
# Check running Docker containers
pct exec <CT_ID> -- docker ps

2. Pull new images

pct exec <CT_ID> -- bash -c 'cd /opt/homelab-docker/<service> && docker compose pull'

3. Restart with new images

pct exec <CT_ID> -- bash -c 'cd /opt/homelab-docker/<service> && docker compose up -d'

This will:

  • Pull new images
  • Stop containers with old images
  • Start containers with new images
  • Preserve data volumes

4. Verify service is working

# Check container status
pct exec <CT_ID> -- docker ps
 
# Check logs
pct exec <CT_ID> -- bash -c 'cd /opt/homelab-docker/<service> && docker compose logs -f'
 
# Test service
curl http://<service-ip>:<port>

Updating Multiple Services

# List services to update
for ct in 120 121 122 123 124 125; do
    echo "Updating CT $ct..."
    pct exec $ct -- bash -c 'cd /opt/homelab-docker && git pull'
done
 
# Then update each service individually

Updating the LXC Template

Periodically update CT 902 (lxc-base):

# Start template
pct start 902
 
# Update system
pct exec 902 -- pacman -Syu
 
# Update Docker
pct exec 902 -- pacman -S docker docker-compose
 
# Stop template
pct stop 902

New services cloned after this will have updated packages. Existing containers are not affected.

Rollback

If an update breaks something:

Option 1: Restart with previous image

# Find previous image
pct exec <CT_ID> -- docker images | grep <service>
 
# Edit docker-compose.yml to use previous image tag
pct exec <CT_ID> -- nano /opt/homelab-docker/<service>/docker-compose.yml
 
# Restart
pct exec <CT_ID> -- bash -c 'cd /opt/homelab-docker/<service> && docker compose up -d'

Option 2: Restore from backup

See Backup & Restore

Verification

  • Service container is running
  • Service responds to requests
  • No errors in logs
  • Data is intact

Troubleshooting

Container won’t start after update:

# Check logs
pct exec <CT_ID> -- bash -c 'cd /opt/homelab-docker/<service> && docker compose logs'
 
# Rollback to previous image version

Image pull fails:

  • Check network connectivity
  • Check image name is correct
  • Try docker pull <image> manually

Backlinks