How to Install Mattermost with Docker and Docker Compose

Mattermost is an open-source, self-hosted team communication platform that is often used as an alternative to Slack. This tutorial will guide you through setting up Mattermost using Docker and Docker Compose.

Prerequisites

• Docker installed on your system
• Docker Compose installed on your system

Create a Directory for Mattermost

Create a new directory for your Mattermost installation and navigate into it:

mkdir mattermost-docker
cd mattermost-docker

Create the docker-compose.yml File

Create a docker-compose.yml file in the directory with the following content:

version: '3.8'

services:
  db:
    image: postgres:13
    container_name: mattermost-db
    restart: unless-stopped
    volumes:
      - db-data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
    environment:
      POSTGRES_USER: mmuser
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: mmuser_password
      POSTGRES_DB: mattermost

  app:
    image: mattermost/mattermost-team-edition:latest
    container_name: mattermost-app
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "8065:8065"
    volumes:
      - mattermost-data:/mattermost/data
    environment:
      MM_CONFIG: /mattermost/config/config.json
    depends_on:
      - db

volumes:
  db-data:
  mattermost-data:

Configure Environment Variables

In the docker-compose.yml file, adjust the environment variables as needed:

• POSTGRES_USER: The username for the PostgreSQL database.
• POSTGRES_PASSWORD: The password for the PostgreSQL database.
• POSTGRES_DB: The name of the database for Mattermost.

Start the Docker Containers

Run the following command to start the Mattermost and PostgreSQL services:

docker-compose up -d

This command will pull the necessary Docker images and start the containers for Mattermost and PostgreSQL.

Access Mattermost

Once the containers are running, open your web browser and navigate to http://localhost:8065. This will take you to the Mattermost setup screen, where you can configure your team and create an admin account.

Stopping the Containers

To stop the running containers, use the following command:

docker-compose down

This command will stop and remove the containers, but your data will remain intact in the volumes.

(Optional) Customizing Mattermost

If you want to customize your Mattermost instance, such as changing the configuration or adding plugins, you can do so by modifying the config.json file located in the mattermost-data volume.

Conclusion

Using Docker and Docker Compose to install Mattermost makes the setup process straightforward and manageable. This setup is suitable for both development and production environments, allowing you to easily deploy a secure and scalable team communication platform.