DockerTip #2 – How to Check if PowerShell is Running in a Docker Container?

As you may probably know, PowerShell can run in a Docker Container. Sometimes it can be useful to check if PowerShell is running inside a Docker Container instance before running a script for example. Then you can use this command:

PS C:\> Get-Service -Name cexecsvc

Status   Name               DisplayName
------   ----               -----------
Running  cexecsvc           Container Execution Agent

The option is to check if the service cexecsvc exist. If yes then it means that you are inside a Docker Container because this service only exists inside Docker containers.

You can easily create a PowerShell function:

Function Test-InsideDockerContainer {
  $DockerSvc = Get-Service -Name cexecsvc -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
  if($DockerSvc -eq $null ) {
    return $false
  }
  else {
    return $true
  }
}

On my Container Host:

 

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