docker-library / docker-library/docker

Drop modprobe hack

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Dominant language
Shell
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Merged PRs (30d)
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Description

In ancient times, we merged https://github.com/docker-library/docker/pull/90 to add a fake modprobe that does ip link show to successfully load kernel modules on the host from inside a container.

Since https://github.com/moby/moby/pull/49038 (v28+), this is implemented in dockerd itself, and was even backported in v27.4.1, which covers all supported versions and we could now (finally!) remove that code completely.

One wrinkle we have to consider/account for is all the complicated iptables-legacy logic we now have (where we use modprobe directly). Maybe that means we don't get to remove this code yet until we remove that code too?

(thanks to @thaJeztah for reminding me in https://github.com/docker/docker-ce-packaging/pull/1118#issuecomment-2611228464 and inspiring this issue ❤️)

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First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Inspect the fake modprobe implementation and the iptables-legacy logic that invokes modprobe. First determine whether the legacy iptables path still requires the workaround under the supported Docker versions; done means removing the obsolete code without breaking that path.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
docker, shell
Domain
devops
Issue type
Refactor
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
35/100

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