roustabout - Streamlined Docker Operations & Container Wrangling

Working with Docker daily usually involves typing the same long, verbose commands over and over: docker ps -ql to grab the container you just spawned, docker exec -it <id> /bin/bash (and hoping /bin/bash exists rather than /bin/sh), docker logs -f <id>, and running manual pruning commands to clear out gigabytes of orphaned volumes and dangling images.

roustabout is a focused Docker workflow toolkit that eliminates this repetitive friction. It provides a unified CLI dispatcher alongside intuitive shell shortcuts for interacting with recent containers, launching interactive shells, tailing logs, and pruning disk space safely.

What is roustabout?

Named after the oil rig and circus hands who handle the heavy lifting, roustabout simplifies everyday container tasks into snappy, memorable commands:

Operate on the Last Container: Automatically target the most recently created or spawned container without having to copy-paste container hashes from docker ps.
Intelligent Shell Entry: Enters containers using /bin/bash, automatically falling back to /bin/sh if Bash is not installed in the image (such as in Alpine-based containers).
Disk Space Cleanup: Clean dead containers, dangling build caches, orphaned volumes, and stale images with simple, targeted flags.
Unified CLI + Classic Aliases: Run everything through the modern roustabout <command> dispatcher or use the classic standalone commands (LastDocker, EnterDocker, CleanDocker, KillDocker, KRMdocker).

Check out the interactive documentation at joshuacox.github.io/roustabout or visit the GitHub repository.

Key Commands & Capabilities

1. Instant Operations on Last Container

When testing or building Dockerfiles, you almost always want to inspect the container that just started:

roustabout last (or LastDocker): Drops you directly into an interactive shell inside the last container.
roustabout logs (or LogDockerLast): Streams the logs of the last spawned container (docker logs -f).

2. Container Execution & Teardown

roustabout enter [id] (or EnterDocker <id>): Open a shell in any running container with automatic shell detection (/bin/bash -> /bin/sh).
roustabout kill [--all | id...] (or KillDocker): Kill one or more containers, or wipe all running containers with --all.
roustabout krm <id...> (or KRMdocker): Kill and remove containers in a single operation.

3. Deep Resource Pruning

Docker hosts accumulate disk bloat rapidly. roustabout simplifies selective pruning:

roustabout clean (or CleanDocker): Prunes stopped containers and dangling images.
roustabout clean --volumes (or CleanOrphanedVolumes): Removes dangling volumes that are no longer referenced.
roustabout clean --stale (or StaleDocker): Prunes unused images older than 24 hours while preserving active caches.

4. OpenVPN Credential Generation

Integrated with kylemanna/docker-openvpn, you can instantly generate client certificates:

roustabout openvpn-creds CLIENTNAME
# Or: createOpenVPNdockercreds CLIENTNAME

Installation

One-Line Quick Install

Install directly to your machine:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/joshuacox/roustabout/master/bootstraproustabout.sh | bash

From Source (Make)

git clone https://github.com/joshuacox/roustabout.git
cd roustabout
sudo make install

(By default installs to /usr/local/bin. Override with make install PREFIX=$HOME/.local for non-root installs).

Automated Distribution Installers

The repository also includes end-to-end bootstrap scripts for setting up entire Docker or Kubernetes environments:

Ubuntu Docker Install: curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/joshuacox/roustabout/master/UbuntuDockerInstall | bash
Red Hat Docker Install: curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/joshuacox/roustabout/master/RedhatDockerInstall | bash
Kubeadm Install: curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/joshuacox/roustabout/master/KubadmNstall | bash

Everyday Workflow Examples

Debug a Failing Container

Run a container in the background, then immediately drop inside or watch output:

docker run -d my-node-app:latest
roustabout logs
roustabout last

Reclaim Disk Space After Builds

roustabout clean --volumes

Kill & Remove a Stalled Container

roustabout krm web-worker

Links & Documentation

Documentation Site: https://joshuacox.github.io/roustabout/
GitHub Repository: https://github.com/joshuacox/roustabout
Issue Tracker: https://github.com/joshuacox/roustabout/issues

Discussion / Comments