Blog
Docker container updates, done safely.
Notes on keeping a homelab current without 3 a.m. surprises. Life after Watchtower, how freshdock decides when to act, and how to pick an update strategy you can sleep on.
- watchtowermigration
Watchtower is archived: here's what to do now
Watchtower was archived in December 2025 and no longer works with Docker Engine 29+. Here are your real options, and how to move to a maintained replacement.
Read - migrationwatchtower
Migrating from Watchtower to freshdock in 5 minutes
A practical, copy-paste migration from archived Watchtower to freshdock: translate labels, swap the service in docker-compose, and verify read-only first.
Read - strategyhomelab
Notify-only vs auto-update: choosing a safe Docker update strategy
Should you auto-update Docker containers or get notified? A practical framework for choosing per-container update modes, and when notify-only is the right call.
Read - how-it-worksscheduling
How freshdock decides when to update a container
A walk through freshdock's update logic: opt-in labels, per-container modes, digest checks, and the health gate that decides if an update sticks or rolls back.
Read - rustdesign
Why we built a Docker updater in Rust
Most Docker update tools are Go; freshdock is Rust. The reasoning: a tiny static binary, modern Docker via bollard, and a safety-first update state machine.
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