BC Docker Manager
Manage Business Central Docker containers directly from VS Code. Browse artifacts from the Microsoft CDN, create containers, develop AL apps, and keep your environment healthy, with everything accessible from a single sidebar panel.
Administrator required. VS Code must be launched as Administrator. Some operations write to C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts, install certificates into the Windows Trusted Root store, and interact with Windows optional features. These require elevation.
Table of Contents
Why BC Docker Manager
BC Docker Manager brings the full Business Central Docker workflow into VS Code. Whether you are coming from BcContainerHelper and PowerShell-based automation, or starting fresh with BC development, the extension gives you a guided environment, integrated tooling, and real-time visibility into your containers, without leaving the editor.
Every action in the sidebar maps to standard docker commands. There is no custom daemon, no additional service, and no external module required on the host machine. The extension installs Docker Engine for you if it is not already set up.
What it brings to your workflow:
- A VS Code sidebar that shows your containers, images, and volumes in real time
- A CDN browser that lists every published BC artifact, sandbox and on-premises, with filtering and sorting
- Container creation, networking, licensing, AL compilation, database backup, and more, all from the same panel
- Persistent tags and notes on containers so you always know which container is which
- Container profiles that save and restore full configurations across machines
The extension is tested against Node.js 20 and 22 on every pull request. It has no runtime dependency on PowerShell modules outside the container itself.
Getting Started
Prerequisites
| Requirement |
Minimum |
Notes |
| Windows |
Windows 10 build 1909 or Windows Server 2019 |
Required for Windows Containers support |
| VS Code |
1.85.0 |
Download |
| Hyper-V |
Any |
The extension can enable this for you. Requires a restart. |
| Docker Engine |
Any current release |
The extension can install this for you. Docker Desktop is not required. |
Windows Home users: Hyper-V is not available on Windows Home editions. You need Windows 10 or 11 Pro, Enterprise, or Education. Windows Server editions are also supported.
Quick Start
- Install the extension from the VS Code Marketplace.
- Close VS Code, then reopen it as Administrator (right-click the VS Code shortcut and choose "Run as administrator").
- Click the BC Docker Manager icon in the activity bar on the left side of VS Code.
- Open the Environment panel. Click Setup Everything if any items show a problem.
- Restart your machine if prompted. Hyper-V activation requires a restart.
- Reopen VS Code as Administrator after the restart.
- Open the BC Artifacts panel and click Open BC Artifacts Explorer.
- Select a country, pick a BC version, and click Create Container.
Your First Container
The container creation wizard collects four inputs:
- Container name. A short lowercase name, for example
bc25us. The name becomes the container's DNS hostname and the CN of its SSL certificate. Uppercase letters are blocked. Underscores trigger a warning because they are not valid in DNS hostnames.
- Username. The BC administrator account. Default:
admin.
- Password. The BC administrator password. BC enforces password complexity requirements.
- Accept EULA. You must agree to the Microsoft Business Central EULA.
After you confirm, the extension:
- Runs
docker run with your chosen isolation mode, memory limit, and authentication settings
- Shows each initialization phase in the VS Code notification and sidebar: Downloading artifact, Installing prerequisites, Configuring SQL Server, Importing license, Installing Business Central, Ready
- Configures networking (hosts file and SSL certificate) automatically when BC becomes healthy
- Shows a completion notification with links to open the BC web client or generate
launch.json
If something goes wrong, the last 50 log lines appear in the output channel immediately. Common causes are listed as a hint: not enough memory, missing license, or incompatible artifact.
You can cancel at any time using the Cancel button in the progress notification. The extension stops the health-check loop and removes the partially-created container.
How It Works
BC Docker Manager is a VS Code extension written in TypeScript. It communicates with Docker by running the docker CLI directly, the same commands you would type in a terminal. There is no custom daemon, no additional service, and no PowerShell module required on the host machine.
Artifact browsing fetches metadata from the Microsoft BC CDN and caches it locally. The list appears immediately while fresh data loads in the background. When the background fetch finishes and the data has changed, the view updates automatically.
Container and image data is also served from the local cache. The sidebar renders instantly on repeat access, then refreshes silently. The cache clears immediately after any create, start, stop, restart, or remove operation.
File transfers (license upload, AL app publish, database backup, database restore) use a persistent connection to the container. The extension streams data continuously regardless of file size. A 500 MB database backup that previously took hours now completes in seconds.
Docker CLI calls that may fail transiently (network blips, Docker daemon startup) are retried automatically. The extension waits between attempts and spreads retries to avoid saturating the daemon when multiple commands run at the same time.
Logging goes through a shared output channel. Every message is timestamped. Error-level messages are forwarded to telemetry automatically. The BC Docker Manager output channel is the same channel throughout the extension lifetime.
Features
BC Artifacts Explorer
Browse every Business Central artifact published to the Microsoft CDN without leaving VS Code.
- Two artifact types: Switch between Sandbox and OnPrem using the tabs at the top.
- Filter by country: Select from the full list of country codes (
us, w1, de, dk, nl, fr, gb, and more).
- Filter by major version: Narrow down to a specific BC major release.
- Free-text search: Type any part of a version string or date to filter inline.
- Sortable columns: Click any column header to sort by version, country, or date.
- Infinite scroll: More rows load automatically as you scroll down.
- One-click actions: Copy the version string, copy the full CDN URL, or start container creation.
- CDN health check: Run Test BC Artifacts CDN Connection from the command palette to verify your network can reach the CDN.
Container Creation Wizard
Click Create Container on any artifact row to open the guided wizard. After you complete the four inputs, the extension runs everything automatically with real-time progress shown in the notification area and the sidebar.
Container Management
All your containers are listed in the Containers sidebar panel. Running containers show a green icon; stopped containers show a gray icon. Phase descriptions and spinner icons appear while a container is initializing.
Lifecycle Actions
| Action |
How to trigger |
| Start |
Click the play button on a stopped container, or right-click > Start Container |
| Stop |
Click the stop button on a running container, or right-click > Stop Container |
| Restart |
Right-click > Restart Container |
| Remove |
Click the trash button, or right-click > Remove Container |
| Export |
Right-click > Export Container: saves the container as a .tar file |
| Import |
Use the toolbar menu at the top of the Containers panel to import a .tar file |
Quick Access
Click the inline icons on any running container:
- Open Web Client: Opens
https://<containername>/BC/ in your browser. Networking (hosts file and SSL certificate) is configured automatically before the browser opens if it has not been set up yet.
- Open Terminal: Opens an interactive PowerShell session inside the running container.
- View Logs: Streams
docker logs --follow in a VS Code terminal, showing new log lines as they arrive.
- Copy IP: Copies the container's current IP address to your clipboard.
- Show Stats: Opens a live statistics view that updates every 5 seconds.
Right-click any container to see the full action menu, organized into groups:
| Group |
Actions |
| Container |
Start, Stop, Restart, Remove, Export |
| Connection |
Open Web Client, Open Terminal, View Logs, Copy IP, Setup Networking |
| BC Operations |
Generate launch.json, Add BC User, Add Test Users, Upload License, Install Test Toolkit, Edit NST Settings |
| BC Data |
Backup Database, Restore Database |
| Monitoring |
Show Container Stats, View Event Log |
| Annotations |
Set Container Tags, Set Container Note, Clear Container Note and Tags |
| Profiles |
Save Container Profile, Load Container Profile |
Container Annotations
Attach tags and notes to any container to keep track of what each one is for. Annotations are stored in VS Code global state and survive container restarts, recreations, and VS Code restarts. They do not depend on Docker labels or container metadata.
Right-click any container and choose Set Container Tags. Enter a comma-separated list of labels, for example: client1, sandbox, v25.
Tags appear inline in the container list as #client1 #sandbox #v25 so you can identify containers at a glance without hovering.
Notes
Right-click any container and choose Set Container Note. Enter any free-text note, for example: Client demo - do not remove or Restore from backup 2026-04-30.
The note appears at the bottom of the container tooltip when you hover over the container name in the sidebar.
Clearing Annotations
Right-click the container and choose Clear Container Note and Tags to remove all annotations in one step.
| Command |
What it does |
| Set Container Tags |
Attach comma-separated tags to a container |
| Set Container Note |
Attach a free-text note to a container |
| Clear Container Note and Tags |
Remove all annotations from a container |
Environment Setup
The Environment panel checks your system before you start and tells you exactly what is missing. You do not need to run any manual setup commands.
Health checks run every 15 seconds:
| Check |
What it verifies |
| Windows Features |
Hyper-V and Windows Containers are both enabled |
| Docker Engine |
The Docker service is installed and running |
One-click fixes:
| Button |
What it does |
| Setup Everything |
Runs all fixes in the correct order in a single step |
| Enable Hyper-V and Windows Containers |
Runs Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -FeatureName Hyper-V, Containers, which requires a restart |
| Install Docker Engine |
Downloads the standalone Docker Engine from download.docker.com and installs it as a Windows service. Docker Desktop is not required. |
| Start Docker Engine |
Starts the docker Windows service if it is installed but stopped |
After Enable Hyper-V and Windows Containers runs, restart your machine. Reopen VS Code as Administrator after the restart. The Environment panel will then show green.
AL Development
BC Docker Manager works alongside the AL Language extension to speed up AL development. You do not need alc.exe installed on your host machine; the extension uses the copy inside the container.
Generate launch.json
The launch.json file connects the AL Language extension to a running BC container. BC Docker Manager generates this file for you:
| Command |
What it does |
| Generate AL Launch Configuration |
Writes .vscode/launch.json to your workspace root |
| Preview launch.json in New Tab |
Opens the generated config in a read-only editor tab for review |
| Copy launch.json to Clipboard |
Copies the JSON to your clipboard for manual pasting |
Right-click a running container and choose Generate AL Launch Configuration. The file is written to the workspace that is currently open in VS Code. If no workspace is open, you will be asked to select a folder.
Compile AL App
Compile your AL project using alc.exe inside the container:
- Right-click a running container and choose Compile AL App in Container.
- Select your AL workspace folder.
- The extension copies your source files into the container, runs
alc.exe, and copies the compiled output.app back to your workspace root.
No AL compiler installation is required on your machine. The container already includes the correct version of alc.exe for the BC release it is running.
Publish AL App
Deploy a compiled .app file directly to a container:
- Right-click a running container and choose Publish AL App to Container.
- Select your
.app file.
- The extension runs Publish, Sync, and Install in sequence automatically.
Networking and SSL
BC containers use custom hostnames and self-signed SSL certificates. Browsers reject self-signed certificates by default, and the container hostname does not resolve until it is added to your hosts file. The extension handles both.
| Command |
What it does |
| Setup Networking |
Updates the hosts file and installs the SSL certificate in one step |
| Update Hosts File |
Adds or updates the container hostname-to-IP mapping in C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts |
| Install SSL Certificate |
Extracts the container's certificate and adds it to the Windows Trusted Root Certification Authorities store |
Automatic setup: When you click Open Web Client, the extension checks whether networking has already been configured for that container. If not, it runs Setup Networking before opening the browser.
After a container restart: Container IP addresses are assigned by Docker on each start. If you restart a container, its IP may change. Run Update Hosts File or Setup Networking to refresh the mapping.
IP detection: The extension probes the nat network (Windows containers) and the bridge network (Linux containers), validates the result as a well-formed IPv4 address, then falls back to a range-based probe if both networks return nothing. This prevents Docker daemon warning strings from being treated as IP addresses.
User Management
Create BC users inside a running container without opening the web client or writing PowerShell.
| Command |
What it does |
| Add BC User |
Create a single user with a custom name, password, and permission set |
| Add Test Users |
Create three standard test users with a single click |
Standard test users created by Add Test Users:
| Username |
Permission Set |
Password |
| ESSENTIAL |
SUPER |
P@ssw0rd |
| PREMIUM |
SUPER |
P@ssw0rd |
| TEAMMEMBER |
D365 TEAM MEMBER |
P@ssw0rd |
Database Operations
Backup and restore run through a single persistent streaming connection to the container. There is no temporary file staging on the host; data flows directly through the docker exec channel.
| Command |
What it does |
| Backup Database |
Creates a .bak file inside the container using SQL Server's BACKUP DATABASE command, then copies it to a path you choose on your machine |
| Restore Database |
Copies a .bak file from your machine into the container, stops the BC service tier, restores the database, and restarts the service tier |
SQL Server Express detection: Before each backup, the extension checks the SQL Server edition. If Express is detected, it omits the COMPRESSION option. SQL Server Express does not support backup compression; including it causes the command to fail with an error.
Hyper-V containers: All file transfers go through one long-lived docker exec process with a 48 KB sliding window. A 500 MB backup that previously took hours now completes in seconds.
Monitoring
| Command |
What it does |
| Show Container Stats |
Opens a live panel showing CPU, memory, network I/O, and block I/O. Updates every 5 seconds. |
| View Container Logs |
Opens a terminal and streams docker logs --follow in real time |
| View Event Log |
Retrieves recent Windows Event Log entries from the MicrosoftDynamicsNavServer and MSSQL sources inside the container |
| Edit NST Settings |
Opens the NavServerTier configuration file for the container's BC service tier. You can edit values and optionally restart the service to apply changes. |
Container exit diagnostics: If a container stops before BC finishes initializing, the last 50 log lines appear in the output channel immediately. Common causes are listed as a hint: not enough memory, missing license, or incompatible artifact. Networking setup is skipped in this case to avoid misleading error messages.
Container Profiles and Bulk Operations
Profiles
A profile saves a full container configuration (memory limit, isolation mode, authentication, DNS, country, and license path) to VS Code user settings under a name you choose. You can recall it later to reproduce the same container on a different machine or after a clean install.
| Command |
What it does |
| Save Container Profile |
Saves your current BC Docker Manager settings to a named profile |
| Load Container Profile |
Applies a saved profile, writing all values to your VS Code user settings immediately |
| Edit Container Profile |
Loads a saved profile into the step-by-step wizard with every field pre-filled |
| Delete Container Profile |
Removes a saved profile |
When you load a profile, your VS Code user settings are updated immediately. The next container you create picks up those values automatically. Country is only written if the profile includes one, to avoid clearing an existing country preference unintentionally.
When you edit a profile, each field is pre-filled with the saved value. Isolation and authentication modes appear as a pick list with the current profile value highlighted. You only change what you need.
Bulk Operations
| Command |
What it does |
| Start All Stopped Containers |
Starts every stopped container in parallel |
| Stop All Running Containers |
Stops every running container in parallel |
| Remove All Stopped Containers |
Removes every stopped container in parallel |
All bulk operations run in parallel. They do not wait for one container to finish before starting the next.
Images and Volumes
Local Images
The Local Images panel lists all Docker images on your machine. Use the Toggle BC Filter button in the toolbar to show only Business Central images (those from mcr.microsoft.com/businesscentral).
| Command |
What it does |
| Pre-Pull BC Image |
Downloads mcr.microsoft.com/businesscentral:ltsc2022 in the background. Run this while you have a good connection to avoid waiting during container creation. |
| Remove Image |
Removes a local Docker image |
Volumes
The Volumes panel lists all Docker volumes on your machine.
| Command |
What it does |
| Create Volume |
Creates a new Docker volume with a name you provide |
| Inspect Volume |
Shows the driver and mountpoint for a volume |
| Remove Volume |
Removes a Docker volume |
Configuration Reference
Open Settings > Extensions > BC Docker Manager to configure defaults. All settings affect new containers; they do not change containers that already exist.
| Setting |
Type |
Default |
Description |
bcDockerManager.defaultMemory |
string |
8G |
Memory limit for new containers. Accepts a number followed by a unit: 512M, 4G, 16G. BC requires at least 4 GB to start. 8 GB is recommended for development. |
bcDockerManager.defaultIsolation |
string |
hyperv |
Isolation mode for new containers. See Isolation Modes. |
bcDockerManager.defaultAuth |
string |
UserPassword |
Authentication type for new containers. See Authentication Modes. |
bcDockerManager.defaultCountry |
string |
us |
Country code used when the Artifacts Explorer opens. Common values: us, w1, de, dk, nl, fr, gb. |
bcDockerManager.defaultDns |
string |
8.8.8.8 |
DNS server for new containers. Use your corporate DNS if containers need to reach internal resources. |
bcDockerManager.defaultArtifactType |
string |
sandbox |
Default artifact type when the Artifacts Explorer opens: sandbox or onprem. |
bcDockerManager.showReleaseNotesOnUpdate |
boolean |
true |
When true, the release notes panel opens automatically the first time VS Code starts after a new version is installed. Set to false to disable. |
Isolation Modes
| Mode |
Description |
When to use |
hyperv |
Each container runs inside a dedicated Hyper-V virtual machine with its own isolated kernel. |
Use on Windows 10 or 11. Process isolation is not supported on client OS versions. Also use when security isolation between containers matters. |
process |
Container processes share the host OS kernel directly. No Hyper-V VM is created. |
Use on Windows Server only. Requires the host OS build to exactly match the container image OS build. Starts faster and uses less memory than Hyper-V. |
On Windows 10 or 11, always use hyperv. Process isolation requires Windows Server and an exact OS build match between the host and the container image.
Authentication Modes
| Mode |
Description |
When to use |
UserPassword |
BC manages usernames and passwords independently of Windows. Users authenticate with a BC-specific username and password. |
Use for most development scenarios. Simple to set up. Works on any machine without domain configuration. |
NavUserPassword |
NAV-style authentication using a BC username and a password hash stored in the NAV user table. |
Use when connecting to older NAV or BC versions that require NavUserPassword, or when following scripts that specify this mode. |
Windows |
BC accepts the Windows identity of the currently logged-in user. No BC-specific password is required. |
Use when the container is joined to a domain and you want single sign-on from Windows. Requires additional domain configuration. |
Commands Reference
All commands are available from the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P) under the BC Docker Manager prefix.
Full command reference (click to expand)
Environment and Setup
| Command |
Description |
| Refresh |
Refresh all containers, images, and volumes |
| Setup Everything |
One-click environment setup (Hyper-V and Docker) |
| Enable Hyper-V and Windows Containers |
Enable required Windows features. Requires a restart. |
| Install Docker Engine |
Download and install the standalone Docker Engine |
| Start Docker Engine |
Start the Docker Windows service |
| Refresh Environment Status |
Re-run all environment health checks immediately |
Artifacts
| Command |
Description |
| Open BC Artifacts Explorer |
Open the CDN browser |
| Test BC Artifacts CDN Connection |
Verify that the CDN is reachable from your machine |
Container Lifecycle
| Command |
Description |
| Start Container |
Start a stopped container |
| Stop Container |
Stop a running container |
| Restart Container |
Restart a running container |
| Remove Container |
Delete a container |
| Export Container |
Save a container as a .tar image file |
| Import Container |
Load a container from a .tar file |
| Start All Stopped Containers |
Start every stopped container in parallel |
| Stop All Running Containers |
Stop every running container in parallel |
| Remove All Stopped Containers |
Remove every stopped container in parallel |
| Toggle BC Filter |
Switch between showing all containers and images, or only BC ones |
Connection and Networking
| Command |
Description |
| Open Web Client |
Open the BC web client in your browser. Configures networking automatically if needed. |
| Open Container Terminal |
Open a PowerShell session inside the container |
| View Container Logs |
Stream container logs in a terminal |
| Copy Container IP |
Copy the container's current IP address |
| Setup Networking |
Update the hosts file and install the SSL certificate |
| Update Hosts File |
Map the container hostname to its current IP |
| Install SSL Certificate |
Add the container's certificate to Windows Trusted Root |
AL Development
| Command |
Description |
| Generate AL Launch Configuration |
Write .vscode/launch.json to the current workspace |
| Preview launch.json in New Tab |
Open the generated config for review |
| Copy launch.json to Clipboard |
Copy the generated config to your clipboard |
| Compile AL App in Container |
Compile your AL project using alc.exe inside the container |
| Publish AL App to Container |
Publish, sync, and install a .app file |
BC Operations
| Command |
Description |
| Upload License File |
Import a .flf or .bclicense file into the container |
| Add BC User |
Create a user with a custom name, password, and permission set |
| Add Test Users |
Create three standard test users |
| Backup Database |
Create a .bak backup via SQL Server |
| Restore Database |
Restore from a .bak file |
| Install Test Toolkit |
Install the BC test framework or full test toolkit |
| Edit NST Settings |
View and edit NavServerTier configuration |
| View Event Log |
Retrieve recent Windows Event Log entries from inside the container |
| Show Container Stats |
Open the live resource monitoring panel |
Container Profiles
| Command |
Description |
| Save Container Profile |
Save current configuration settings to a named profile |
| Load Container Profile |
Apply a saved profile to your VS Code settings |
| Edit Container Profile |
Update a saved profile with fields pre-filled |
| Delete Container Profile |
Remove a saved profile |
Container Annotations
| Command |
Description |
| Set Container Tags |
Attach comma-separated tags to a container |
| Set Container Note |
Attach a free-text note to a container |
| Clear Container Note and Tags |
Remove all annotations from a container |
General
| Command |
Description |
| Show Release Notes |
Open the release notes panel for the current version |
Volumes
| Command |
Description |
| Create Volume |
Create a new Docker volume |
| Inspect Volume |
View volume details |
| Remove Volume |
Delete a Docker volume |
Images
| Command |
Description |
| Pre-Pull BC Image |
Download the base BC image in the background |
| Remove Image |
Delete a local Docker image |
Troubleshooting
VS Code reports a command was not found
Symptom: A notification appears saying command 'bcDockerManager.X' not found.
Cause: The extension did not activate correctly, or it crashed during startup.
Steps:
- Open the Output panel (
View > Output) and select BC Docker Manager from the dropdown.
- Look for any error message near the top of the log.
- Reload VS Code (
Ctrl+Shift+P > Developer: Reload Window).
- If the error returns, confirm that VS Code is running as Administrator.
- If the problem persists, open Extensions in the sidebar, find BC Docker Manager, click Disable, then Enable.
The container list is empty after creating a container
Symptom: You started container creation but the new container does not appear in the sidebar.
Cause: The BC filter may be active. New containers do not carry BC labels until BC initialization finishes.
Steps:
- Click Toggle BC Filter in the Containers panel toolbar to show all containers.
- If the container appears with the filter off, wait for BC to finish initializing. The container will appear in the filtered view once BC is ready.
- If the container does not appear at all, check the output channel for error messages.
Container creation fails or exits before BC is ready
Symptom: The progress notification disappears or shows an error before BC reports as ready.
| Cause |
Resolution |
| Not enough memory |
Increase bcDockerManager.defaultMemory to 8G or higher. BC requires at least 4 GB. |
| Missing or invalid license |
Upload a valid .flf or .bclicense file using Upload License File after the container starts. |
| Incompatible artifact |
Try a different BC version. Some older artifacts may not be compatible with the current base image. |
| Docker daemon not running |
Open the Environment panel and click Start Docker Engine. |
| Not enough disk space |
BC images are 10-20 GB. Ensure you have at least 30 GB free before creating a container. |
The output channel always shows the last 50 log lines when a container exits unexpectedly. Check there first.
The BC web client shows a certificate error
Symptom: The browser shows "Your connection is not private" or a similar certificate warning.
Cause: The SSL certificate for the container has not been installed in Windows Trusted Root, or the hosts file entry is stale.
Steps:
- Right-click the container and choose Setup Networking. This updates the hosts file and installs the certificate in one step.
- Close and reopen the browser tab.
- If the error still appears after restarting the container, the IP may have changed. Run Setup Networking again.
Networking setup fails with "Cannot determine IP"
Symptom: Setup Networking reports that it cannot find the container's IP address.
Cause: The container may be stopped, or Docker has not yet assigned an IP.
Steps:
- Check that the container is running (green icon in the sidebar).
- Wait 10-15 seconds after the container starts, then try again.
- Run Copy Container IP to verify whether the extension can read the IP. An empty result confirms that Docker has not assigned an address yet.
File transfers are slow or produce errors
Symptom: Backup, restore, or license upload hangs, produces errors, or is unexpectedly slow.
Steps:
- Confirm you are running version 1.4.0 or later. The streaming file transfer was introduced in that version. Earlier versions spawned one process per chunk, which was very slow on large files.
- Open the Output panel and check for error messages.
- Ensure the container has enough disk space for the operation.
- During a restore, the BC service tier is stopped. Do not interact with the container while a restore is in progress.
Docker Desktop conflict
Symptom: Docker commands fail or produce unexpected results after installing Docker Desktop alongside the standalone Docker Engine.
Cause: Docker Desktop installs its own docker.exe and a named context that may override the standalone engine.
Steps:
- The extension shows a warning if Docker Desktop is detected alongside the standalone engine.
- Use either Docker Desktop or the standalone engine, not both at the same time.
- To use the standalone engine, either uninstall Docker Desktop or switch contexts:
docker context use default.
Container IP changes after restart
Cause: Docker assigns new IP addresses on each container start. The hosts file entry from the previous start becomes stale.
Resolution: After restarting a container, right-click it and choose Setup Networking to update the hosts file and reinstall the certificate for the new IP.
Security and Permissions
BC Docker Manager requires VS Code to run as Administrator for the following operations:
| Operation |
Why elevation is needed |
| Update Hosts File |
C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts is owned by SYSTEM. Writing to it requires Administrator access. |
| Install SSL Certificate |
Adding a certificate to the Windows Trusted Root store requires Administrator access to the system certificate store. |
| Enable Hyper-V and Windows Containers |
Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature modifies Windows components and requires Administrator access. |
| Install Docker Engine |
Writing to C:\Program Files and registering a Windows service requires Administrator access. |
| Start Docker Engine |
Starting a Windows service requires Administrator access. |
Operations that do not require elevation:
- Browsing BC artifacts from the CDN
- Reading container, image, and volume lists
- Viewing logs, stats, and event log entries
- Generating
launch.json
- Managing profiles and annotations
- AL app compilation and publishing (runs inside the container)
All Docker CLI calls are made to the local Docker Engine over the named pipe \\.\pipe\docker_engine. No data is sent to any external service except the Microsoft BC CDN (for artifact metadata) and the VS Code telemetry endpoint.
What's New
See CHANGELOG.md for the complete release history.
1.5.2: Docker Engine installation now uses parallel connections to download the installer, which significantly cuts download time on most networks. The extension falls back to a single connection automatically if the server does not support it.
1.5.1: Renamed the "What's New" command to "Show Release Notes" in the Command Palette. Reliability improvements across the extension: commands recover from transient errors automatically, the output channel stays consistent throughout the extension lifetime, and stale data no longer appears briefly in the sidebar after an update.
1.5.0: Container tags and notes. Container exit diagnostics that show the last 50 log lines when a container stops unexpectedly. Uppercase letters blocked at container naming time to prevent DNS and SSL failures. Release notes panel with automatic opening after each update.
1.4.0: Edit Container Profile command with pre-filled fields. Fast streaming file transfers (hours to seconds for large files). SQL Server Express edition detection for backup. ANSI escape code stripping from error messages.
1.3.0: Phase-aware progress during container initialization. Immediate sidebar placeholder before Docker reports the container exists. Cancellation support with automatic container cleanup. Completion notification with quick links to the web client and launch.json.
Guides and Resources
The following guides provide hands-on walkthroughs and deeper context for working with BC Docker Manager.
Getting Started with BC Containers: A Practical Guide
BC Docker Manager: Easy Containers covers the full journey from running PowerShell scripts manually to having a working container environment inside VS Code. It walks through artifact selection, container creation, and the reasoning behind each design decision in the extension. A good starting point if you want to understand not just what the extension does, but why it works the way it does.
Contributing
Contributions are welcome. The repository is at github.com/jeffreybulanadi/bc-docker-manager.
Building from Source
Requirements: Node.js 20 or later, npm.
git clone https://github.com/jeffreybulanadi/bc-docker-manager.git
cd bc-docker-manager
npm install
Type check:
npx tsc --noEmit
Run unit tests:
npx jest --no-coverage
Run unit tests with coverage:
npx jest --coverage
Build the extension bundle:
node esbuild.js
The extension compiles to out/extension.js using esbuild. Tests are colocated with their source files; for example, src/docker/dockerService.test.ts tests src/docker/dockerService.ts.
Project Structure
src/
docker/ Docker CLI wrapper and BC container operations
registry/ BC Artifacts CDN client
services/ Shared services: SWR cache, logger, telemetry, configuration, annotations
tree/ VS Code TreeView providers for Containers, Images, Volumes, and Environment
util/ Utility functions
webview/ Webview panels for the Artifacts Explorer and Release Notes
extension.ts Extension entry point and command registration
CI
All pull requests run the CI workflow, which type-checks the project and runs all unit tests on Node.js 20 and 22. The CI badge at the top of this file reflects the current status of the main branch.
Branch protection requires both Build and test (20.x) and Build and test (22.x) to pass before a pull request can be merged.
Reporting Issues
Open an issue at github.com/jeffreybulanadi/bc-docker-manager/issues. Include:
- Your Windows version and build number
- Your Docker Engine version (
docker version in a terminal)
- The relevant output from the BC Docker Manager output channel in VS Code
- Steps to reproduce the problem
Telemetry
This extension collects anonymous error and usage telemetry using the official @vscode/extension-telemetry package. No personal data is collected. Error-level log messages are forwarded to telemetry automatically through the structured logger.
Telemetry respects your VS Code setting:
Settings > Telemetry: Telemetry Level > off
Setting telemetry to off in VS Code disables all telemetry collection for this extension.
License
MIT
Built for the Business Central developer community
