How to Start a GridGain 9 Cluster in Docker

This guide walks you through the process of setting up and running a GridGain 9 cluster using Docker containers. Follow these steps to get a three-node cluster up and running quickly.

Prerequisites

Up-to-date Docker and Docker Compose installed on your system
Basic familiarity with command-line operations
The code editor of your choice (VS Code, IntelliJ IDEA, etc.)

Step 1: Create a Docker Compose Configuration

Create a file named docker-compose.yml in your project directory:

#  Copyright (C) GridGain Systems. All Rights Reserved.
#  _________        _____ __________________        _____
#  __  ____/___________(_)______  /__  ____/______ ____(_)_______
#  _  / __  __  ___/__  / _  __  / _  / __  _  __ `/__  / __  __ \
#  / /_/ /  _  /    _  /  / /_/ /  / /_/ /  / /_/ / _  /  _  / / /
#  \____/   /_/     /_/   \_,__/   \____/   \__,_/  /_/   /_/ /_/

name: gridgain9

x-gridgain-def: &gridgain-def
  image: gridgain/gridgain9:9.1.11
  environment:
    JVM_MAX_MEM: "4g"
    JVM_MIN_MEM: "4g"
    BOOTSTRAP_NODE_CONFIG: /opt/gridgain/etc/gridgain-config.conf
  configs:
    - source: node_config
      target: /opt/gridgain/etc/gridgain-config.conf
      mode: 0644

services:
  node1:
    <<: *gridgain-def
    command: --node-name node1
    ports:
      - "10300:10300"
      - "10800:10800"
  node2:
    <<: *gridgain-def
    command: --node-name node2
    ports:
      - "10301:10300"
      - "10801:10800"
  node3:
    <<: *gridgain-def
    command: --node-name node3
    ports:
      - "10302:10300"
      - "10802:10800"

configs:
  node_config:
    content: |
      ignite {
        network {
          port: 3344
          nodeFinder.netClusterNodes = ["node1:3344", "node2:3344", "node3:3344"]
        }
      }

This Docker Compose file will always launch the latest version of GridGain 9. Do you want to run a specific version of GridGain from Docker Hub?

Set the GRIDGAIN9_VERSION variable in your environment to a specific version tag.

export GRIDGAIN9_VERSION=9.1.11

Alternatively, you can set the version tag using a .env file located in the same directory as the docker-compose.yml file.

echo GRIDGAIN9_VERSION=9.1.11 > .env

Step 2: Start the Ignite Cluster

Open a terminal in the directory containing your docker-compose.yml file
Run the following command to start the cluster:
```
docker compose up -d
```

Verify that all containers are running:

docker compose ps

Here is how the command output may look:

NAME                IMAGE                       COMMAND                  SERVICE   CREATED          STATUS         PORTS
gridgain9-node1-1   gridgain/gridgain9:9.1.11   "docker-entrypoint.s…"   node1     13 seconds ago   Up 9 seconds   0.0.0.0:10300->10300/tcp, 3344/tcp, 0.0.0.0:10800->10800/tcp
gridgain9-node2-1   gridgain/gridgain9:9.1.11   "docker-entrypoint.s…"   node2     13 seconds ago   Up 9 seconds   3344/tcp, 0.0.0.0:10301->10300/tcp, 0.0.0.0:10801->10800/tcp
gridgain9-node3-1   gridgain/gridgain9:9.1.11   "docker-entrypoint.s…"   node3     13 seconds ago   Up 9 seconds   3344/tcp, 0.0.0.0:10302->10300/tcp, 0.0.0.0:10802->10800/tcp

Your nodes are now running, but the cluster is not initialized.

Step 3: Initialize the Cluster

Copy your license file into your project directory.
Start the Ignite CLI in Docker:
```
docker run --rm -it --network=host -v /opt/etc/license.json:/opt/gridgain/etc/license.json gridgain/gridgain9:9.1.11 cli
```
Update the docker command above to match the full path to the license file you received but leave the mounted name set to license.json.
Inside the CLI, connect to one of the nodes:
```
connect http://localhost:10300
```
Confirm the connection to the default node in the CLI tool.

Initialize the cluster with a name and license:

cluster init --name=GridGain --license=/opt/gridgain/etc/license.json

The output from this step should be similar to this:

  _________        _____ __________________        _____
  __  ____/___________(_)______  /__  ____/______ ____(_)_______
  _  / __  __  ___/__  / _  __  / _  / __  _  __ `/__  / __  __ \
  / /_/ /  _  /    _  /  / /_/ /  / /_/ /  / /_/ / _  /  _  / / /
  \____/   /_/     /_/   \_,__/   \____/   \__,_/  /_/   /_/ /_/
                      GridGain CLI version 9.1.11


You appear to have not connected to any node yet. Do you want to connect to the default node http://localhost:10300? [Y/n]
Connected to http://localhost:10300
The cluster is not initialized. Run cluster init command to initialize it.
[node1]> cluster init --name=GridGain --license=/opt/gridgain/etc/license.json
Cluster was initialized successfully
[node1]>

Step 4: Verify Your Cluster

Use the cluster status CLI command to verify your cluster is running correctly.
```
cluster status
```
The output should look similar to this:
```
[name: GridGain, nodes: 3, status: active, cmgNodes: [node1, node2, node3], msNodes: [node1, node2, node3]]
```
This means that all 3 nodes found each other and formed an active cluster.
Exit the CLI by typing exit or pressing Ctrl+D. This will also stop the CLI container.

Congratulations! You have a local GridGain 9 cluster running that you can use for development.

Understanding Port Configuration

The Docker Compose file exposes two types of ports for each node:

10300-10302: REST API ports for administrative operations;
10800-10802: Client connection ports for your applications.

Configuring Logs

Default Setup

By default, GridGain logs are written to the Docker container’s runtime output, meaning they are tied to the container’s lifecycle. These logs are not persistent as they are managed by the Docker and will be lost if the container is removed.

Use the docker logs command to access the logs:

docker logs <container-id>

Custom Setup

To make logs persistent and redirect them to a file on the host system, follow these steps:

Use the preconfigured file or create a new one and place it on the host system. Set a file path for the log output inside the container:
```
handlers=java.util.logging.FileHandler
java.util.logging.FileHandler.pattern=/gridgain/log/gridgain.log
java.util.logging.FileHandler.append=true
java.util.logging.FileHandler.limit=10000000
java.util.logging.FileHandler.count=5
```
Make sure that java.util.logging.FileHandler.pattern specifies the full file path for the log file inside the container. It should match the mounted volume path (/gridgain/log) defined in step 2.

Run the container with volume mounts to bind the log output directory and the config file to the host system:

docker run \
  -v /host/logs:/gridgain/log \
  -v /host/logging.properties:/gridgain/config/logging.properties \
  -e JAVA_OPTS="-Djava.util.logging.config.file=/gridgain/config/logging.properties" \
  gridgain/image

After the container starts, verify that the log file is created on the host:
```
/host/logs/gridgain.log
```

Stopping the Cluster

If you want to pause your cluster:

docker compose stop

[+] Stopping 3/3
 ✔ Container gridgain9-node1-1  Stopped
 ✔ Container gridgain9-node3-1  Stopped
 ✔ Container gridgain9-node2-1  Stopped

This will stop the containers and retain your data.

Removing the Cluster

When you are done working with the cluster, you can remove it using:

docker compose down

[+] Running 4/4
 ✔ Container gridgain9-node3-1  Removed
 ✔ Container gridgain9-node1-1  Removed
 ✔ Container gridgain9-node2-1  Removed
 ✔ Network gridgain9_default    Removed

This will stop and remove all the containers. Your data will be lost unless you have configured persistent storage.

© 2025 GridGain Systems, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Legal Notices. GridGain® is a registered trademark of GridGain Systems, Inc.
Apache, Apache Ignite, the Apache feather and the Apache Ignite logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of The Apache Software Foundation.

Last updated on Oct 29, 2025