aesr/moodle repository overview

⁠Moodle Docker

Versioned, multi-architecture Moodle images for local development and self-hosted deployments. Images are published to GitHub Container Registry⁠ and Docker Hub⁠.

⁠Available versions

Use a full version tag for reproducible production deployments. Series tags are convenient but can move to newer point releases after rebuilds.

⁠Quick start

cp .env.example .env
# Replace every example password in .env before exposing this stack.
docker compose up -d

Open http://localhost:8080⁠. The first visit starts Moodle's web installer. The Compose stack includes MySQL 8.4 and a separate Moodle cron service; phpMyAdmin is optional:

docker compose --profile tools up -d

⁠Choose a Moodle version

Set MOODLE_VERSION in .env, then pull and start the stack:

MOODLE_VERSION=4.5

docker compose pull
docker compose up -d

Supported choices include 3.11, 4.1, 4.5, and 5.2. Changing the value on an existing installation is an upgrade, not a downgrade or a fresh selection; follow the upgrade guide⁠.

GitHub Container Registry is the default. To use Docker Hub instead:

MOODLE_IMAGE=aesr/moodle

⁠Configuration

The image supports the following environment variables. If any Moodle configuration variable is provided and config.php is absent, the entrypoint creates a minimal cross-version configuration file.

Every variable also accepts Docker secret syntax through a matching _FILE variable, such as MOODLE_DB_PASSWORD_FILE=/run/secrets/moodle_db_password. Do not set both forms for the same variable.

The entrypoint configures Moodle; it deliberately does not create databases. Provision the database separately or use the included Compose stack.

⁠Persistence and backups

Only database data and moodledata are persisted by the supplied Compose file:

• db_data stores MySQL files.
• moodle_data stores uploads, caches, and generated application data.

Moodle core remains inside the immutable image. Do not mount a volume over /var/www/html; doing so hides the versioned code and makes upgrades difficult to reproduce. Back up both the database and moodledata, and test restores regularly. See the upgrade guide⁠ for example backup and upgrade commands.

⁠Plugins, themes, and extra PHP extensions

For repeatable deployments, build a derived image and pin its base to a full version:

FROM ghcr.io/42ae/moodle:5.2.2

COPY --chown=www-data:www-data local/myplugin/ /var/www/html/local/myplugin/
COPY --chown=www-data:www-data theme/mytheme/ /var/www/html/theme/mytheme/

Targeted read-only mounts can be useful for local development, but a derived image is safer for production. Install additional PHP extensions in the derived image when a plugin requires them.

⁠Operations

Run a one-off Moodle CLI command with the web service:

docker compose exec --user www-data moodle php admin/cli/maintenance.php --enable
docker compose exec --user www-data moodle php admin/cli/upgrade.php --non-interactive
docker compose exec --user www-data moodle php admin/cli/maintenance.php --disable

The cron service runs admin/cli/cron.php continuously at MOODLE_CRON_INTERVAL. To run cron once:

docker compose exec --user www-data moodle php admin/cli/cron.php

⁠Build locally

Version metadata and verified upstream SHA-256 values live in versions.json⁠. For example:

docker build \
  --build-arg MOODLE_VERSION=5.2.2 \
  --build-arg PHP_VERSION=8.4 \
  --build-arg MOODLE_BRANCH=502 \
  --build-arg MOODLE_SHA256=72be209e7c0f5341b87de0bc993b2430087fda2769d8c3cc2f32736d1513e88c \
  --build-arg APACHE_DOCUMENT_ROOT=/var/www/html/public \
  -t moodle:local .

⁠Security and support

• Moodle 3.11 and 4.1 are unsupported upstream and are published only for compatibility and staged upgrades.
• Prefer the supported 4.5 LTS or current 5.2 series for new deployments.
• Terminate TLS at a trusted proxy, keep the database off public networks, use secrets instead of committed passwords, and restrict access to moodledata.
• Review Moodle security announcements⁠ and rebuild derived images regularly.

Issues and contributions are welcome in the 42ae/moodle-docker repository⁠.