To install Docker Engine for Windows containers (without Docker Desktop or WSL)

 Installing the Docker Engine on Windows without Docker Desktop and without WSL is not directly supported for running Linux containers. Docker Desktop utilizes WSL2 or Hyper-V to run a Linux VM where the Docker daemon (dockerd) for Linux containers operates.

However, if the goal is to run Windows containers, it is possible to install the Docker Engine directly on Windows Server or Windows 10/11 with the Containers feature enabled, without needing Docker Desktop or WSL.

To install Docker Engine for Windows containers (without Docker Desktop or WSL): [1]

Enable the Containers feature in Windows.

Open PowerShell as an administrator and run:

Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName Containers

You might need to restart your computer after this. Install the Docker Engine.

Using Chocolatey is a common and convenient way to install the Docker Engine and CLI on Windows. First, install Chocolatey if you haven't already:

Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force; [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol -bor 3072; iex ((New-Object System.Net.WebClient).DownloadString('https://community.chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))

Then, install Docker Engine and CLI:

choco install docker-engine choco install docker-cli

Start the Docker service.

Start-Service Docker

After these steps, you will have the Docker Engine installed and running on your Windows machine, capable of building and running Windows containers. This setup does not involve Docker Desktop or WSL.

AI responses may include mistakes.

[1] https://cuteprogramming.blog/2023/05/21/using-docker-and-kubernetes-without-docker-desktop-on-windows-11/