claude-memory/graph/fixes/fix-docker-healthcheck-use-node-e-when-container-lacks-wgetc-e9abb3.md

id	type	title	tags	importance	confidence	created	updated
e9abb352-ae92-4714-9b07-5ee6568953d5	fix	Fix: Docker healthcheck - use node -e when container lacks wget/curl	docker healthcheck troubleshooting homelab nodejs fix	0.6	0.8	2026-02-20T17:09:36.080059+00:00	2026-02-20T17:09:36.080059+00:00

Fix: Docker Healthcheck Binary Missing in Container Image

Problem

A Docker container (Termix, ghcr.io/lukegus/termix:latest) was perpetually unhealthy. The HEALTHCHECK directive used wget, but the image had neither wget nor curl installed.

Diagnosis

When a container is stuck in unhealthy state, verify the binary used in the HEALTHCHECK actually exists in the image.

Fix

Replace the wget-based healthcheck with one using the app runtime (Node.js in this case):

healthcheck:
  test: ["CMD", "node", "-e", "require('http').get('http://localhost:PORT', r => process.exit(r.statusCode === 200 ? 0 : 1)).on('error', () => process.exit(1))"]
  interval: 30s
  timeout: 10s
  retries: 3

Replace PORT with the actual port the app listens on.

Important

• docker compose restart does NOT pick up compose file changes — must run docker compose up -d to recreate the container.

General Pattern

For Node.js apps without curl/wget, use the Node.js HTTP module directly in the healthcheck. Adapts to any language runtime available in the image (python3 -c, etc.).