Setting up IronWord in Docker Containers
IronWord is fully supported in Docker containers for both Linux and Windows environments, making it ideal for deployment on Azure, AWS, or any . NET-ready host.
Why Use Docker?
Docker lets you package and run IronWord as a lightweight, self-contained container. This ensures consistent behavior across development, testing, and production—especially valuable when generating or manipulating Word documents programmatically.
IronWord supports .NET 5-9, .NET Standard (2.x, 3.x), and .NET Framework 4.6.2+, all of which work seamlessly in Docker on Linux and Windows.
Recommended Linux Docker Distributions
We recommend the following 64‑bit Linux distros for smooth IronWord operation:
- Ubuntu 22.04+ (Jammy)
- Ubuntu 20.04 (Focal)
- Debian 11+ (Bullseye)
- CentOS7+
Use Microsoft’s official Docker images with the .NET runtime and SDK to simplify setup and dependency management
IronWord NuGet Package
IronWord is easily added to any .NET project through its NuGet package. Simply run the following command in the NuGet Package Manager Console, and it will add the library automatically:
Install-Package IronWord
Ubuntu Dockerfile Examples
Ubuntu22 + .NET8
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/runtime:8.0-jammy AS base
WORKDIR /app
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/sdk:8.0-jammy AS build
WORKDIR /src
COPY ["Example/Example.csproj", "Example/"]
RUN dotnet restore "Example/Example.csproj"
COPY . .
WORKDIR "/src/Example"
RUN dotnet build "Example.csproj" -c Release -o /app/build
FROM build AS publish
RUN dotnet publish "Example.csproj" -c Release -o /app/publish
FROM base AS final
WORKDIR /app
COPY --from=publish /app/publish .
ENTRYPOINT ["dotnet", "Example.dll"]
Ubuntu20.04 + .NET6 (LTS)
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/runtime:6.0-focal AS base
WORKDIR /app
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/sdk:6.0-focal AS build
WORKDIR /src
COPY ["Example/Example.csproj", "Example/"]
RUN dotnet restore "Example/Example.csproj"
COPY . .
WORKDIR "/src/Example"
RUN dotnet build "Example.csproj" -c Release -o /app/build
FROM build AS publish
RUN dotnet publish "Example.csproj" -c Release -o /app/publish
FROM base AS final
WORKDIR /app
COPY --from=publish /app/publish .
ENTRYPOINT ["dotnet", "Example.dll"]
Debian Dockerfile Example
Debian11 + .NET7
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/aspnet:7.0-bullseye-slim AS base
WORKDIR /app
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/sdk:7.0-bullseye-slim AS build
WORKDIR /src
COPY ["Example/Example.csproj", "Example/"]
RUN dotnet restore "Example/Example.csproj"
COPY . .
WORKDIR "/src/Example"
RUN dotnet build "Example.csproj" -c Release -o /app/build
FROM build AS publish
RUN dotnet publish "Example.csproj" -c Release -o /app/publish
FROM base AS final
WORKDIR /app
COPY --from=publish /app/publish .
ENTRYPOINT ["dotnet", "Example.dll"]
CentOS 7
Use CentOS-based .NET runtimes like mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/runtime:6.0-centos7 for IronWord compatibility.
# Build stage
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/sdk:6.0 AS build
WORKDIR /app
COPY ./Example/Example.csproj ./Example/
RUN dotnet restore "./Example/Example.csproj"
COPY ./Example ./Example/
WORKDIR /app/Example
RUN dotnet publish -c Release -o /out
# Runtime stage - CentOS 7
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/runtime:6.0-centos7 AS runtime
WORKDIR /app
RUN yum install -y liberation-fonts && yum clean all
COPY --from=build /out ./
ENTRYPOINT ["dotnet", "Example.dll"]
Notes & Troubleshooting
- IronWord fully supports .NET5–9, .NET Standard (2.x, 3.x), and .NET Framework 4.6.2+.
- Install fonts if needed (e.g., fonts-liberation, ttf-mscorefonts-installer) on Linux containers for proper rendering.