Docker Test Environment: Container setup times out during package installation

[lpolish]

Docker Test Environment: Container setup times out during package installation

Labels: bug, docker, testing, infrastructure

Summary

The Docker test environment in dockertests/x11enabled/ fails to complete initialization due to interactive package installation prompts, preventing the test script from running successfully.

Environment

• OS: Linux
• Docker: Docker Compose v3.8
• Base Image: Ubuntu 24.04
• Affected Files:
  • dockertests/x11enabled/docker-compose.yml
  • dockertests/x11enabled/test-offlinedoctor.sh

Problem Description

When running the Docker test environment, the container gets stuck during package installation because the tzdata package prompts for timezone configuration interactively. This prevents the container setup from completing, so the git clone and project setup never occur.

Error Message:

bash: line 17: cd: /opt/offlinedoctor: No such file or directory
ERROR: Could not find project directory at /opt/offlinedoctor

Root Cause

The Docker Compose configuration was missing proper environment variables for non-interactive package installation (DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive), causing the setup script to hang on user input prompts.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Navigate to dockertests/x11enabled/
2. Run ./test-offlinedoctor.sh clone
3. Wait for container to start
4. Observe that the test fails with "No such file or directory" error
5. Run ./test-offlinedoctor.sh debug to see container is stuck in package installation

Expected Behavior

• Container should install packages non-interactively
• Git clone should complete successfully
• Test script should find the project directory at /opt/offlinedoctor
• Tests should run without manual intervention

Actual Behavior

• Container hangs during tzdata package installation waiting for timezone input
• Setup script never reaches the git clone phase
• Project directory is never created
• Tests fail immediately

Solution Applied

Added the following environment variables to docker-compose.yml:

environment:
  - DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive
  - TZ=UTC

And modified the setup command to set timezone non-interactively:

export DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive &&
export TZ=UTC &&
ln -snf /usr/share/zoneinfo/$TZ /etc/localtime &&
echo $TZ > /etc/timezone &&

Additional Notes

This is a common issue with Ubuntu containers where certain packages require interactive configuration. The fix ensures all package installations run in non-interactive mode suitable for automated testing environments.