Run Pixeltable in Docker Without Losing Your Catalog

Pixeltable utilizes its embedded PostgreSQL catalog, generated media, and caches under the directory specified by PIXELTABLE_HOME, defaulting to ~/.pixeltable, and requires this directory to be situated on a persistent volume when running in Docker. This guide emphasizes the importance of mounting the correct volume to prevent data loss when containers are removed or when the docker compose down -v command is used, highlighting that the library itself functions as the relational database management system with an embedded PostgreSQL instance. For persistent data storage, especially in production environments, it is crucial to set PIXELTABLE_HOME to a mounted volume to ensure data durability across container rebuilds, while ephemeral setups can use /tmp/pixeltable where data does not need to persist. The guide also advises against mounting the same volume on multiple containers to avoid corruption and provides a checklist for verifying correct setup and preventing data disappearance, particularly focusing on ensuring the volume is backed up like any database.

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