ICP Developer Environment

Docker images for ICP canister development, designed for use with GitHub Codespaces and local dev containers.

Images

icp-dev-env-motoko

For Motoko canister development.

Tool	Version
icp-cli	1.3.0
ic-wasm	0.11.1
mops	3.1.0
moc	pinned per-project via mops.toml (mops toolchain use moc <version>)
yq	4.53.3
Node.js	24.15.0
pnpm	11.4.0

docker pull ghcr.io/dfinity/icp-dev-env-motoko:latest   # always current
docker pull ghcr.io/dfinity/icp-dev-env-motoko:2.0.0    # pinned

icp-dev-env-rust

For Rust canister development.

Tool	Version
icp-cli	1.3.0
ic-wasm	0.11.1
candid-extractor	0.1.6
yq	4.53.3
Rust	1.98.0
wasm32-unknown-unknown target	—
Node.js	24.15.0
pnpm	11.4.0

docker pull ghcr.io/dfinity/icp-dev-env-rust:latest   # always current
docker pull ghcr.io/dfinity/icp-dev-env-rust:2.0.0    # pinned

icp-dev-env-all

Combined Motoko and Rust development environment. Use this when your project includes both Motoko and Rust canisters.

Tool	Version
icp-cli	1.3.0
ic-wasm	0.11.1
candid-extractor	0.1.6
mops	3.1.0
moc	pinned per-project via mops.toml (mops toolchain use moc <version>)
yq	4.53.3
Rust	1.98.0
wasm32-unknown-unknown target	—
Node.js	24.15.0
pnpm	11.4.0

docker pull ghcr.io/dfinity/icp-dev-env-all:latest   # always current
docker pull ghcr.io/dfinity/icp-dev-env-all:2.0.0    # pinned

Usage

Reference the image in your .devcontainer/devcontainer.json:

{
  "name": "My Example (Motoko)",
  "image": "ghcr.io/dfinity/icp-dev-env-motoko:latest",
  "workspaceFolder": "/workspaces/examples/motoko/my-example",
  "forwardPorts": [8000],
  "portsAttributes": {
    "8000": { "label": "ICP local network", "onAutoForward": "ignore" }
  },
  "postCreateCommand": "mops install",
  "postStartCommand": "icp network start -d",
  "customizations": {
    "vscode": {
      "extensions": ["dfinity-foundation.vscode-motoko", "stateful.runme"]
    }
  }
}

See dfinity/examples for full usage across all examples.

Releasing

Tool versions are pinned via ARG in each Dockerfile. To update a version:

1. Update the relevant ARG in the affected Dockerfile(s) (motoko/Dockerfile, rust/Dockerfile, all/Dockerfile)
2. Update the version tables and pinned pull examples above
3. Create a new GitHub Release with a semver tag (e.g. v2.0.0) — the CI pipeline builds and pushes all images to GHCR

Versioning

Image versions are independent of the versions of the tools they ship. The number describes the image's compatibility surface for the projects that use it:

Bump	When
MAJOR	A pinned tool changes in a way that can break existing projects (e.g. mops 2.x → 3.x)
MINOR	Backward-compatible tool upgrades, or a new tool added to an image
PATCH	Rebuilds, base-image security updates, tool patches with no user-visible effect

Up to v1.3.0 the image version mirrored the icp-cli version it shipped. That coupling ended at v2.0.0: a release may now bump the image's major without icp-cli moving at all, and vice versa. Consult the version tables above for the icp-cli version in a given image.

Images are built for linux/amd64 and linux/arm64.

Note: The release must be published as non-draft to trigger the CI pipeline.