Docker Engine on Debian 12: Official repository, Compose and first checks

For a long-running server, use Docker's signed APT repository instead of piping a downloaded script into a root shell. Compare each step with the current official Debian guide.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y ca-certificates curl
sudo install -m 0755 -d /etc/apt/keyrings
sudo curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/debian/gpg -o /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc
sudo chmod a+r /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc

Create the documented docker.sources file for your release and architecture, update APT, then install the maintained packages:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io docker-buildx-plugin docker-compose-plugin

Verify with sudo docker run hello-world. Account for Docker's firewall behavior before exposing container ports.