Answer
docker ps -a lists all containers including running, stopped, and exited ones, useful for debugging.
Quick Answer
docker ps shows running containers. docker ps -a shows ALL containers — running, stopped, and exited. Stopped containers still exist on disk with their data until you explicitly remove them with docker rm. This is how you recover a crashed container's logs or inspect what went wrong.
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SugharaIQ Editorial Team
Verified Answer
This answer has been peer-reviewed by industry experts holding senior engineering roles to ensure technical accuracy and relevance for modern interview standards.
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Source: SugharaIQ