Dev Container — Aspire

Overview

.NET Aspire orchestrates multi-service distributed applications and launches containers for dependencies (Redis, PostgreSQL, RabbitMQ, etc.) at runtime. Running Aspire in a dev container requires Docker-in-Docker because the Aspire app host starts containers via the Docker API.

Minimal Configuration

{
  "name": "Aspire",
  "image": "mcr.microsoft.com/devcontainers/dotnet:9.0",
  "features": {
    "ghcr.io/devcontainers/features/docker-in-docker:2": {
      "version": "latest",
      "dockerDashComposeVersion": "v2"
    }
  },
  "postCreateCommand": "dotnet workload install aspire && dotnet restore",
  "forwardPorts": [15888, 18888],
  "portsAttributes": {
    "15888": { "label": "Aspire Dashboard (HTTP)", "onAutoForward": "notify" },
    "18888": { "label": "Aspire Dashboard (HTTPS)", "onAutoForward": "notify" }
  },
  "customizations": {
    "vscode": {
      "extensions": [
        "ms-dotnettools.csdevkit",
        "ms-dotnettools.csharp",
        "ms-azuretools.vscode-docker"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Using the Dotnet Feature with Aspire Workload

If you need a base image with other features:

{
  "image": "mcr.microsoft.com/devcontainers/base:ubuntu",
  "features": {
    "ghcr.io/devcontainers/features/dotnet:2": {
      "version": "9.0",
      "workloads": "aspire"
    },
    "ghcr.io/devcontainers/features/docker-in-docker:2": {}
  }
}

Why Docker-in-Docker Is Required

Aspire's app host uses the Docker API to:

• Pull and run container images for resources (Redis, PostgreSQL, RabbitMQ, Kafka, etc.)
• Manage container lifecycle and networking
• Wire up service discovery between containers and .NET projects

Without DinD, docker commands inside the dev container will fail. Always include the docker-in-docker feature.

Port Forwarding

Aspire uses several ports. Forward them so the dashboard and services are accessible:

Port	Service
15888	Aspire Dashboard (HTTP)
18888	Aspire Dashboard (HTTPS)
5000–5010	Application HTTP endpoints (varies)
5432	PostgreSQL (if used)
6379	Redis (if used)
5672	RabbitMQ (if used)

Use a port range or "onAutoForward": "notify" for dynamic ports:

{
  "forwardPorts": [15888, 18888, "5000-5010"],
  "portsAttributes": {
    "5000-5010": { "onAutoForward": "notify" }
  }
}

Full Example with App Host

{
  "name": "Aspire Distributed App",
  "image": "mcr.microsoft.com/devcontainers/dotnet:9.0",
  "features": {
    "ghcr.io/devcontainers/features/docker-in-docker:2": {
      "version": "latest",
      "dockerDashComposeVersion": "v2"
    },
    "ghcr.io/devcontainers/features/node:1": {
      "version": "22"
    },
    "ghcr.io/devcontainers/features/github-cli:1": {}
  },
  "forwardPorts": [15888, 18888, 5000, 5001, 5173],
  "postCreateCommand": {
    "workloads": "dotnet workload install aspire",
    "restore": "dotnet restore",
    "frontend": "cd src/Web && npm ci"
  },
  "containerEnv": {
    "ASPNETCORE_ENVIRONMENT": "Development",
    "DOTNET_CLI_TELEMETRY_OPTOUT": "1"
  },
  "customizations": {
    "vscode": {
      "extensions": [
        "ms-dotnettools.csdevkit",
        "ms-dotnettools.csharp",
        "ms-azuretools.vscode-docker"
      ],
      "settings": {
        "dotnet.defaultSolution": "MyApp.sln"
      }
    }
  }
}

Running Aspire

After the container is created:

# Run the Aspire app host
dotnet run --project src/MyApp.AppHost

# The dashboard opens at http://localhost:15888
# Aspire automatically pulls and starts container dependencies

Best Practices

• Always include docker-in-docker:2 — Aspire cannot function without Docker access.
• Install the Aspire workload via the dotnet feature's workloads option (cached in prebuilds) rather than postCreateCommand when possible.
• Forward the dashboard ports (15888/18888) and set "onAutoForward": "notify" for service ports.
• Set ASPNETCORE_ENVIRONMENT=Development in containerEnv for development-time behavior.
• Add the Node feature if your Aspire solution includes a frontend project (React, Angular, etc.).
• Use Codespaces prebuilds to cache the Aspire workload install and dotnet restore — these can be slow.
• Pin the .NET SDK version to match your global.json for consistency across the team.