Docker Engine reports Running but immediately Stopped, get "unexpected error occurred" Dialogue

[LoganWade]

Description

I am attempting to run docker for mac on an apple silicon M2 Max.

When I launch Docker Desktop, the message in the botton states docker is started but after a second or two, switches to stopping. And then the Error modal pops up.

Reproduce

Launch Docker

Expected behavior

When I launch docker desktop, docker should start and not immediately stop.

docker version

Client:
 Version:           27.4.0
 API version:       1.47
 Go version:        go1.22.10
 Git commit:        bde2b89
 Built:             Sat Dec  7 10:35:43 2024
 OS/Arch:           darwin/arm64
 Context:           desktop-linux
Cannot connect to the Docker daemon at unix:///Users/logan/.docker/run/docker.sock. Is the docker daemon running?

docker info

Client:
 Version:    27.4.0
 Context:    desktop-linux
 Debug Mode: false
 Plugins:
  ai: Ask Gordon - Docker Agent (Docker Inc.)
    Version:  v0.5.1
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-ai
  buildx: Docker Buildx (Docker Inc.)
    Version:  v0.19.2-desktop.1
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-buildx
  compose: Docker Compose (Docker Inc.)
    Version:  v2.31.0-desktop.2
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-compose
  debug: Get a shell into any image or container (Docker Inc.)
    Version:  0.0.37
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-debug
  desktop: Docker Desktop commands (Beta) (Docker Inc.)
    Version:  v0.1.0
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-desktop
  dev: Docker Dev Environments (Docker Inc.)
    Version:  v0.1.2
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-dev
  extension: Manages Docker extensions (Docker Inc.)
    Version:  v0.2.27
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-extension
  feedback: Provide feedback, right in your terminal! (Docker Inc.)
    Version:  v1.0.5
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-feedback
  init: Creates Docker-related starter files for your project (Docker Inc.)
    Version:  v1.4.0
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-init
  sbom: View the packaged-based Software Bill Of Materials (SBOM) for an image (Anchore Inc.)
    Version:  0.6.0
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-sbom
  scout: Docker Scout (Docker Inc.)
    Version:  v1.15.1
    Path:     /Users/logan/.docker/cli-plugins/docker-scout

Server:
ERROR: Cannot connect to the Docker daemon at unix:///Users/logan/.docker/run/docker.sock. Is the docker daemon running?
errors pretty printing info

Diagnostics ID

C465FECF-1D77-4633-B915-8CE200CB520E/20250129163005

Additional Info

Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: Mac14,6
Model Number: MNWA3LL/A
Chip: Apple M2 Max
Total Number of Cores: 12 (8 performance and 4 efficiency)
Memory: 32 GB
System Firmware Version: 11881.81.2
OS Loader Version: 11881.81.2
Hardware UUID: 30D425CC-679E-5A92-9148-D63AF102E4DD
Provisioning UDID: 00006021-001C605A2130C01E
Activation Lock Status: Disabled

[LoganWade]

As context, I've never been able to get docker to run on this mac. AFAIK docker has never successfully started on this hardware.

[djs55]

@LoganWade thanks for the report. This is really strange, the logs show a variety of very low-level kernel crashes like this one:

[    0.140904] [ffff000229bff040] pgd=1800000269bff003, p4d=1800000269bff003
[    0.140913] Kernel panic - not syncing: stack-protector: Kernel stack is corrupted in: vsnprintf+0x6e0/0x6e0
[    0.141033] SMP: stopping secondary CPUs
[    0.141520] Kernel Offset: disabled
[    0.141521] CPU features: 0x00,00000000,80111528,66067723
[    0.141522] Memory Limit: none
[    0.142014] ---[ end Kernel panic - not syncing: stack-protector: Kernel stack is corrupted in: vsnprintf+0x6e0/0x6e0 ]---

As an experiment could you modify your ~/Library/Group\ Containers/group.com.docker/settings-store.json and set these keys:

% cat ~/Library/Group\ Containers/group.com.docker/settings-store.json
{
   ...
  "UseLibkrun": true,
  "UseVirtualizationFramework": false,
  "UseVirtualizationFrameworkRosetta": false
}

I'm curious to see whether the alternative VMM implementation helps at all.

Edit: there might be some logs in Console.app if you start recording, repro the crash, and then maybe search for hypervisor or virtualization. Unfortunately the standard DD diagnostics doesn't capture that.

Edit: it's also worth running some hardware self-test code, see https://support.apple.com/en-gb/102550