Portainer Business Edition

intermediate

Advanced Docker and Kubernetes management with RBAC and GitOps.

Overview

Portainer Business Edition transforms container management with enterprise-grade features for Docker, Kubernetes, and container orchestration platforms. Originally developed as an open-source Docker management tool, Portainer has evolved into a comprehensive container platform that bridges the gap between simple container operations and complex enterprise orchestration needs. The Business Edition adds critical enterprise features like role-based access control (RBAC), GitOps workflows, advanced registry management, and multi-environment governance that make it suitable for production deployments at scale. This stack combines Portainer Business Edition with the Portainer Agent to create a distributed management architecture where the main Portainer instance provides the web interface and management capabilities while agents deployed across multiple Docker hosts enable centralized control of distributed container infrastructure. The agent component allows Portainer to manage remote Docker environments securely, collecting real-time metrics and enabling operations across multiple hosts from a single management interface. Organizations choose this combination when they need enterprise-grade container management that goes beyond basic Docker operations to include team collaboration, compliance controls, and automated deployment workflows. The Business Edition's advanced features like custom templates, edge computing management, and integrated authentication make it particularly valuable for teams that have outgrown simple container management tools but need something more accessible than complex orchestration platforms like OpenShift or Rancher.

Key Features

Enterprise RBAC with team-based access controls and custom role definitions
GitOps integration for automated stack deployments from Git repositories
Advanced registry management with vulnerability scanning and image lifecycle policies
Multi-environment management across Docker, Kubernetes, and Azure Container Instances
Edge computing support with offline-capable agents for remote deployments
Custom application templates marketplace with organizational template sharing
Authentication integration with LDAP, OAuth, and SAML providers
Audit logging and compliance reporting for container operations

Common Use Cases

1Enterprise teams managing multi-tenant container infrastructure with strict access controls
2DevOps teams implementing GitOps workflows for automated application deployments
3Organizations running hybrid Docker and Kubernetes environments from single interface
4Remote edge computing deployments requiring centralized management of distributed agents
5Development teams needing self-service container deployment with governance guardrails
6MSPs managing container infrastructure across multiple client environments
7Regulated industries requiring audit trails and compliance controls for container operations

Prerequisites

Docker Engine 17.06 or later with API version 1.30+
Minimum 512MB RAM for Portainer BE (1GB+ recommended for production)
Available ports 8000, 9001, and 9443 on the host system
Valid Portainer Business Edition license key for enterprise features
Network connectivity between Portainer server and agent on port 9001
Understanding of Docker concepts and basic container orchestration principles

For development & testing. Review security settings, change default credentials, and test thoroughly before production use. See Terms

docker-compose.yml

1services: 
2  portainer: 
3    image: portainer/portainer-ee:latest
4    container_name: portainer
5    command: -H unix:///var/run/docker.sock
6    environment: 
7      - VIRTUAL_HOST=${PORTAINER_HOST}
8    volumes: 
9      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
10      - portainer-data:/data
11    ports: 
12      - "8000:8000"
13      - "9443:9443"
14    networks: 
15      - portainer-network
16    restart: unless-stopped
17
18  agent: 
19    image: portainer/agent:latest
20    container_name: portainer-agent
21    volumes: 
22      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
23      - /var/lib/docker/volumes:/var/lib/docker/volumes
24    ports: 
25      - "9001:9001"
26    networks: 
27      - portainer-network
28    restart: unless-stopped
29
30volumes: 
31  portainer-data: 
32
33networks: 
34  portainer-network: 
35    driver: bridge

.env Template

.env

1# Portainer Business
2PORTAINER_HOST=portainer.localhost
3
4# Business Edition requires license
5# Get trial at: https://www.portainer.io/

Usage Notes

1Web UI at https://localhost:9443
2Set admin password on first visit
3Business edition requires license
4RBAC, GitOps, registries
5Kubernetes support included

Individual Services(2 services)

Copy individual services to mix and match with your existing compose files.

portainer

portainer:
  image: portainer/portainer-ee:latest
  container_name: portainer
  command: "-H unix:///var/run/docker.sock"
  environment:
    - VIRTUAL_HOST=${PORTAINER_HOST}
  volumes:
    - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
    - portainer-data:/data
  ports:
    - "8000:8000"
    - "9443:9443"
  networks:
    - portainer-network
  restart: unless-stopped

agent

agent:
  image: portainer/agent:latest
  container_name: portainer-agent
  volumes:
    - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
    - /var/lib/docker/volumes:/var/lib/docker/volumes
  ports:
    - "9001:9001"
  networks:
    - portainer-network
  restart: unless-stopped

Quick Start

terminal

1# 1. Create the compose file
2cat > docker-compose.yml << 'EOF'
3services:
4  portainer:
5    image: portainer/portainer-ee:latest
6    container_name: portainer
7    command: -H unix:///var/run/docker.sock
8    environment:
9      - VIRTUAL_HOST=${PORTAINER_HOST}
10    volumes:
11      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
12      - portainer-data:/data
13    ports:
14      - "8000:8000"
15      - "9443:9443"
16    networks:
17      - portainer-network
18    restart: unless-stopped
19
20  agent:
21    image: portainer/agent:latest
22    container_name: portainer-agent
23    volumes:
24      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
25      - /var/lib/docker/volumes:/var/lib/docker/volumes
26    ports:
27      - "9001:9001"
28    networks:
29      - portainer-network
30    restart: unless-stopped
31
32volumes:
33  portainer-data:
34
35networks:
36  portainer-network:
37    driver: bridge
38EOF
39
40# 2. Create the .env file
41cat > .env << 'EOF'
42# Portainer Business
43PORTAINER_HOST=portainer.localhost
44
45# Business Edition requires license
46# Get trial at: https://www.portainer.io/
47EOF
48
49# 3. Start the services
50docker compose up -d
51
52# 4. View logs
53docker compose logs -f

One-Liner

Run this command to download and set up the recipe in one step:

terminal

1curl -fsSL https://docker.recipes/api/recipes/portainer-business/run | bash

Troubleshooting

License validation failed: Ensure your Portainer BE license is valid and not expired in the license management section
Agent connection timeout: Verify port 9001 is accessible and not blocked by firewall between Portainer and agent
GitOps repository sync failing: Check that the Git repository URL is accessible and authentication credentials are correct
RBAC permissions not applying: Verify user team assignments and role mappings in the user management interface
Template deployment failed: Ensure the custom template variables are properly defined and Docker socket permissions allow image pulls
Edge agent offline status: Check network connectivity and verify the edge key hasn't expired in the edge computing section

Community Notes

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Includes docker-compose.yml, .env template, README, and license

Components

portainer-beportainer-agent

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