Docker Exec -it bash Terminal Output Improperly Formatted

Question

The command promp after running docker exec -it ... bash is not formatted nicely. The problem happens on the OSX terminal or iTerm2. Any setting for the iTerm2 I need to change or is that related to the bash command? Thanks.

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Answer 1

I think I can tell from the picture that you're not actually talking about docker logs (which is a docker real docker command that you didn't run). It looks like you want to know why your console output is not printing with nice formatting after you get to a command prompt inside a container with docker exec -it ... bash.

I suspect your PS1 length is being calculated incorrectly either inside the container or on your host machine. Read about it here. The prompt inside the container looks like the standard prompt and the prompt on your host machine looks fancy, so I bet you have a problem with the PS1 on your OS X host.

To see if your host machine is causing the problem, drop into a subshell with a minimal PS1, then run Docker and see if the problem persists:

$ bash --rcfile <(echo "PS1='$ '") -i
$ docker exec -it ... bash
# ls

If the problem goes away, it is a problem with the PS1 on your host machine. Fix it permanently by following the directions in the link above so the length is calculated correctly.