karakeep-app/karakeep

[FR] chore(dx): setup karakeep to be able to spin up dev containers

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#1,650 opened on Jun 21, 2025

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 (4 comments) (0 reactions) (1 assignee)TypeScript (1,356 forks)auto 404
feature requestgood first issuepri/low

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Description

Describe the feature you'd like

Inspired by Immich, we could setup karakeep to be able to spin up GitHub dev containers, so that users can easily and quickly start a dev environment on vscode and/or GitHub Codespaces.

Describe the benefits this would bring to existing Karakeep users

While it is almost the same thing as a docker compose based local dev setup, the key difference with a dev containers setup allows for us to spin up Github Codespaces, which is surprisingly useful in unexpected scenarios (speaking from personal experience lol)

Can the goal of this request already be achieved via other means?

Yes. docker compose up and sh start-dev.sh can fulfill the local dev requirement, but dev containers will have more synergy with GitHub Codespaces.

Have you searched for an existing open/closed issue?

  • I have searched for existing issues and none cover my fundamental request

Additional context

We have to decide if we will still keep/maintain the docker compose based local dev setup, if we decide to go ahead with this.

Related issues(?)

Contributor guide

Research direction
Examine the existing docker compose setup and reference Immich's dev container configuration. Adapt it to Karakeep's backend and frontend services, ensuring all dependencies and ports are correctly mapped.
Tech stack
typescriptdockernodejs
Domain
developer experiencetoolingdevops
Issue type
Feature
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
2
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
Half day
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
Active
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
Clear
Prerequisites
DockerGitVisual Studio Code
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
80