Unable to use "docker compose" and AWS ECS docker context in bitbucket pipelines deployment step

[Jason]

I'm trying to add a deployment step to bitbucket pipelines that works successfully when I simulate locally but fails when executing the steps in bitbucket.

I have created a simple docker image that contains docker and compose-cli as per https://raw.githubusercontent.com/docker/compose-cli/main/scripts/install/install_linux.sh

When I run my "build-env" docker image locally as per bitbuckets debug instructions https://support.atlassian.com/bitbucket-cloud/docs/debug-pipelines-locally-with-docker/ - everything works as expected and I can connect to the AWS ECS docker context and use the "docker compose" commands

However, when I push the changes to bitbucket and execute the build step in bitbucket pipelines the build fails with "compose" command not found.

I have inspected env vars and double checked the correct docker CLI is installed and ensured the correct image is being pulled.

Either the ecs ccontext creation or connection is failing or the wrong docker binary is being called? Or something else i'm not aware of.

The pipeline yaml

image: build-env:latest

definitions:
  steps:
    - step: &deploy
        name: Deploy this build
        deployment: test
          - docker context create ecs --from-env deploy
          - docker context use deploy
          - docker version
          - docker compose ps

The dockerfile for the build-env

FROM ubuntu:20.04

RUN apt-get update

RUN apt-get install -y python3-pip python3-dev \
  && cd /usr/local/bin \
  && ln -s /usr/bin/python3 python \
  && pip3 install --upgrade pip awscli

RUN apt-get install -y curl docker.io

RUN curl -L https://raw.githubusercontent.com/docker/compose-cli/main/scripts/install/install_linux.sh | sh

CMD ["python3"]

The bitbucket output

docker context create ecs --from-env deploy<1s

+ docker context create ecs --from-env deploy
Successfully created ecs context "deploy"
docker context use deploy<1s

+ docker context use deploy
deploy

docker version<1s

+ docker version
Cannot connect to the Docker daemon at tcp://localhost:2375. Is the docker daemon running?
Client:
 Cloud integration: 1.0.17
 Version:           20.10.7
 API version:       1.41
 Go version:        go1.13.8
 Git commit:        20.10.7-0ubuntu1~20.04.1
 Built:             Wed Aug  4 22:52:25 2021
 OS/Arch:           linux/amd64
 Context:           default
 Experimental:      true


docker compose ps<1s

+ docker compose ps
**docker: 'compose' is not a docker command.**


See 'docker --help'
Build teardown<1s

Very strange that it works locally but fails on bitbuckets servers...  Does anyone know where I'm going wrong???

The end goal is to use "docker compose up" within the AWS context to trigger the ecs cluster updates. It works perfectly everywhere except for inside bitbuckets environment.

Thanks in advance....

**Update**
I have managed to narrow the issue down. Seems the failure is occurring at "docker context use deploy"

The context is being created and I can inspect and list it, but attempting to use it always fails as seen in the bitbucket pipeline output below.

docker context use deploy<1s

+ docker context use deploy
deploy
docker context inspect<1s

+ docker context inspect
[
{
"Name": "default",
"Metadata": {
"StackOrchestrator": "swarm"
},
"Endpoints": {
"docker": {
"Host": "tcp://localhost:2375",
"SkipTLSVerify": false
}
},
"TLSMaterial": {},
"Storage": {
"MetadataPath": "\u003cIN MEMORY\u003e",
"TLSPath": "\u003cIN MEMORY\u003e"
}
}
]
docker context ls<1s

+ docker context ls
NAME TYPE DESCRIPTION DOCKER ENDPOINT KUBERNETES ENDPOINT ORCHESTRATOR
default * moby Current DOCKER_HOST based configuration tcp://localhost:2375 swarm
deploy ecs credentials read from environment

[Jason · Accepted solution]

I figured it out...

Or more like it, found the answer in this github issue

https://github.com/docker/cli/issues/1809

if DOCKER_HOST environment variable is set, we ignore the current context setting.

Bitbucket does set this environment var to the default context

Once I added

unset DOCKER_HOST

the context switch succeeded and docker compose worked as expected.