Documentation

📘 Commands

stop

rfswift stop

Stop a running container without removing it.

Synopsis

rfswift stop -c CONTAINER_NAME

The stop command gracefully stops a running container while preserving all data and state. The container can be restarted later with exec or using Docker commands.

Options

Flag	Description	Required	Example
`-c, --container STRING`	Container name or ID to stop	Yes	`-c my_container`

Examples

Basic Usage

Stop a specific container:

rfswift stop -c my_sdr_container

Stop by container ID:

rfswift stop -c a1b2c3d4e5f6

Stop with short container ID:

rfswift stop -c a1b2c3

Real-World Scenarios

End of work day:

# Stop assessment container for the day
rfswift stop -c client_assessment

# Resume tomorrow
rfswift exec -c client_assessment

Free up resources:

# Stop idle containers to free memory
rfswift stop -c sdr_capture
rfswift stop -c wifi_analysis
rfswift stop -c bluetooth_scanner

Before system maintenance:

For now you can do the following trick:

# Stop all RF Swift containers before system update
for container in $(docker ps -q --filter "ancestor=penthertz/rfswift_noble"); do
    rfswift stop -c $container
done

Temporary pause:

# Stop container during lunch break
rfswift stop -c long_running_capture

# Resume after lunch
rfswift exec -c long_running_capture

What Happens When You Stop a Container

Data Persistence

When a container is stopped:

✅ Container filesystem: All data inside the container is preserved
✅ Mounted volumes: Data in mounted directories remains intact
✅ Container configuration: All settings, bindings, and capabilities are preserved
✅ Network configuration: Port bindings and network settings are saved
❌ Running processes: All processes inside the container are terminated
❌ Memory state: RAM contents are lost (not hibernated)

Example:

# Create container with captures
rfswift run -i sdr_full -n capture_session -b ~/captures:/root/captures

# Inside container: Start long capture
rfswift exec -c capture_session
rtl_sdr -f 100M -s 2.4M capture.dat &
exit

# Stop container
rfswift stop -c capture_session
# Process terminates, but files in ~/captures persist

# Resume later
rfswift exec -c capture_session
ls /root/captures  # Files still there

Process Handling

Graceful shutdown:

Docker sends SIGTERM to all processes
Processes have 10 seconds to clean up
If processes don’t exit, Docker sends SIGKILL
Container stops

Important for:

Database containers (ensure data consistency)
Long-running captures (may lose in-progress data)
Network services (connections are dropped)

Container State After Stop

# Check container status
docker ps -a | grep my_container

# Output shows:
# STATUS: Exited (0) 2 minutes ago

Container is:

✅ Still exists in Docker
✅ Can be restarted
✅ Can be committed to an image
✅ Can be removed
❌ Not consuming CPU
❌ Not consuming RAM
✅ Still consuming disk space

Stop vs Exit

Operation	`stop`	`exit` (from shell)
Initiated from	Host	Inside container
Stops container	✅ Always	⚠️ Sometimes*
Graceful shutdown	✅ Yes	⚠️ Depends
Use when	Managing from host	Done with current session

Container stops if no other processes are running

Workflow comparison:

# Using exit (from inside container)
rfswift exec -c my_container
# ... work ...
exit
# Container may still be running if background processes exist

# Using stop (from host)
rfswift stop -c my_container
# Container definitely stops, all processes terminate

Common Workflows

Daily Work Cycle

# Monday: Create container
rfswift run -i pentest -n weekly_work -b ~/work:/root/work

# Monday-Friday: Use throughout week
rfswift exec -c weekly_work
# ... work ...
exit

# Each evening: Stop to free resources
rfswift stop -c weekly_work

# Each morning: Resume
rfswift exec -c weekly_work  # Auto-starts

# Friday: Clean up when done
rfswift remove -c weekly_work

Resource Management

# List running containers
docker ps

# Stop idle containers
rfswift stop -c sdr_test1
rfswift stop -c old_assessment
rfswift stop -c experiment_container

Container Lifecycle Management

# Week 1: Create and use
rfswift run -i sdr_full -n project_alpha

# Week 1-2: Use daily
rfswift exec -c project_alpha

# Weekend: Stop to save resources
rfswift stop -c project_alpha

# Week 3: Resume
rfswift exec -c project_alpha

# Project complete: Remove if not needed anymore
rfswift remove -c project_alpha

Batch Container Management

# Stop multiple related containers
CONTAINERS="capture1 capture2 capture3"
for container in $CONTAINERS; do
    echo "Stopping $container..."
    rfswift stop -c $container
done

# Or using docker directly
docker stop capture1 capture2 capture3

Troubleshooting

Container Already Stopped

Problem: Trying to stop an already stopped container

rfswift stop -c my_container
# Error: Container is not running

Solution:

# Check if running
docker ps | grep my_container

# If not in output, it's already stopped
docker ps -a | grep my_container

# No action needed

Container Not Found

Error: Error: No such container: container_name

Solutions:

# List all containers
rfswift las

# Container may have been removed
# Need to create new one
rfswift run -i image -n container_name

Container Won’t Stop

Problem: Container doesn’t stop after reasonable time

Solutions:

# Wait longer (some containers need cleanup time)
rfswift stop -c my_container
# Wait 30-60 seconds

# Force stop with Docker
docker kill my_container         # Immediate force stop

# Check what's preventing shutdown
docker logs my_container

Multiple Containers with Similar Names

Problem: Ambiguous container name

Solutions:

# Use full name
rfswift stop -c full_container_name

# Use container ID
docker ps  # Get ID
rfswift stop -c a1b2c3d4e5f6

# List to identify
rfswift last

Permission Denied

Problem: Can’t stop container

Solutions:

# Use sudo on Linux (if not in docker group)
sudo rfswift stop -c my_container

# Or add user to docker group
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
newgrp docker

# Then try again
rfswift stop -c my_container

Data Loss Concerns

Problem: Worried about losing data when stopping

Verification:

# Check mounted volumes
docker inspect my_container | grep -A 10 Mounts

# Data in mounted volumes is safe
# Data in container filesystem is preserved when stopped
# Only running processes and RAM contents are lost

# To be extra safe, commit before stopping
rfswift commit -c my_container -i backup_image
rfswift stop -c my_container

Related Commands

run - Create new containers
exec - Enter and restart stopped containers
remove - Permanently delete containers
last - List recent containers with status
commit - Save container state before stopping

💡

Quick Tip: Create a nightly cron job to stop idle RF Swift containers and free resources: crontab -e then add 0 2 * * * /path/to/stop_idle_containers.sh

Data Safety: Stopping a container is completely safe - all your data is preserved. Only running processes are terminated. Think of it like “sleep mode” for your container!

Long-Running Processes: If you have captures or long-running processes inside a container, they will be terminated when the container stops. Save your work before stopping!

Last updated on January 14, 2026

exec remove