openBrowser() causes docker-compose set ups to fail because of spawn EACCESS

[aeneasr]

Description

I am running npm start inside of a docker container that is orchestrated using docker-compose, which isn't working. Running the image with pure docker however works.

This issue was already tackled in #306 but rejected.

Expected behavior

The image should boot up normally.

Actual behavior

I get this exception:

?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m > developer-ui@0.1.0 start /usr/src/app
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m > react-scripts start
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m ?cStarting the development server...
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m internal/child_process.js:302
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     throw errnoException(err, 'spawn');
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     ^
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m Error: spawn EACCES
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at exports._errnoException (util.js:1007:11)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at ChildProcess.spawn (internal/child_process.js:302:11)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at Object.exports.spawn (child_process.js:383:9)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at module.exports (/usr/src/app/node_modules/react-scripts/node_modules/opn/index.js:75:24)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at openBrowser (/usr/src/app/node_modules/react-scripts/scripts/start.js:173:3)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at Server.devServer.listen (/usr/src/app/node_modules/react-scripts/scripts/start.js:308:5)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at Server.g (events.js:286:16)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at emitNone (events.js:86:13)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at Server.emit (events.js:185:7)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at emitListeningNT (net.js:1279:10)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at _combinedTickCallback (internal/process/next_tick.js:71:11)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m     at process._tickCallback (internal/process/next_tick.js:98:9)
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m
?[33mdeveloper-ui_1  |?[0m npm info lifecycle developer-ui@0.1.0~start: Failed to exec start script

Environment

Dockerfile

FROM node:6.2

RUN mkdir -p /usr/src/app
WORKDIR /usr/src/app

COPY . /usr/src/app
RUN npm install --silent; exit 0

# fix for https://github.com/facebookincubator/create-react-app/issues/508
RUN chmod a+x /usr/src/app/node_modules/.bin/react-scripts

ENTRYPOINT npm start

EXPOSE 3000

docker-compose.yml

version: '2'

services:
  developer-ui:
    build:
      context: .
      dockerfile: Dockerfile
    ports:
      - "5001:3000"

Then, specify:

1. Operating system: Windows (host)
2. Browser and version: not relevant

$ docker-compose -v
docker-compose version 1.8.0, build d988a55
$ docker -v
Docker version 1.12.0, build 8eab29e

Reproducible Demo

Here: https://github.com/arekkas/cra-docker-bug

Solution

Have a setting that disables browser spawn. It's annoying anyways when working with different browers (I use ff for browsing and chrome for dev) ;)

[gaearon]

What is the use case for running npm start inside Docker? (I don't know anything about Docker. :-)

[aeneasr]

I run a lot of projects, most of them with different node requirements. It is really convenient to just run this stuff in docker. Think of it as vagrant without the slowness.

[aeneasr]

I think there are several cases that justify disabling the browser spawn. One of them being Electron, another being docker-compose, another being missing privileges for spawning processes (e.g. restricted user), another one being that it's cool to have it for demonstration but it get's quickly annoying when developing. I restore sessions on every boot and get multiple tabs of my react app because I forgot to close the old tabs. It's annoying because I hate FF dev tools and every time I run npm start I have to close the tab in ff and open it in chrome.

I think it's ok-ish to not support all of the use cases (docker, electron) with dev power, but disabling browser spawn is a very simple thing to do, that will not only resolve those issues, it will also save me and others a lot of anger when dealing with create-react-app. I can speak for myself because I had browser spawn in my projects too until the community got me to rethink and give them something to disable it. Please reconsider your position on this.

[aeneasr]

Or at least make it in such a way that openBrowser doesn't kill the npm start process when failing.