Mar 16, 2026 · 1 min read

Docker: COPY Failed — File Not Found in Build Context

# The . at the end is the build context docker build -t myapp . Files must be inside this directory. Docker can't access files outside it.

Your `.dockerignore` might be excluding the file: cat .dockerignore

# ❌ Wrong path COPY src/app.js /app/ # ✅ Make sure the file exists relative to build context

COPY failed: file not found in build context

Docker can’t find the file you’re trying to COPY. The build context is the directory you pass to docker build.

Fix 1: Check your build context

# The . at the end is the build context
docker build -t myapp .

Files must be inside this directory. Docker can’t access files outside it.

Your .dockerignore might be excluding the file:

cat .dockerignore

# ❌ Wrong path
COPY src/app.js /app/

# ✅ Make sure the file exists relative to build context
# Run: ls src/app.js
COPY ./src/app.js /app/