Configuration option for spare docker containers

[WLigtenberg]

If I remember correctly there should be a way to have a configurable number of containers waiting for users.
We have a couple of apps that load data upon starting, it would greatly reduce the loading time if we can always have a couple of container ready to use.
I cannot find this option in the documentation on the configuration file though.

[tverbeke]

Hi @WLigtenberg,

This is not yet supported in ShinyProxy (and therefore not documented) as the current model is to launch a container when the user clicks on the app.

Besides doing ‘lazy loading’ inside the Shiny app (maybe with some asynchronous calls), the current options at ShinyProxy side are described here:

Pre-initialise application container

So we currently have Shinyproxy set up with a few applications in production, big thanks to the Open Analytics team, a point users complain to me about is waiting for the application to start up after they click on the link, which takes about I’m wondering is there a way have a container that is already created and waiting so that when a user clicks on the link they get directed to that standby container?

Best,
Tobias

[akenny]

Just to add to this, I just got around to testing the suggestion by fmichielssen.

So when a user lands on the index page the container is started but unfortunately the container needs to be fully loaded before the user clicks on the application or else they receive an error.

I tested this using the dockerised version of shinyproxy