This guide shows how to run Jira Software and Confluence in Docker with persistent storage and a production-ready external database. Use an official evaluation or purchased license from Atlassian during setup; this article does not cover bypassing licensing.

Prerequisites

• Docker and Docker Compose installed
• Outbound internet access to pull images
• MySQL 8.0+/MariaDB 10.5+ or PostgreSQL 12+ available (examples below use MySQL)
• Jira and Confluence evaluation or commercial licenses from Atlassian

Preparing the Database (MySQL/MariaDB)

Create databases and users with UTF-8 MB4 settings and the correct transaction isolation level.

-- Jira database and user
CREATE DATABASE jiradb CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_bin;
CREATE USER 'jiraapp'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY 'Str0ngP@ss_jira';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON jiradb.* TO 'jiraapp'@'%';

-- Confluence database and user
CREATE DATABASE confdb CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_bin;
CREATE USER 'confapp'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY 'Str0ngP@ss_conf';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON confdb.* TO 'confapp'@'%';

-- Ensure transaction isolation is READ-COMMITTED
-- MySQL 8+ uses `transaction_isolation`; older versions may use `tx_isolation`
SET GLOBAL transaction_isolation='READ-COMMITTED';

If you use MySQL as a container, you can enforce charset and isolation at startup:

# docker-compose fragment for MySQL
services:
  db:
    image: mysql:8.0
    environment:
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: rootpass
    command:
      - "--character-set-server=utf8mb4"
      - "--collation-server=utf8mb4_bin"
      - "--transaction-isolation=READ-COMMITTED"
      - "--default-time-zone=+08:00"
    ports:
      - "3306:3306"
    volumes:
      - dbdata:/var/lib/mysql
volumes:
  dbdata:

PostgreSQL alternative (optional):

-- Jira
CREATE ROLE jiraapp WITH LOGIN PASSWORD 'Str0ngP@ss_jira';
CREATE DATABASE jiradb OWNER jiraapp ENCODING 'UTF8';

-- Confluence
CREATE ROLE confapp WITH LOGIN PASSWORD 'Str0ngP@ss_conf';
CREATE DATABASE confdb OWNER confapp ENCODING 'UTF8';

Running Jira in Docker

Below is a Compose setup that runs Jira Software and persists its home directory. If you use MySQL, download MySQL Connector/J (e.g., 8.3.x) and mount it into the container so Jira can connect to MySQL.

version: "3.9"
services:
  jira:
    image: atlassian/jira-software:9.12.2
    container_name: jira
    ports:
      - "18009:8080"         # host:container
    environment:
      - TZ=Asia/Shanghai
    volumes:
      - ./jira-home:/var/atlassian/jira
      # Optional: MySQL JDBC driver mount (adjust filename to your driver)
      - ./drivers/mysql-connector-j-8.3.0.jar:/opt/atlassian/jira/lib/mysql-connector-j-8.3.0.jar:ro
    restart: unless-stopped

Start Jira:

docker compose up -d jira

Open http://:18009 and follow the setup wizard:

• Choose "Set it up for me" or "I’ll set it up myself"
• Select the external database option and pick MySQL (or PostgreSQL)
• Use these JDBC URL patterns:
  • MySQL: jdbc:mysql://:3306/jiradb?useUnicode=true&characterEncoding=utf8mb4
  • PostgreSQL: jdbc:postgresql://:5432/jiradb
• Anter the DB user/password created earlier
• Provide your valid Atlassian license key when prompted

Running Confluence in Docker

Similar to Jira, Confluence persists its home directory and may need a JDBC driver for MySQL. You can run it alongside Jira.

version: "3.9"
services:
  confluence:
    image: atlassian/confluence-server:7.19.17
    container_name: confluence
    ports:
      - "18010:8090"
    environment:
      - TZ=Asia/Shanghai
    volumes:
      - ./confluence-home:/var/atlassian/confluence
      # Optional: MySQL JDBC driver mount (adjust filename to your driver)
      - ./drivers/mysql-connector-j-8.3.0.jar:/opt/atlassian/confluence/confluence/WEB-INF/lib/mysql-connector-j-8.3.0.jar:ro
    restart: unless-stopped

Start Confluence:

docker compose up -d confluence

Open http://:18010 and complete the setup wizard:

• Select "Production Installation"
• Database connection settings:
  • MySQL: jdbc:mysql://:3306/confdb?useUnicode=true&characterEncoding=utf8mb4
  • PostgreSQL: jdbc:postgresql://:5432/confdb
• Enter DB credentials created earlier
• Apply a valid Confluence license key

Optional integration with Jira for user management:

• In Confluence, go to User Management and add an external directory
• Chooose "Atlassian Jira" and supply the Jira base URL and application link credentials

Single-Node Docker Run Alternatives

If you prefer plain docker run:

# Jira
docker run -d \
  --name jira \
  -p 18009:8080 \
  -e TZ=Asia/Shanghai \
  -v $(pwd)/jira-home:/var/atlassian/jira \
  -v $(pwd)/drivers/mysql-connector-j-8.3.0.jar:/opt/atlassian/jira/lib/mysql-connector-j-8.3.0.jar:ro \
  --restart unless-stopped \
  atlassian/jira-software:9.12.2

# Confluence
docker run -d \
  --name confluence \
  -p 18010:8090 \
  -e TZ=Asia/Shanghai \
  -v $(pwd)/confluence-home:/var/atlassian/confluence \
  -v $(pwd)/drivers/mysql-connector-j-8.3.0.jar:/opt/atlassian/confluence/confluence/WEB-INF/lib/mysql-connector-j-8.3.0.jar:ro \
  --restart unless-stopped \
  atlassian/confluence-server:7.19.17

Fixing Garbled Characters (Chinese and Other Unicode)

If you see mojibake in Confluence, ensure both the DB and JDBC connection string use UTF-8 MB4. For MySQL:

• Database should be utf8mb4/utf8mb4_bin
• JDBC URL should include both useUnicode=true and characterEncoding=utf8mb4

In Confluance’s confluence.cfg.xml, the URL must escape ampersands for XML:

<property name="hibernate.connection.url">
  jdbc:mysql://db.example.internal:3306/confdb?useUnicode=true&amp;characterEncoding=utf8mb4
</property>

If Jira requires manual edits, the database URL is typically stored in dbconfig.xml inside the Jira home directory with a similar JDBC URL. Restart the container after making changes.

Notes on Database Drivers and Compatibility

• When using MySQL, ensure MySQL Connector/J 8.0+ is available to the application. Place the JAR in:
  • Jira: /opt/atlassian/jira/lib/
  • Confluence: /opt/atlassian/confluence/confluence/WEB-INF/lib/
• For PostgreSQL, the driver is usuallly bundled; verify compatibility with your product version
• Always consult the supported platforms matrix for your Jira/Confluence version and DB engine

Optional: Nginx Reverse Proxy

To serve clean hostnames with TLS, place Nginx in front of the containers:

server {
  listen 80;
  server_name jira.example.com;
  location / {
    proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:18009;
    proxy_set_header Host $host;
    proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
    proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
    proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
  }
}

server {
  listen 80;
  server_name confluence.example.com;
  location / {
    proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:18010;
    proxy_set_header Host $host;
    proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
    proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
    proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
  }
}