Images view "Author" column always shows N/A despite LABEL org.opencontainers.image.authors being set

[shimscho]

Description

The "Author" column in Docker Desktop's Images Build view always displays "N/A", even when the OCI-standard label org.opencontainers.image.authors is correctly set in the Dockerfile.

The label IS stored correctly (visible via docker inspect under .Config.Labels and in the "Labels" tab in image details), but the "Author" column reads from the deprecated .Author field in the image config instead.

The only way to populate .Author is via the deprecated MAINTAINER instruction, which Docker's own documentation explicitly says not to use:

https://docs.docker.com/reference/dockerfile/#maintainer-deprecated

This creates a catch-22: the recommended OCI-standard way to declare authorship is ignored by the UI, and the only way to make the UI work is to use a deprecated instruction.

Reproduce

1. Create a minimal Dockerfile:

FROM node:22-alpine
LABEL org.opencontainers.image.authors="TestAuthor"
CMD ["node", "-e", "console.log('hello')"]

2. Build the image:

docker build -t author-test .

3. Verify the label IS set:

docker inspect author-test | jq '.[0] | {Author: .Author, OCI_Label: .Config.Labels["org.opencontainers.image.authors"]}'

Output:

{
  "Author": null,
  "OCI_Label": "TestAuthor"
}

4. Open Docker Desktop → Images Builds → check "Author" column → Shows N/A

Expected behavior

The "Author" column should fall back to reading org.opencontainers.image.authors from .Config.Labels when the deprecated .Author field is empty.

Alternatively, if that's not feasible, either:

• Remove the "Author" column entirely (since there's no non-deprecated way to populate it), or
• Document clearly how to populate this field

docker version

Client:
 Version:           29.2.0
 API version:       1.53
 Go version:        go1.25.6
 Git commit:        0b9d198
 Built:             Mon Jan 26 19:25:17 2026
 OS/Arch:           linux/amd64
 Context:           default

Server: Docker Desktop 4.59.0 (217644)
 Engine:
  Version:          29.2.0
  API version:      1.53 (minimum version 1.44)
  Go version:       go1.25.6
  Git commit:       9c62384
  Built:            Mon Jan 26 19:26:07 2026
  OS/Arch:          linux/amd64
  Experimental:     false
 containerd:
  Version:          v2.2.1
  GitCommit:        dea7da592f5d1d2b7755e3a161be07f43fad8f75
 runc:
  Version:          1.3.4
  GitCommit:        v1.3.4-0-gd6d73eb8
 docker-init:
  Version:          0.19.0
  GitCommit:        de40ad0

docker info

Server:
 Containers: 7
  Running: 7
 Server Version: 29.2.0
 Storage Driver: overlayfs
 Cgroup Driver: cgroupfs
 Cgroup Version: 2
 Kernel Version: 6.6.87.2-microsoft-standard-WSL2
 Operating System: Docker Desktop
 OSType: linux
 Architecture: x86_64
 Docker Root Dir: /var/lib/docker

Diagnostics ID

Will be added as a follow-up comment.

Additional Info

• Docker Desktop 4.59.0 (217644) on Windows with WSL2
• Affects both single-stage and multi-stage builds
• The OCI Image Spec defines org.opencontainers.image.authors as the standard annotation for authorship: https://specs.opencontainers.org/image-spec/annotations/

[landism]

Thanks for the report!

Open Docker Desktop → Images → check "Author" column → Shows N/A

To confirm my understanding - I don't see any evidence that the "Images" tab has or has ever had an "Author" column, but I do see one on the "Builds" tab - is that where you're looking? (though even when I used MAINTAINERS, that column still showed "N/A") Or, if not, can you please share a screenshot of what you're looking at?

[shimscho]

@landism

yep, sorry my fault. On the Build section