What does the command 'docker run -d' accomplish?

The command 'docker run -d' is used to run a container in detached mode. This means that the container operates in the background, allowing users to continue using the terminal or command line interface without waiting for the container's output or interaction. When a container is started with the detached option, it runs independently of the terminal session, which is particularly useful for production environments where you might want to launch services without ongoing terminal monitoring.

In this mode, Docker will return the container ID immediately, and the user can later check logs or attach to the container if needed, using other Docker commands. This allows for greater flexibility when managing services and applications as it separates the container's processes from the user interface.

Other options such as running a container in interactive mode or stopping or removing stopped containers do not relate to the detached mode specified by 'docker run -d'. Thus, the choice of detached mode accurately describes the function of this command.