After updating Docker images, what command efficiently removes image layers that are no longer tagged or associated with any running or stopped containers, freeing up disk space?

After updating Docker images, the command that efficiently removes image layers no longer tagged or associated with any running or stopped containers, thereby freeing up disk space, is `docker image prune`. Docker images are constructed from a series of immutable, read-only "image layers." Each instruction in a Dockerfile generates a new layer, and these layers are stacked to form the final image. This layered architecture enables efficient storage and sharing, as common layers can be reused across different images. When images are updated, new layers are created, and older layers that are no longer referenced by any explicitly named or "tagged" image, and are not currently in use by any active or inactive containers, become "dangling." A "tagged" image is an image that has been assigned a human-readable name and an optional version, like `my_application:version1.0`. When an update occurs, a tag such as `latest` might be moved to a newer image, leaving the previously tagged image without any explicit tag and thus making its layers potentially dangling. These dangling layers consume valuable disk space without serving any active purpose. The `docker image prune` command specifically identifies and removes these unreferenced and unused image layers. Upon execution, the command first calculates and typically displays the amount of disk space that will be reclaimed and then prompts for confirmation before proceeding with the removal process, directly addressing the need to clear up storage occupied by obsolete image components.