diff --git a/.dockerignore b/.dockerignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b4d6362
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.dockerignore
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+# Exclude everything
+*
+
+# Include specific files and directories
+!start.sh
+!requirements.txt
+!app.py
+!celery_worker.py
+!models.py
+!extensions.py
+!utils/
+!routes/
+!templates/
+!static/
+!migrations/
+!uploads/ 
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index d884047..d54d7d5 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -15,17 +15,16 @@ RUN useradd -m -u 1000 celery
 # Set working directory
 WORKDIR /app
 
-# Copy start.sh first and set permissions
-COPY start.sh .
-RUN chmod +x start.sh
+# Copy the entire application
+COPY . /app/
 
-# Copy requirements and install dependencies
-COPY requirements.txt .
+# Set up start.sh
+RUN chmod +x /app/start.sh && \
+    chown celery:celery /app/start.sh
+
+# Install Python dependencies
 RUN pip install --no-cache-dir -r requirements.txt
 
-# Copy the rest of the application
-COPY . .
-
 # Create necessary directories and set permissions
 RUN mkdir -p /data/rooms && \
     chown -R celery:celery /data && \
@@ -36,4 +35,4 @@ RUN mkdir -p /data/rooms && \
 USER celery
 
 # Set entrypoint
-ENTRYPOINT ["./start.sh"] 
\ No newline at end of file
+ENTRYPOINT ["/app/start.sh"] 
\ No newline at end of file