This repository hosts the components to build a LinuxKit based Linux image for Linux Containers on Windows.
Note: LCOW support was experimental and is no longer being developed. This repository is now archived.
This section describes how to use Linux Containers on Windows with LinuxKit.
To use Linux Containers on Windows you need a Windows build supporting
the feature, i.e., Windows 10 Pro or Windows Server 2016 1709 (or
newer Insider builds). You also need to have Hyper-V and the
Container feature enabled.
For now, you need a recent version of docker, such as a nightly
build from the master branch. In PowerShell:
Invoke-WebRequest -UseBasicParsing -OutFile docker.zip https://master.dockerproject.com/windows/x86_64/docker.zip
Expand-Archive docker.zip -DestinationPath $Env:ProgramFiles
Next, you need to get the LinuxKit images. You can either build them yourself (see below) or download the latest zip file from the releases page. Then unzip in an elevated PowerShell:
Remove-Item "$env:ProgramFiles\Linux Containers" -Force -Recurse
Expand-Archive release.zip -DestinationPath "$Env:ProgramFiles\Linux Containers\."
rm release.zip
On recent docker master builds (master-dockerproject-2018-01-20, build 44a1168a or newer):
Start the docker daemon (in an elevated PowerShell):
.\dockerd.exe -D --experimental
You should now be able to run Linux containers on Windows, e.g.:
docker run --platform linux --rm -ti busybox sh
On older docker master builds:
Start the docker daemon (in an elevated PowerShell):
$env:LCOW_SUPPORTED=1
$env:LCOW_API_PLATFORM_IF_OMITTED="linux"
Remove-Item c:\lcow -Force -Recurse; mkdir c:\lcow
.\dockerd.exe -D --experimental --data-root c:\lcow
(Note: If your kernel is older than 4.14 and is configured with KASLR
you may want to add --storage-opt lcow.bootparameters="nokaslr" to
the dockerd command line.)
You should now be able to run Linux containers on Windows, e.g.:
docker run --rm -ti busybox sh
If you already have docker installed on your system you probably
want to start the daemon (and the client) on a non-standard named pipe
using the -H "npipe:////./pipe//docker_lcow" for both.
The LinuxKit image is build from lcow.yml and the main
package is called init-lcow.
To build images and packages you will need the LinuxKit tool. You also need to have a working Docker installation.
If you already have go installed you can use go get -u github.com/linuxkit/linuxkit/src/cmd/linuxkit to install the
linuxkit tool.
On macOS there is a brew tap available. Detailed instructions are at
linuxkit/homebrew-linuxkit,
but the short summary is:
brew tap linuxkit/linuxkit
brew install --HEAD linuxkit
Simply type:
make
which generates kernel and initrd.img which need to be copied to "$env:ProgramFiles\Linux Containers\kernel" on your Windows system.
Alternatively, use:
linuxkit build lcow.yml
This will generate three files: lcow-kernel, lcow-initrd.img, and
lcow-cmdline. lcow-kernel needs to be copied to
"$env:ProgramFiles\Linux Containers\kernel" and
lcow-initrd.img to "$env:ProgramFiles\Linux Containers\initrd.img".
The init-lcow contains a minimal init system
used inside the LCOW and mainly consists of the OpenGCS
deamon. To rebuild the package
use the linuxkit tool:
linuxkit pkg build -org foo pkg/init-lcow
This should create a local image foo/init-lcow:<tag> which can be used lcow.yml. To build and push the image to hub use:
linuxkit pkg build -org <your hub name> -disable-content-trust pkg/init-lcow
You can omit -disable-content-trust if your registry has Docker
Content Trust enabled.
The tests directory contains a number of tests for LCOW
written using rtf. To run them
you can simply execute RunTests.ps1 inside
the .\tests directory. It will pick up the kernel/initrd in the
parent directory if present. Alternatively, it can download the
artefact from CircleCI if you supply the build number. The script will
also download the latest version of docker and the version of the
rtf binary.
Test results will be stored in .\tests\_results\<UUID> directory
where <UUID> is the UUID printed out during the test run.
To manually run the test, make sure you have a working LCOW system set
up. You'll also need a copy of the rtf.exe binary (see
RunTests.ps1 on how to obtain it or go get .. it). Further, docker must also be in your path.
To run tests, use rtf run inside the .\tests directory. To list
which tests are available use rtf list or rtf info. To run an
individual test or a group of tests use rtf run <name>.