Run standard Linux containers on Apple Silicon Macs without heavy virtualization
If you want to run Linux containers on an Apple Silicon Mac but want to avoid complex virtual machine setup, this tool is the answer. It leverages the Mac's hardware performance to run containers quickly. Because it follows the standard container image specification, you can use your existing image files as they are.
Containers running on a lightweight virtual machine
This tool creates a separate virtual machine to run containers. However, this virtual machine is designed to be very lightweight, so it starts and stops much faster than a typical virtual machine. It is optimized for Apple Silicon chips, delivering the best performance on Macs equipped with M-series chips. Low-level tasks responsible for processes, networking, and image management inside the container are handled through a Swift package.
Standard compliance and compatibility
This tool consumes and produces container images that follow the OCI (Open Container Initiative) standard. This allows you to pull images from your existing container registries and run them immediately. Conversely, images created with this tool can run without issues in other OCI-compatible applications. This means you can manage containers flexibly without being locked into a specific platform.
Installation and first run
To use this tool, you need a Mac with Apple Silicon and macOS 26. It utilizes new virtualization and networking features added in macOS 26, so previous versions of macOS are not supported. You can download the installation file from the GitHub releases page and install it with administrator privileges. Once installation is complete, start the system service with the container system start command and try running your first container with the container run --rm alpine echo hello command.
Version management and compatibility policy
This project is under active development, and release versions are managed as product versions. Backward compatibility for CLI commands is generally maintained within major versions, but experimental features may be exceptions. For example, experimental features like the k8s subcommand may change in the future and do not guarantee backward compatibility. Data compatibility only guarantees forward compatibility within one major version, so a specific upgrade path may be required when upgrading major versions.
Pre-usage checks
Before adopting this tool, you must verify that your Mac is Apple Silicon-based and that your operating system is macOS 26. If these two conditions are not met, you cannot use the tool. Additionally, if you plan to use experimental features, you must be prepared to accept potential compatibility issues that may arise with future version updates. When migrating existing scripts or automation processes to this tool, it is advisable to carefully check for CLI command changes due to major version updates.
