Lima

lastmod 2023-07-11created 2023-07-111 edits

Linux virtual machines, typically on macOS, for running containerd

Features

"macOS subsystem for Linux" / "containerd for Mac"

• Runs Linux VMs on a Mac with automatic file sharing/port forwarding and containerd (including nerdctl)
  • Can also run on Linux/Windows/NetBSD
• coreutils + QEMU with HVF accelerator + sshocker
• Supports Intel on Intel / ARM on Intel
• ARM on ARM / Intel on ARM are untested
• Supports Ubuntu / Fedora guests

A nice way to run Linux virtual machines on Mac

• Lima: a nice way to run Linux VMs on Mac

Lima is software for running Linux virtual machines (VMs) on a Mac.

• Simpler to set up and use than other options such as Vagrant
• Lima automatically downloads an Ubuntu 22.04 image for the VM
• By default, Lima mounts the entire home directory inside the VM for easy file access
• Lima provides a default configuration, but it can be customized as needed
• The author prefers a single Linux VM for all projects rather than per-project VMs
• Mounting directories read-write has limitations but is possible
• The author chose VMs over Linux containers for the production environment and ease of development
• Lima also works on Linux, and there are alternatives such as colima and Orb Stack for running Linux containers on a Mac

See also

• Virtual Machine

Favorite site

• lima-vm/lima