README

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[[📖Documentation]](https://lima-vm.io/docs/)
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 Lima: Linux Machines





Lima launches Linux virtual machines with automatic file sharing and port forwarding (similar to WSL2).

The original goal of Lima was to promote containerd including nerdctl (contaiNERD ctl)
to Mac users, but Lima can be used for non-container applications as well.

Lima also supports other container engines (Docker, Podman, Kubernetes, etc.) and non-macOS hosts (Linux, NetBSD, etc.).

 Getting started
Set up (Homebrew):
bash
brew install lima
limactl start


If you are on Windows, Lima can be installed through PowerShell using:
powershell
winget install Lima.Lima


For other installation methods, see .

To run Linux commands:
bash
lima uname -a


To run containers with containerd:
bash
lima nerdctl run --rm hello-world


To run containers with Docker:
bash
limactl start template:docker
export DOCKER_HOST=$(limactl list docker --format 'unix://{{.Dir}}/sock/docker.sock')
docker run --rm hello-world


To run containers with Kubernetes:
bash
limactl start template:k8s
export KUBECONFIG=$(limactl list k8s --format 'unix://{{.Dir}}/copied-from-guest/kubeconfig.yaml')
kubectl apply -f ...


See  for the further information.

 Software Bill of Materials (SBOM)

The "sbom" download contains SBOM in the CycloneDX format since v2.3.

There are both "app" \.bom.json and "mod" bom.json files:

- SBOMs generated with "app" include only those modules that the target application
  actually depends on. Modules required by tests or packages that are not imported
  by the application are not included. Build constraints are evaluated, which enables
  a very detailed view of what's really compiled into an application's binary.

- SBOMs generated with "mod" include the aggregate of modules required by all
  packages in the target module. This optionally includes modules required by
  tests and test packages. Build constraints are NOT evaluated, allowing for
  a "whole picture" view on the target module's dependencies.

 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please see our Contributing Guide for details on:

- Developer Certificate of Origin (DCO): All commits must be signed off with git commit -s
- Code licensing and pull request guidelines
- Testing requirements

 Community
 Adopters

Container environments:
- Rancher Desktop: Kubernetes and container management to the desktop
- Colima: Docker (and Kubernetes) on macOS with minimal setup
- Finch: Finch is a command line client for local container development
- Podman Desktop: Podman Desktop GUI has a plug-in for Lima virtual machines

GUI:
- Lima xbar plugin: xbar plugin to start/stop VMs from the menu bar and see their running status.
- lima-gui: Qt GUI for Lima

 Communication channels

- GitHub Discussions
- lima channel in the CNCF Slack
  - New account: 
  - Login: 
- Community meetings on Zoom (tentatively monthly)
  - Meeting notes & agenda proposals