Native Linux containers for Windows are now available

Reading time icon 2 min. read


Readers help support Windows Report. When you make a purchase using links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Tooltip Icon

Read the affiliate disclosure page to find out how can you help Windows Report effortlessly and without spending any money. Read more

During the DockerCon 2017 conference, the Docker team revealed LinuxKit, a clean, secure, and portable Linux subsystem container environment.

LinuxKit features

LinuxKit includes all the necessary tools for building custom Linux subsystems that only include full run-time components required by the platform. All system services represent containers that can be replaced anytime it is required and everything else that is not required is going to be able to be removed.

LinuxKit is container-native and features the smallest possible size: 35MB. It requires a minimum amount of booting time. Since LinuxKit is a portable service, it is going to offer users the possibility to use it on all platforms where Docker currently runs.

Hyper-V isolation technology

At DockerCon, Microsoft joined the Docker team on stage and the company announced that it would make the Linux containers run natively on Windows Server by using the Hyper-V isolation technology, which will essentially allow developers to build with Windows. It’s also going to allow IT administrators hosting Windows Servers to run any container image no matter the platform they use. Docker will work closely with Microsoft on the way of integrating LinuxKit subsystem with this Hyper-V isolation technology.

Partners and open source enthusiasts

In order to offer more Linux distribution choices to users, Microsoft will open source the required integration code. The company has worked for a while now with leading Linux vendors such as Intel, RedHat, SUSE, and Canonical who will provide container operating system mirroring.

Microsoft practically opened up LinuxKit to partners and open source enthusiasts in order to build new things with Linux and to expand the container platform. The company is looking forward to seeing what they’ll make from it and how they it will contribute to the community.

RELATED STORIES TO CHECK OUT:

More about the topics: Windows Linux subsystem