Container management: create, start, stop and delete containers, view logs and enter container shells.
Image processing: pull, push, build and search container images.
Pod management: manage container groups (Pods), view unified logs.
Kubernetes integration: deploy and manage Kubernetes applications locally, generate and test Kubernetes YAML configurations.
Extension point: develop and integrate custom extensions to enhance functionality.
Multi-engine support: handle multiple container engines at the same time, such as Podman and Docker.
3. Platform requirements and compatibility
Container Desktop supports multiple mainstream operating system platforms, each of which has its own specific installation requirements:
On Linux, users need to install podman, and version 4.0 or higher is recommended. Many distributions often include an older version of podman, so you may need to use a third-party repository such as Aalvistack to get the latest version.
On Windows, you can install podman directly or configure the latest version of podman in a custom WSL distribution following the Linux installation instructions. Container Desktop provides a customized TCP relay for passing Unix sockets from the WSL environment back to the Windows native context.
On macOS, users can choose to install podman or lima.
4. Comparison with Docker Desktop
Container Desktop vs Podman Desktop:
5. Installation and Deployment Guide
1. Installation on Windows
Windows users can install Container Desktop by following the steps below:
2. Installation on macOS
macOS users can use the following command to install:
3. Installation on Linux
The installation process for Linux users is as follows:
4. Remote connection configuration
To set up a remote host connection, perform the following steps:
6. Core Features and Usage Examples
Container Desktop provides a wealth of features to make container management more intuitive and efficient. According to the latest 5.2.13 version update, the project has been significantly enhanced in terms of functionality.
1. Basic container management
The following is an example of creating and managing Nginx containers:
Through the Container Desktop interface, users can click "Create Container" and fill in the relevant information:
Image: nginx:alpine
Name: nginx-web
Port mapping: 8080:80
Volume: ./website:/usr/share/nginx/html
2. Mirror Management Example
Container Desktop provides an intuitive mirror management interface, where users can perform the following operations:
Mirror search and pull: Type "nginx" in the search box, click Search, then select the desired tag version and click "Pull"
Image building: Select the directory containing the Dockerfile, set the label to "myapp:1.0", and click "Build"
Image push: Select the local image "myapp:1.0", click "Push" to push it to the configured registry
3. Volume management
Example of creating and managing persistent volumes:
In Container Desktop, users can view, create and manage all volumes in the Volumes tab, and can directly mount disk volumes to new containers.
4. Network configuration example
Create a custom network and connect to the container:
In Container Desktop, users can manage the network graphically, create a new network and configure the network connection of the container.
VII. Advanced configuration and practical skills
1. Multi-host management
Container Desktop supports managing multiple Podman hosts, both local and remote. Here are the steps to configure multiple hosts:
Click "Connections" on the main interface
Select "Add Connection"
Enter the connection name and select the connection type (local/SSH)
For SSH connection, provide the host address, username and key
Test the connection and save
This allows users to manage containers in multiple environments in one interface, which is ideal for managing development, test, and production environments.
2. Create a custom image
Best practices for creating a custom image using Container Desktop:
In Container Desktop, users can:
Select the directory containing the Dockerfile
Set the image name and tags
Add build parameters (if necessary)
Click "Build" to start the build process
View the real-time build log
3. Container Orchestration Example
Container Desktop can be used with Podman-Compose to manage multi-container applications:
In Container Desktop, users can import this compose file and start the entire application stack with one click.
8. Screenshots
9. Summary and Suggestions
Container Desktop is a cross-platform desktop companion tool for Podman, providing a lightweight graphical interface to simplify container management operations. It supports cross-platform development and remote management, suitable for beginners to learn, developers to efficiently manage containers, and system administrators to ensure system security. Although the author recommends the official Podman Desktop, the specific features and historical value of Container Desktop still make it a choice worth exploring. As an open source tool, it demonstrates the practical application of technological innovation and open source spirit, enriches the ecosystem of container management tools, and provides developers with more flexibility and choices.
10. Address
https://github.com/iongion/container-desktop
