Dev tools · alternatives · 2026
24 alternatives to Slim 2: Create VM from Dockerfile, boots in seconds (+macOS M1/Hyper-V)
Build and run tiny vms from Dockerfiles. Small and sleek. - GitHub - ottomatica/slim at 2.x
Slim 2 is a tool that creates virtual machines directly from Dockerfiles and boots them in seconds. It supports macOS M1 and Hyper-V environments. The software is designed for developers who need to quickly spin up VMs… Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. Slim 2: Create VM from Dockerfile, boots in seconds (+macOS M1/Hyper-V) launched in 2022; newer entries below may have overtaken it.
- 1
Build and run tiny vms from Dockerfiles. Small and sleek. - ottomatica/slim
2019 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 2
Build and run tiny vms from Dockerfiles. Small and sleek. - ottomatica/slim
2019 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 3
Hey HN, we're excited to share Lumier (https://github.com/trycua/cua/tree/main/libs/lumier), an open-source tool for running macOS and Linux virtual machines in Docker containers on Apple Silicon Macs. When building virtualized environments for AI agents, we needed a reproducible way to package and distribute macOS VMs. Inspired by projects like dockur/windows (https://github.com/dockur/windows) that pioneered running Windows in Docker, we wanted to create something similar but optimized for Apple Silicon. The existing…
2025 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 4
I wanted to see how fast an isolated code sandbox could start if I never had to boot a fresh VM. So instead of launching a new microVM per execution, I boot Firecracker once with Python and numpy already loaded, then snapshot the full VM state. Every execution after that creates a new KVM VM backed by a `MAP_PRIVATE` mapping of the snapshot memory, so Linux gives me copy-on-write pages automatically. That means each sandbox starts from an already-running Python process inside a real VM, runs the code, and exits. These are real KVM VMs, not containers: separate guest kernel, separate guest…
Mar 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →
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Create microVMs from OCI images. Contribute to slp/krunvm development by creating an account on GitHub.
2021 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 6
We just open-sourced Lume - a tool we built after hitting walls with existing virtualization options on Apple Silicon. No GUI, no complex stacks - just a single binary that lets you spin up macOS or Linux VMs via CLI or API. Why we built Lume: - Run native macOS VMs in 1 command, using Apple Virtualization.Framework: `lume run macos-sequoia-vanilla:latest` - Prebuilt images on https://ghcr.io/trycua (macOS, Ubuntu on ARM) - API server to manage VMs programmatically `POST /lume/vms` - A python SDK on github.com/trycua/pylume Run prebuilt macOS images in just…
2025 · github.com · its alternatives →
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Branchable computing by using a portable, lightweight, self-contained virtual machine - smol-machines/smolvm
Apr 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →
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Hi HN A few folks and I have been working on this project for a couple weeks now. After previously working on the Docker project for a number of years (both on the container runtime and image registry side), the recent rise in open source language models made us think something similar needed to exist for large language models too. While not exactly the same as running linux containers, running LLMs shares quite a few of the same challenges. There are "base layers" (e.g. models like Llama 2), specific configuration to run correctly (parameters, temperature, context window sizes etc). There's…
2023 · github.com · its alternatives →
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ohai! I've released Lightwhale 3, which is possibly the easiest way to self-host Docker containers. It's a free, immutable Linux system purpose-built to live-boot straight into a working Docker Engine, thereby shortcutting the need for installation, configuration, and maintenance. Its simple design makes it easy to learn, and its low memory footprint should make it especially attractive during these times of RAMageddon. If this has piqued your interest, do check it out, along with its easy-to-follow Getting Started guide. In any event, have a nice day! =)
Apr 2026 · lightwhale.asklandd.dk · its alternatives →
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A set of utilities (vmcli + vmctl) for macOS Virtualization.framework - gyf304/vmcli
2021 · github.com · its alternatives →
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"interesting" VM in C. Let's see how this goes. Contribute to tekknolagi/carp development by creating an account on GitHub.
2014 · github.com · its alternatives →
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Shuru is a lightweight sandbox that spins up Linux VMs on macOS using Apple's Virtualization.framework. Boots in about a second on Apple Silicon, and everything is ephemeral by default. There's a checkpoint system for when you do want to persist state, and sandboxes run without network access unless you explicitly allow it. Single Rust binary, no dependencies. Built it for sandboxing AI agent code execution, but it works well for anything where you need a disposable Linux environment.
Feb 2026 · shuru.run · its alternatives →
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Contribute to libriscv/drogon-sandbox development by creating an account on GitHub.
2024 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 15
I've built this to make it easy to host your own infra for lightweight VMs at large scale. Intended for exec of AI-generated code, for CICD runners, or for off-chain AI DApps. Mainly to avoid Docker-in-Docker dangers and mess. Super easy to use with CLI / Python SDK, friendly to AI engs who usually don't like to mess with VM orchestration and networking too much. Defense-in-depth philosophy. Would love to get feedback (and contributors: clear & exciting roadmap!), thx
2025 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 16
Hey HN, Lume is an open-source CLI for running macOS and Linux VMs on Apple Silicon. Since launch (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42908061), we've been using it to run AI agents in isolated macOS environments. We needed VMs that could set themselves up, so we built that. Here's what's new in 0.2: *Unattended Setup* – Go from IPSW to a fully configured VM without touching the keyboard. We built a VNC + OCR system that clicks through macOS Setup Assistant automatically. No more manual setup before pushing to a registry: lume create my-vm --os macos --ipsw latest…
Jan 2026 · cua.ai · its alternatives →
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Support for bootable OS containers (bootc) and generating disk images - podman-desktop/extension-bootc
2024 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 19LD
Hey HN, I’m excited to show you Layerfiles, an OSS project which gives you a single binary to build microvms using a syntax that looks like a Dockerfile. The project is currently in alpha, but it’s already able to build a VM on Linux hosts. MicroVMs are like containers, but have several upsides: - They can run on any OS, so you don’t need to run a wrapper VM like Docker Desktop does. - They also let you keep processes running during a build (RUN BACKGROUND), so you can run a webserver or build server in the background. - You can generally run them rootless without any extra configuration.…
2022 · its alternatives →
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hey guys. the other day i was migrating hosting providers and i just needed something not too heavy and convenient to spin up my backups for awhile and realised there is almost nothing out there. kimchi hasn't been updated for years and cockpit is heavy. so here's something i came up with in a couple hours because of a sudden urge, nothing fancy just basic creation with cloud init, lifecycle management and image/storage, but it's modern-ish and it compiles to a 8.4mb binary inclusive of the embedded web UI, CLI and API, and only dep is libvirt.
2025 · github.com · its alternatives →
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VirtualProg▲74A faster, simpler alternative to bulky VM managers.
Apr 2026 · makeprog.com · its alternatives →
- 22
Hi HN! Excited to launch machine0, a CLI that makes it easy to create, provision and snapshot persistent NixOS (& Ubuntu) VMs. You can think of machine0 as a modern VPS provider. VMs stay on unless switched-off (with 99.99% uptime), they have static IPs and HTTPS endpoints, 1-60 vCPU, up to 240GB RAM and optionally GPUs. The CLI provides commands to manage lifecycle, snapshots and also provision the VMs using Nix flakes or Ansible playbooks. VMs are priced by the minute of usage. What makes machine0 unique is that it has first class support for NixOS! In a nutshell, NixOS lets you define…
Jun 2026 · machine0.io · its alternatives →
- 23
Docker based portable Workstation. Contribute to mikadosoftware/workstation development by creating an account on GitHub.
2019 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 24
Minimalist, dependency-free virtual machine sandbox for microcontrollers and other resource-constrained devices. Single C file, no dynamic memory allocations, asynchronous design, pure C99 - ringtailsoftware/uvm32
Dec 2025 · github.com · its alternatives →
Also compare
- Slim – Build and run tiny VMs from Dockerfiles alternatives
- slim - Build micro-vms from Dockerfiles alternatives
- Lumier – Run macOS VMs in a Docker alternatives
- Sub-millisecond VM sandboxes using CoW memory forking alternatives
- krunvm – Create and run lightweight VMs from OCI images alternatives
- Lume – OS lightweight CLI for MacOS and Linux VMs on Apple Silicon alternatives
Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →