---
name: "compute-tools"
section: "7"
platform: "linux"
package: "open-infrastructure-compute-tools"
version: "20250604-1"
release: "Debian 13 (Trixie)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/compute-tools"
---

# compute-tools(7)

Manage systemd-nspawn containers

## NAME

compute-tools - Manage systemd-nspawn containers

## DESCRIPTION

\[A Linux container\] is an operating-system-level virtualization environment for running multiple isolated Linux systems (containers) on a single Linux control host.

\-- Wikipedia ( \<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LXC\> )

**compute-tools** provides the system integration for managing containers using [systemd-nspawn(1)](/systemd-nspawn/1.md).

## DOWNLOAD

```
Upstream Releases:
 <https://get.open-infrastructure.net/software/compute-tools/upstream>
```

```
Upstream Sources:
 <https://git.open-infrastructure.net/software/compute-tools>
```

```
Debian Releases:
 <https://get.open-infrastructure.net/software/compute-tools/debian>
```

```
Debian Sources:
 <https://git.progress-linux.org/users/daniel/debian/packages/open-infrastructure-compute-tools>
```

## INSTALLATION

### Source

```
$ sudo apt install git make python3-docutils dbus systemd-container
$ git clone  <https://git.open-infrastructure.net/software/compute-tools>
$ cd compute-tools && sudo make install
```

### Debian 9 (stretch) and newer

```
$ sudo apt install compute-tools
```

## DEVELOPMENT

Bug reports, feature requests, help, patches, support and everything else are welcome on the Open Infrastructure Software Mailing List ( \<https://lists.open-infrastructure.net/listinfo/software\> ).

Please base patches against the 'next' Git branch using common sense ( \<https://www.kernel.org/doc/Documentation/SubmittingPatches\> ).

Debian specific bugs can also be reported in the Debian Bug Tracking System ( \<https://bugs.debian.org\> ).

## KNOWN LIMITATIONS

This version of compute-tools currently do not work with systemd-networkd and depend on ifupdown.

Using overlay, the upper directory can not be an NFS mount due to limitations in Linux' overlay filesystem ( \<https://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/tree/Documentation/filesystems/overlayfs.txt\> ).

## USAGE

- **Build a new container:**

  sudo container build -n NAME

- **Start a container:**

  sudo container start -n NAME

- **Stop a container:**

  sudo container stop -n NAME

- **Remove a container:**

  sudo container remove -n NAME

- **List container on the system:**

  sudo container list

- **Show container version:**

  container version

See [container(1)](/container/1.md) for a list of all container commands.

## LINKS

```
* Linux Weekly News: Kernel / Containers
( <https://lwn.net/Kernel/Index/#Containers> )
```

```
* Linux Weekly News: Security / Containers
( <https://lwn.net/Security/Index/#Containers> )
```

```
* 2016-02-24: Systemd vs. Docker
( <https://lwn.net/Articles/676831/> )
```

```
* 2015-06-10: Systemd and containers
( <https://lwn.net/Articles/647634/> )
```

```
* 2014-07-07: Control groups
( <https://lwn.net/Articles/604609/> )
```

```
* 2013-11-13: Systemd-Nspawn is Chroot on Steroids [LinuxCon Europe]
( <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7LlUs5D9p4> )
```

```
* 2013-11-03: Creating containers with systemd-nspawn
( <https://lwn.net/Articles/572957/> )
```

```
* 2013-02-06: Systemd lightweight containers
( <https://lwn.net/Articles/536033/> )
```

```
* 2013-01-04: Namespaces in operation
( <https://lwn.net/Articles/531114/> )
```

## AUTHORS

compute-tools were written by Daniel Baumann \< \<daniel.baumann@open-infrastructure.net\> \> and others.