rkt
rkt is an application container engine developed by CoreOS, designed to provide a secure and composable container runtime. Here's a detailed overview:
History and Development
- rkt was announced by CoreOS in December 2014 as an alternative to the then-dominant Docker container runtime.
- The project aimed to address some of the security concerns and design limitations perceived in Docker at the time, focusing on simplicity, security, and composability.
- In May 2015, rkt reached its 1.0 release, marking it as production-ready.
- It was developed with the backing of CNCF (Cloud Native Computing Foundation), which reflects its commitment to open-source container technology standards.
Key Features
- Security: rkt implements a security model where the container runtime itself is isolated from the host system. It uses seccomp and AppArmor to restrict system calls and file access respectively.
- Composability: Containers in rkt can be composed of multiple images, allowing for more flexible application packaging.
- Pod Native: rkt supports running applications in Pods, aligning well with the Kubernetes model for deploying, scaling, and managing containerized applications.
- Standards Compliance: rkt adheres to the OCI (Open Container Initiative) specifications for container formats and runtimes, promoting interoperability with other container technologies.
- Performance: The engine is designed to have minimal overhead, making it efficient for running containers in production environments.
Usage and Adoption
- Despite its potential, rkt did not gain as widespread adoption as Docker, partly due to the latter's head start and established ecosystem.
- Some cloud providers and companies integrated rkt into their infrastructure, valuing its security features.
- rkt was often used in environments where strict security and isolation were paramount.
Current Status
- As of mid-2020, rkt was no longer actively developed by CoreOS (which was acquired by Red Hat), but the project remains open source and archived on GitHub.
- The last official release was v1.30.0 in February 2019.
- While rkt itself might not see further development, its ideas and some of its components have influenced other container technologies.
External Links
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