Lima can help overcome the challenges of running containers on a Mac.
![Containers for shipping overseas][1]
Running containers on your Mac can be a challenge. After all, containers are based on Linux-specific technologies like cgroups and namespaces.
Luckily, macOS has a built-in hypervisor, allowing virtual machines (VMs) on the Mac. The hypervisor is a low-level kernel feature, not a user-facing one.
Enter `hyperkit`, an [open source project][2] that will run VMs using the macOS hypervisor. The `hyperkit` tool is designed to be a "minimalist" VM runner. Unlike, say, VirtualBox, it does not come with fancy UI features to manage VMs.
You can grab `hyperkit`, a minimalist Linux distribution running a container manager, and plumb all the pieces together. This would be a lot of moving parts, and sounds like a lot of work. Especially if you want to make the network connections a bit more seamless by using `vpnkit`, an open source project to create a VM's network that feels more like part of the host's network.
### Lima
There is no reason to go to all that effort, when [the `lima` project][3] has figured out the details. One of the easiest ways to get `lima` running is with [Homebrew][4]. You can install `lima` with this command:
```
`$ brew install lima`
```
After installation, which might take a while, it is time to begin having some fun. In order to let `lima` know you are ready for some fun, you need to start it. Here's the command:
```
`$ limactl start`
```
If this is your first time, you will be asked if you like the defaults or whether you want to change any of them. The defaults are pretty safe, but I like to live on the wild side. This is why I jump into an editor and make the following modifications from:
```
- location: "~"
# CAUTION: `writable` SHOULD be false for the home directory.
# Setting `writable` to true is possible but untested and dangerous.
writable: false
```
to:
```
- location: "~"
# I *also* like to live dangerously -- Austin Powers
writable: true
```
As it says in the comment, this can be dangerous. Many existing workflows, sadly, depend on this mounting to be read-write.
By default, `lima` runs `containerd` to manage containers. The `containerd` manager is also a pretty frill-less one. While it is not uncommon to use a wrapper daemon, like `dockerd`, to add those nice-to-have ergonomics, there is another way.
### The nerdctl tool
The `nerdctl` tool is a drop-in replacement for the Docker client which puts those features in the client, not the server. The `lima` tool allows running `nerdctl` without installing it locally, directly from inside the VM.
Putting it all together, it is time to run a container! This container will run an HTTP server. You can create the files on your Mac:
```
$ ls
index.html
$ cat index.html
hello
```
Now, mount and forward the ports:
```
$ lima nerdctl run --rm -it -p 8000:8000 -v $(pwd):/html --entrypoint bash python
root@9486145449ab:/#
```
Inside the container, run a simple web server:
```
$ lima nerdctl run --rm -it -p 8000:8000 -v $(pwd):/html --entrypoint bash python
