lxc

LXC, short for Linux Containers, is a command line tool that provides a lightweight and portable solution for OS-level virtualization on Linux systems. It enables you to create and manage lightweight, secure, and isolated containers within a single Linux host.

With LXC, you can create multiple containers running independently on the same host, each containing its own isolated process space, file system, and network interfaces. These containers are similar to virtual machines but offer more efficient resource utilization and faster startup and shutdown times.

LXC leverages Linux kernel features such as namespaces, control groups (cgroups), and chroot to achieve containerization. It provides a simple command line interface, making it easy to create, manage, and interact with containers. You can start, stop, restart, and delete containers, as well as view their current state and resource usage.

LXC also allows you to configure various aspects of the container, such as network settings, resource limits, and storage, providing flexibility in customizing the container environment according to your needs. It supports various Linux distributions as container templates, enabling you to create containers with different OS versions and package sets.

LXC is widely used in various scenarios, including testing and development environments, server consolidation, and deploying applications with strict isolation requirements. It offers a balance between system-level isolation and resource efficiency, making it a popular choice for containerization on Linux.