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Microsandbox: Virtual Machines that feel and perform like containers

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Re: Microsandbox: Virtual Machines that feel and perform like containers

#11

Post by dataflow »

Tangential question: why does it normally take so long to start traditional VMs in the first place? At least on Windows, if you start a traditional VM, it takes several seconds for it to start running anything.

Edit: when I say anything, I'm not talking user programs. I mean as in, before even the first instruction of the firmware -- before even the virtual disk file is zeroed out, in cases where it needs to be. You literally can't pause the VM during this interval because the window hasn't even popped up yet, and even when it has, you still can't for a while because it literally hasn't started running anything. So the kernel and even firmware initialization slowness are entirely irrelevant to my question.

Why is that?

Re: Microsandbox: Virtual Machines that feel and perform like containers

#12

Post by simonw »

jauntywundrkind wrote: post #10

Why not some of the existing microvm efforts? Cloud Hypervisor and Firecracker both have an excellent reputation for ultra lightweight VM's. Both are usable in the very popular Kata Containers project (as well as other upstart VM's Dragonball, & StratoVirt). In us by for example the CNCF Confidential Containers https://github.com/kata-containers/kata-containers/blob/main... https://confidentialcontainers.org/ There's…

If we get enough of these sandboxes, maybe we will finally get one that's easy for me to run on my own machines.

Re: Microsandbox: Virtual Machines that feel and perform like containers

#13

Post by appcypher »

Tsarp wrote: post #4

Wow. This looks awesome. Can we build our own python sandbox using the sandboxfile spec? This is if I want to add my own packages. Would this be just having my own requirements file here - https://github.com/microsandbox/microsandbox/blob/main/MSB_V...

Thank you!

> Can we build our own python sandbox using the sandboxfile spec?

Yes and I plan to make that work with the SDK.

PS: Multi-stage build is WIP.

Re: Microsandbox: Virtual Machines that feel and perform like containers

#14

Post by mike_hearn »

simonw wrote: post #12
jauntywundrkind wrote: post #10

Why not some of the existing microvm efforts? Cloud Hypervisor and Firecracker both have an excellent reputation for ultra lightweight VM's. Both are usable in the very popular Kata Containers project (as well as other upstart VM's Dragonball, & StratoVirt). In us by for example the CNCF Confidential Containers https://github.com/kata-containers/kata-containers/blob/main... https://confidentialcontainers.org/ There's…

If we get enough of these sandboxes, maybe we will finally get one that's easy for me to run on my own machines.

Which platforms do you use?

Re: Microsandbox: Virtual Machines that feel and perform like containers

#16

Post by appcypher »

jauntywundrkind wrote: post #10

Why not some of the existing microvm efforts? Cloud Hypervisor and Firecracker both have an excellent reputation for ultra lightweight VM's. Both are usable in the very popular Kata Containers project (as well as other upstart VM's Dragonball, & StratoVirt). In us by for example the CNCF Confidential Containers https://github.com/kata-containers/kata-containers/blob/main... https://confidentialcontainers.org/ There's…

Because those have different directions than microsandbox and you've already mentioned one. I want easy secure sandboxes for AI builders. IMHO, microsandbox is easier to get started with.

That said I don't think either KataContainer or Cloud Hypervisor has first-class support for macOS.

Re: Microsandbox: Virtual Machines that feel and perform like containers

#17

Post by tough »

simonw wrote: post #12
jauntywundrkind wrote: post #10

Why not some of the existing microvm efforts? Cloud Hypervisor and Firecracker both have an excellent reputation for ultra lightweight VM's. Both are usable in the very popular Kata Containers project (as well as other upstart VM's Dragonball, & StratoVirt). In us by for example the CNCF Confidential Containers https://github.com/kata-containers/kata-containers/blob/main... https://confidentialcontainers.org/ There's…

If we get enough of these sandboxes, maybe we will finally get one that's easy for me to run on my own machines.

would you be OK with a -hardened- with default profiles docker containers one?

Re: Microsandbox: Virtual Machines that feel and perform like containers

#19

Post by [deleted] »

jauntywundrkind wrote: post #10

Why not some of the existing microvm efforts? Cloud Hypervisor and Firecracker both have an excellent reputation for ultra lightweight VM's. Both are usable in the very popular Kata Containers project (as well as other upstart VM's Dragonball, & StratoVirt). In us by for example the CNCF Confidential Containers https://github.com/kata-containers/kata-containers/blob/main... https://confidentialcontainers.org/ There's…

[deleted]

Re: Microsandbox: Virtual Machines that feel and perform like containers

#20

Post by appcypher »

tough wrote: post #17
simonw wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If we get enough of these sandboxes, maybe we will finally get one that's easy for me to run on my own machines.

would you be OK with a -hardened- with default profiles docker containers one?

I don't understand what you mean? Can you clarify?
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