apx-subsystems

Interactively create a new subsystem

$ apx subsystems new

$ apx subsystems list

$ apx subsystems reset [[-n|--name]] [string]

$ apx subsystems reset [[-n|--name]] [string] [[-f|--force]]

$ apx subsystems rm [[-n|--name]] [string]

$ apx subsystems rm [[-n|--name]] [string] [[-f|--force]]

apx-subsystems <list|add|remove> [OPTIONS] [NAME]

list
    List installed subsystems with status and distro info

add NAME
    Create and initialize a new subsystem with given name

remove NAME
    Delete the specified subsystem and its data

--distro DISTRO
    Distro for subsystem (e.g., ubuntu, fedora, debian); defaults to ubuntu

--runtime RUNTIME
    Container runtime: podman (default) or bwrap

--description DESC
    Optional human-readable description for the subsystem

--all
    For list: show all subsystems including inactive ones

--quiet
    Suppress non-essential output

--yes
    For remove: skip confirmation prompt

--help
    Show help and exit

--version
    Display version info

apx-subsystems is a subcommand of the apx tool, a CLI for running foreign Linux distro applications in unprivileged containers on Arch Linux hosts. It specifically handles subsystems, which are lightweight, persistent containers optimized for running system daemons, services, and background processes (e.g., cron, systemd units) from other distributions without affecting the host.

Unlike standard apx containers for apps, subsystems focus on service isolation, enabling multi-distro service management. Users can list, add, enter, or remove subsystems, specifying distros like Ubuntu or Fedora, and runtimes such as podman or bubblewrap. This is ideal for developers needing distro-specific tools or services in a clean environment.

Key benefits include rootless operation, automatic image pulls, and integration with host namespaces. Requires apx installed via pacman.

Requires rootless podman or bubblewrap; large images may take time to download. Subsystems persist data in ~/.local/share/apx/subsystems. Not for GUI apps.

apx-subsystems list
apx-subsystems add --distro fedora myservice
apx-subsystems enter myservice
apx-subsystems remove --yes myservice

Edit ~/.config/apx/apx.conf for global runtime/default distro settings.

Part of apx project started in 2023 by Vinzent03 for Arch Linux. Subsystems feature added in v0.13.0 (April 2024) to support service containers beyond apps.

apx(1), podman(1), distrobox(1), systemd-nspawn(1)