kiwi-ng

Build an appliance

$ kiwi-ng system build --description=[path/to/directory] --target-dir=[path/to/directory]

$ kiwi-ng result list --target-dir=[path/to/directory]

$ kiwi-ng help

$ kiwi-ng -v

kiwi-ng system build --description <path/to/description.xml> --target-dir <path/to/output/directory> [options]

--description <path/to/description.xml>
    Path to the XML description file specifying the image configuration.

--target-dir <path/to/output/directory>
    Path to the directory where the generated image will be stored.

--type <image_type>
    Specifies the image type to build. Examples include 'vmx', 'oem', 'docker' or 'live'. Supported image types depend on configured plugins.

--profile <profile_name>
    Selects a specific profile within the description file. Allows to specify which profile within the description xml should be processed.

--logfile <path/to/logfile>
    Path to log file

kiwi-ng is a tool for creating customized operating system images for various deployment scenarios, including virtual machines, cloud environments, and embedded devices.

It uses an XML-based description file to define the image characteristics, such as the base operating system, installed packages, system configuration, and partitioning scheme.

kiwi-ng supports multiple target platforms and image formats, enabling users to create images tailored to their specific needs. It leverages systemd-nspawn containers for building images in an isolated and reproducible environment.

Through a combination of declarative configuration and scripting support, kiwi-ng facilitates the automation of image building process and ensure consistency across multiple image builds.

Building images with kiwi-ng requires root privileges or appropriate permissions to manage systemd-nspawn containers. The XML description file must be carefully crafted to avoid errors during the image build process.

The XML description file defines the structure and content of the target image. It contains information about the base system, packages to install, repositories to use, and system configuration files. The syntax and available options for the XML description file are detailed in the kiwi-ng documentation.

kiwi-ng allows developers to extend its functionality using plugins. Plugins can be used to add support for additional image types and customize the image building process.

kiwi-ng is the next generation successor of the original kiwi image builder tool.

It was rewritten to address limitations and improve the functionality and maintainability of the image building process.

Development focused on decoupling the core functionality from the image building process to allow building images for multiple distributions.

systemd-nspawn(1), qemu-img(1)