nixos-container

manages lightweight NixOS containers using Linux namespaces

TLDR

List running containers

$ sudo nixos-container list

Create a NixOS container with a specific configuration file

$ sudo nixos-container create [container_name] --config-file [path/to/nix_config_file]

Start, stop, terminate, or destroy a specific container

$ sudo nixos-container [start|stop|terminate|destroy|status] [container_name]

Run a command in a running container

$ sudo nixos-container run [container_name] -- [command] [arguments]

Update a container configuration

$ sudo nixos-container update [container_name]

Enter an interactive shell session on a running container

$ sudo nixos-container root-login [container_name]

SYNOPSIS

nixos-container command [options] [containername_]

nixos-container manages lightweight NixOS containers using Linux namespaces (systemd-nspawn). Each container runs a minimal NixOS system with its own configuration, services, and network namespace.
Containers are configured using standard NixOS configuration files, enabling declarative management of containerized services. The container shares the host's kernel but has an isolated filesystem, process tree, and optionally network.
Configuration files are stored in /var/lib/container/<name>/etc/nixos/ and can be edited directly before running update to apply changes.

PARAMETERS

list

List all containers

create _name_

Create a new container

start _name_

Start a stopped container

stop _name_

Stop a running container

terminate _name_

Forcefully terminate a container

destroy _name_

Remove a container and its configuration

status _name_

Show container status

run _name_ -- _command_

Execute a command inside the container

root-login _name_

Open an interactive root shell in the container

update _name_

Rebuild container after configuration changes

--config-file _path_

Nix configuration file for the container

CAVEATS

Requires root privileges. NixOS-specific; not available on other distributions. Containers share the host kernel, so kernel modules and versions are inherited. Network configuration requires explicit setup for external connectivity.