Distrobox Containers

Basic Usage

Run other minimal variants of popular Linux distributions in Bazzite inside of a container and access each distribution's packages without any of their dependencies and libraries affecting the host machine.

• Containers are not virtual machines.
• Containers are intended to be disposable and may run into issues where they need to be recreated.
• Using this method to obtain software requires knowledge of how traditional Linux operating systems install packages.
• Create a test container to familiarize yourself with basic Linux commands before diving in further.

Distrobox containers run sub-systems of other popular Linux distributions with access to their package managers (apt, dnf, pacman, etc.) and their package formats (.deb/.rpm) and any additional repositories like the AUR. Distrobox containers can be used for both development environments and installing applications that are not available in any of the other installation methods which can be exclusive to specific package managers.

Linux Distribution Examples:

OS	Package Manager	Search for Packages
Fedora	dnf	Fedora Packages / COPR Packages
Arch	pacman	Arch Linux Packages / AUR Packages
Debian / Ubuntu	apt	Debian Packages / Ubuntu Packages (PPA)
openSUSE	zypper	openSUSE Packages
Void	xbps	Void Linux Packages
Alpine	apk	Alpine Linux Packages

Arch Linux Distrobox Container Example:

I use Arch (in a container) btw.

Use Cases

Distrobox containers can be used for both development environments and installing applications that are not available in any of the other installation methods which can be exclusive to specific package managers.

Distrobox Graphical Interface

Distrobox containers can be created and managed graphically with DistroShelf which is pre-installed.

Desktop Integration

Applications with a graphical user interface can integrate with your system with an application shortcut by exporting the application using the below command in the container terminal window:

distrobox-export --app <package>

To "un-export" the app, enter the command below in the container terminal window:

distrobox-export --delete --app <package>

Manually Create Pre-Configured Distrobox Containers

ujust distrobox-assemble

Select the container that you want to use.

Advanced users: Declare your own custom Distrobox containers following the distrobox-assemble documentation.

Entering The Container

Swap between different containers in your host with the terminal or alternatively enter:

distrobox enter <container>

Removing Distrobox Containers

Delete containers graphically with DistroShelf.

Alternatively, use the command line:

distrobox stop <container_name>

distrobox rm -f <container_name>

Distrobox Video Guide

https://youtu.be/5m0YfIiypwA

Project Website

https://distrobox.it/