Wednesday, February 19, 2025

How to Create a Custom Systemd Service in Linux

https://www.maketecheasier.com/create-custom-systemd-service-in-linux

How to Create a Custom Systemd Service in Linux

A photograph of a person working in front of his computer.

Systemd is a powerful and highly versatile init system for Linux distros. It can run programs, manage system resources, and even control the state of your computer. In this article, I’ll demonstrate how you can use Systemd to control your apps by creating a custom service unit in Ubuntu.

What is a Systemd Service Unit?

A service unit is a regular file that contains details on how to run a specific app. It includes the general metadata of the program, how to run it, and whether Systemd can access it on a regular session.

By default, every daemon on a Systemd-based machine has some form of a service file. OpenSSH, for instance, uses the ssh.service unit in “/etc/systemd/system/” to determine how it will run in Debian and Ubuntu.

A terminal showing the service unit for OpenSSH.

At a basic level, a service unit file is made up of three parts: the Unit, Service, and Install categories. The Unit section provides the app’s metadata and dependencies. The Service section defines where the app is and how Systemd will run it. Lastly, the Install section describes when can Systemd start the app.

Creating a System-level Custom Systemd Service

One of the most common uses for a custom service is automating commands that require root privileges or take advantage of Systemd Timers. For instance, a custom service helps in ensuring that a Minecraft server will start up properly after a restart.

To create a custom system-level service in Linux, start by making the Systemd unit file in your user’s home directory:

nano ~/my-system-app.service

Paste the following block of code inside your new unit file. This is the simplest valid config for a Systemd service:

[Unit]
Description=My First Service
After=network.target
 
[Service]
Type=simple
ExecStart=/path/to/bin
Restart=always
 
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Replace the “Description” variable with the details of your user-level service.

Replace the “ExecStart” variable with the full file path of program that you want to run.

A terminal showing a simple Systemd unit file for a system-level service.

Save your new file, then copy it to your machine’s services directory:

sudo cp ./my-system-app.service /etc/systemd/system/

Run the following command to restart the Systemd daemon:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload

Test your new system-level service by running the following command:

sudo systemctl start my-system-app.service

Lastly, confirm that your new service is running properly by checking its status in systemctl:

systemctl status my-system-app.service
A terminal showing the custom service running properly.

Creating a User-level Custom Systemd Service

Service units aren’t limited to system-level apps or superusers. With the help of Systemd-user, it’s possible to create rootless services. This allows non-root users to manage local apps while improving their PC’s security by limiting programs with root access.

To create your user-level custom service in Linux, make a new Systemd unit file in your user’s home directory:

nano ~/my-user-app.service

Paste the following block of code inside your new unit file:

[Unit]
Description=My First User Service
After=graphical-session.target
 
[Service]
Type=simple
ExecStart=/path/to/bin
 
[Install]
WantedBy=default.target

Replace the value of the “ExecStart” variable to the path of the program that you want to run. Since this is a user-level service, make sure that your user account has proper access to the binary.

A terminal highlighting the user script with regular user access.

Save your new user-level service file, then create the local Systemd directory for your user:

mkdir -p ~/.config/systemd/user/

Copy your new user-level service file to the local Systemd directory for your user:

cp ./my-user-app.service ~/.config/systemd/user/

Make sure that Systemd checks your user directory for new service unit files:

systemctl daemon-reload --user

Lastly, confirm that your new service is running properly by checking its status in systemctl:

systemctl --user status my-user-app.service
A terminal showing the custom user service recognized in systemctl.

Good to know: Systemd is more than just an init system. Learn how its sister program: Systemd-boot stacks against the popular GRUB.

Tweaking Your Custom Systemd Service

One of the core strengths of Systemd is that it allows you to fully customize how to run and manage programs.

Adding Environment Variables to a Custom Service

Environment variables are an important part of every Linux system. They provide additional data to a program without fiddling with config files. With Systemd, it’s possible to make use of environment variables by incorporating it to your service units.

Start by disabling the service that you want to modify:

systemctl --user disable --now my-user-app.service

Open your custom service file using your favorite text editor:

sudo nano ~/.config/systemd/user/my-user-app.service

Scroll to the “[Service]” section, then add the following line of code just below the “Type=” variable:

Environment=""

Add the environment variable that you want to add to your custom service. In my case, I want to add an EDITOR variable to make sure that my service sees my Vim instance.

A terminal showing a service with a modified environment variable.

Save your modified service file, then reload your Systemd daemon to apply your changes.

A terminal showing the process of reloading the Systemd daemon.

Restart your new Systemd service to make use of your new environment variable:

systemd --user start my-user-app.service

Restricting Custom Service to a Specific User

Apart from user-level unit files, you can also tweak a system-level service to run under a specific user. This is helpful if you want to run an app under a rootless and shell-less user account.

To bind a Systemd service to a user, first completely disable your custom unit.

A terminal showing the details of a fully disabled service.

Make sure that the target user account already exists on your machine.

A terminal showing the existence of a user for the Systemd unit.

Open your system-level service file using your favorite text editor:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/my-system-app.service

Scroll down to the “[Service]” section, then add the “User=” variable followed by the name of your user account.

A terminal highlighting the User= value inside the custom service file.

Note: you can also specify the group for your service by adding “Group=” below the User variable.

Save the changes on your unit file, then restart the service:

sudo systemctl start my-system-app.service

Confirm that your service is now running as your user by running the following command:

ps -o user= -p $(systemctl show my-system-app.service -p MainPID | awk -F= '{print $2}')
A terminal showing the current owner of the system process.

Limiting a Service Unit’s Resource Consumption

On top of tweaking environment variables and users, Systemd can limit the resources an app can consume over its lifespan. While it doesn’t do it by default, it’s possible to control core parts such as CPU usage and overall process count.

Begin by completely disabling the service that you want to tweak.

A terminal showing a disabled system service.

Open the service unit file using your favorite text editor:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/my-system-app.service

Scroll down to the “[Service]” section, then add the variable name for the resource that you want to limit. For instance, adding the “MemoryHigh=” variable allows you to set a soft memory limit for that service.

A terminal highlighting the modified MemoryHigh value for the custom service.

Tip: You can find a list of valid variables by running man systemd.resource-control on a terminal session.

Save your unit file, then reload your Systemd service:

sudo systemctl enable --now my-system-app.service

Lastly, you can monitor your running services by running systemd-cgtop.

A terminal showing the output of systemd-cgtop.

Learning how to create custom Systemd services and modifying them to your needs is just the step in understanding this highly versatile tool. Explore more of Systemd and what its comprehensive ecosystem can do by checking out how Run0 performs against Sudo.


  • Sunday, February 16, 2025

    The 27 Best IDEs and Code Editors for Linux

    https://www.tecmint.com/best-ide-editor-linux

    The 27 Best IDEs and Code Editors for Linux

    C is an excellent, powerful, and general-purpose programming language that offers modern and generic programming features for developing large-scale applications ranging from video games, search engines, and other computer software to operating systems.

    C language is usually considered the base for many other programming languages (C++, JavaScript, Java, PHP, Perl, Python, and more) due to its easy and efficient language design which includes a relatively small set of features that can be used to develop more complex systems and applications.

    There are several text editors out there that programmers can use to write code, but IDE has come up to offer comprehensive facilities and components for easy and ideal programming.

    What is an IDE?

    An IDE (Integrated Development Environment) editor is a software application that offers an extensive collection of tools for software development, which includes a text editor, debugging tools, code compiler, version control, and other features that help software developers to write, debug, and test their code efficiently.

    A text editor is generally an IDE but designed to offer a more feature-rich environment that includes syntax highlighting, code folding, auto-indentation, and code completion, which is a useful feature that helps developers to reduce code errors and write code more efficiently.

    In this article, we shall look at some of the best IDEs you can find on the Linux platform that is widely used in many programming languages.

    Table of Contents

    1. Netbeans for C/C++ Development

    Netbeans is a free, open-source, and popular cross-platform IDE for C/C++ and many other programming languages. It is fully extensible using community-developed plugins.

    Netbeans includes project types and templates for C/C++ and you can build applications using static and dynamic libraries. Additionally, you can reuse existing code to create your projects and also use the drag-and-drop feature to import binary files into it to build applications from the ground.

    Let us look at some of its features:

    • The C/C++ editor is well integrated with the multi-session GNU GDB debugger tool.
    • Support for code assistance
    • C++11 support
    • Create and run C/C++ tests from within
    • Qt toolkit support
    • Support for automatic packaging of compiled applications into .tar, .zip, and many more archive files
    • Support for multiple compilers such as GNU, Clang/LLVM, Cygwin, Oracle Solaris Studio, and MinGW
    • Support for remote development
    • File navigation
    • Source inspection
    NetBeans IDE for C++ Programming
    NetBeans IDE for C++ Programming

    2. Code::Blocks

    Code::Blocks is a free, highly extensible, and configurable, cross-platform C++ IDE built to offer users the most demanded and ideal features. It delivers a consistent user interface and feels.

    And most importantly, you can extend its functionality by using plugins developed by users, some of the plugins are part of the Code::Blocks release, and many are not, written by individual users not part of the Code::Block development team.

    Its features are categorized into a compiler, debugger, and interface features and these include:

    • Multiple compiler support including GCC, clang, Borland C++ 5.5, digital Mars plus many more
    • Very fast, no need for makefiles
    • Multi-target projects
    • A workspace that supports the combining of projects
    • Interfaces GNU GDB
    • Support for full breakpoints including code breakpoints, data breakpoints, breakpoint conditions plus many more
      display local functions symbols and arguments
    • custom memory dump and syntax highlighting
    • Customizable and extensible interface plus many more other features including those added through user-built plugins
    CodeBlocks IDE for C++ Programming
    CodeBlocks IDE for C++ Programming

    3. Eclipse CDT(C/C++ Development Tooling)

    Eclipse is a well-known open-source, cross-platform IDE in the programming arena. It offers users a great GUI with support for drag and drop functionality for easy arrangement of interface elements.

    The Eclipse CDT is a project based on the primary Eclipse platform and it provides a fully functional C/C++ IDE with the following features:

    • Supports project creation.
    • Managed build for various toolchains.
    • Standard make build.
    • Source navigation.
    • Several knowledge tools such as call graph, type hierarchy, in-built browser, and macro definition browser.
    • Code editor with support for syntax highlighting.
    • Support for folding and hyperlink navigation.
    • Source code refactoring plus code generation.
    • Tools for visual debugging such as memory, and registers.
    • Disassembly viewers and many more.
    Eclipse IDE for Linux
    Eclipse IDE for Linux

    4. CodeLite IDE

    CodeLite is also a free, open-source, cross-platform IDE designed and built specifically for C/C++, JavaScript (Node.js), and PHP programming.

    Some of its main features include:

    • Code completion offers two code completion engines.
    • Supports several compilers including GCC, clang/VC++.
    • Displays errors as code glossary.
    • Clickable errors via the build tab.
    • Support for LLDB next-generation debugger.
    • GDB support.
    • Support for refactoring.
    • Code navigation.
    • Remote development using built-in SFTP.
    • Source control plugins.
    • RAD (Rapid Application Development) tool for developing wxWidgets-based apps plus many more features.
    Codelite IDE for Linux
    Codelite IDE for Linux

    5. Bluefish Editor

    Bluefish is more than just a normal editor, it is a lightweight, fast editor that offers programmers IDE-like features for developing websites, writing scripts, and software code. It is multi-platform, runs on Linux, Mac OSX, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, Solaris, and Windows, and also supports many programming languages including C/C++.

    It is feature-rich including the ones listed below:

    • Multiple document interfaces.
    • Supports the recursive opening of files based on filename patterns or content patterns.
    • Offers a very powerful search and replace functionality.
    • Snippet sidebar.
    • Support for integrating external filters of your own, pipe documents using commands such as awk, sed, and sort plus custom-built scripts.
    • Supports full-screen editing.
    • Site uploader and downloader.
    • Multiple encoding support and many other features.
    BlueFish IDE Editor for Linux
    BlueFish IDE Editor for Linux

    6. Brackets Code Editor

    Brackets is a modern and open-source text editor designed specifically for web design and development. It is highly extensible through plugins, therefore C/C++ programmers can use it by installing the C/C++/Objective-C pack extension, this pack is designed to enhance C/C++ code writing and to offer IDE-like features.

    Brackets Code Editor for Linux
    Brackets Code Editor for Linux

    7. Atom Code Editor – Deprecated

    Atom is also a modern, open-source, multi-platform text editor that can run on Linux, Windows, or Mac OS X. It is also hackable down to its base, therefore users can customize it to meet their code-writing demands.

    It is fully featured and some of its main features include:

    • Built-in package manager.
    • Smart auto-completion.
    • In-built file browser.
    • Find and replace functionality and many more.
    Atom Code Editor for Linux
    Atom Code Editor for Linux

    8. Sublime Text Editor

    Sublime Text is a well-defined, multi-platform text editor designed and developed for code, markup, and prose. You can use it for writing C/C++ code and offers a great user interface.

    Its features list comprises of:

    • Multiple selections
    • Command palette
    • Goto anything functionality
    • Distraction-free mode
    • Split Editing
    • Instant project switching support
    • Highly customizable
    • Plugin API support based on Python plus other small features
    Sublime Code Editor for Linux
    Sublime Code Editor for Linux

    9. JetBrains CLion

    CLion is a non-free, powerful, and cross-platform IDE for C/C++ programming. It is a fully integrated C/C++ development environment for programmers, providing Cmake as a project model, an embedded terminal window, and a keyboard-oriented approach to code writing.

    It also offers a smart and modern code editor plus many more exciting features to enable an ideal code-writing environment and these features include:

    • Supports several languages other than C/C++
    • Easy navigation to symbol declarations or context usage
    • Code generation and refactoring
    • Editor customization
    • On-the-fly code analysis
    • An integrated code debugger
    • Supports Git, Subversion, Mercurial, CVS, Perforce(via plugin), and TFS
    • Seamlessly integrates with Google test frameworks
    • Support for Vim text editor via Vim-emulation plugin
    JetBains CLion IDE
    JetBrains CLion IDE

    10. Microsoft’s Visual Studio Code Editor

    Visual Studio is a rich, fully integrated, cross-platform development environment that runs on Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X. It was recently made open-source to Linux users and it has redefined code editing, offering users every tool needed for building every app for multiple platforms including Windows, Android, iOS and the web.

    It is feature-full, with features categorized under application development, application lifecycle management, and extend and integrate features. You can read a comprehensive features list from the Visual Studio website.

    Visual Studio Code Editor
    Visual Studio Code Editor

    11. KDevelop

    KDevelop is just another free, open-source, and cross-platform IDE that works on Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, Windows, Mac OSX, and other Unix-like operating systems. It is based on the KDevPlatform, KDE, and Qt libraries. KDevelop is highly extensible through plugins and feature-rich with the following notable features:

    • Support for Clang-based C/C++ plugin
    • KDE 4 config migration support
    • A revival of Oketa plugin support
    • Support for different line editings in various views and plugins
    • Support for Grep view and Uses widget to save vertical space plus many more
    KDevelop IDE Editor
    KDevelop IDE Editor

    12. Geany IDE

    Geany is a free, fast, lightweight, and cross-platform IDE developed to work with few dependencies and also operate independently from popular Linux desktops such as GNOME and KDE. It requires GTK2 libraries for functionality.

    Its features list consists of the following:

    • Support for syntax highlighting
    • Code folding
    • Call tips
    • Symbol name auto-completion
    • Symbol lists
    • Code navigation
    • A simple project management tool
    • In-built system to compile and run a users code
    • Extensible through plugins
    Geany IDE for Linux
    Geany IDE for Linux

    13. Anjuta DevStudio – Discontinued

    Anjuta DevStudio is a simple GNOME yet powerful software development studio that supports several programming languages including C/C++.

    It offers advanced programming tools such as project management, GUI designer, interactive debugger, application wizard, source editor, version control plus so many other facilities. In additionally, to the above features, Anjuta DevStudio also has some other great IDE features and these include:

    • Simple user interface
    • Extensible with plugins
    • Integrated Glade for WYSIWYG UI development
    • Project wizards and templates
    • Integrated GDB debugger
    • In-built file manager
    • Integrated DevHelp for context-sensitive programming help
    • Source code editor with features such as syntax highlighting, smart indentation, auto-indentation, code folding/hiding, text zooming plus many more
    Anjuta DevStudio for Linux
    Anjuta DevStudio for Linux

    14. The GNAT Programming Studio

    The GNAT Programming Studio is a free easy-to-use IDE designed and developed to unify the interaction between a developer and his/her code and software.

    Built for ideal programming by facilitating source navigation while highlighting important sections and ideas of a program. It is also designed to offer a high level of programming comfortability, enabling users to develop comprehensive systems from the ground.

    It is feature-rich with the following features:

    • Intuitive user interface
    • Developer friendly
    • Multi-lingual and multi-platform
    • Flexible MDI(multiple document interface)
    • Highly customizable
    • Fully extensible with preferred tools
    GNAT Programming Studio
    GNAT Programming Studio

    15. Qt Creator

    Qt Creator is a free, cross-platform IDE designed for the creation of connected devices, UIs, and applications. Qt creator enables users to do more creation than actual coding of applications.

    It can be used to create mobile and desktop applications, and also connected embedded devices.

    Some of its features include:

    • Sophisticated code editor
    • Support for version control
    • Project and build management tools
    • Multi-screen and multi-platform support for easy switching between build targets plus many more
    Qt Creator for Linux
    Qt Creator for Linux

    16. Emacs Editor

    Emacs is a free, powerful, highly extensible, and customizable, cross-platform text editor you can use on Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, NetBSD, OpenBSD, Windows, and Mac OS X.

    The core of Emacs is also an interpreter for Emacs Lisp which is a language under the Lisp programming language. As of this writing, the latest release of GNU Emacs is version 27.2 and the fundamental and notable features of Emacs include:

    • Content-aware editing modes
    • Full Unicode support
    • Highly customizable using GUI or Emacs Lisp code
    • A packaging system for downloading and installing extensions
    • An ecosystem of functionalities beyond normal text editing including a project planner, mail, calendar, and newsreader plus many more
    • A complete built-in documentation plus user tutorials and many more
    Emacs Editor for Linux
    Emacs Editor for Linux

    17. SlickEdit

    SlickEdit (previously Visual SlickEdit) is an award-winning commercial cross-platform IDE created to enable programmers the ability to code on 7 platforms in 40+ languages. Respected for its feature-rich set of programming tools, SlickEdit allows users to code faster with complete control over their environment.

    Its features include:

    • Dynamic differencing using DIFFzilla
    • Syntax expansion
    • Code templates
    • Autocomplete
    • Custom typing shortcuts with aliases
    • Functionality extensions using Slick-C macro language
    • Customizable toolbars, mouse operations, menus, and key bindings
    • Support for Perl, Python, XML, Ruby, COBOL, Groovy, etc.
    SlickEdit - Source Code and Text Editor
    SlickEdit – Source Code and Text Editor

    18. Lazarus IDE

    Lazarus IDE is a free and open-source Pascal-based cross-platform visual Integrated Development Environment created to provide programmers with a Free Pascal Compiler for rapid application development. It is free for building anything including e.g. software, games, file browsers, graphics editing software, etc. irrespective of whether they will be free or commercial.

    Feature highlights include:

    • A graphical form designer
    • 100% freedom because it is open source
    • Drag & Drop support
    • Contains 200+ components
    • Support for several frameworks
    • A built-in Delphi code converter
    • A huge welcoming community of professionals, hobbyists, scientists, students, etc.
    Lazarus IDE
    Lazarus IDE

    19. MonoDevelop

    MonoDevelop is a cross-platform and open-source IDE developed by Xamarin for building web and cross-platform desktop applications with a primary focus on projects that use Mono and .Net frameworks. It has a clean, modern UI with support for extensions and several languages right out of the box.

    MonoDevelop’s feature highlights include:

    • 100% free and open-source
    • A Gtk GUI designer
    • Advanced text editing
    • A configurable workbench
    • Multi-language support e.g. C#, F#, Vala, Visual Basic .NET, etc.
    • ASP.NET
    • Unit testing, localization, packaging, deployment, etc.
    • An integrated debugger
    MonoDevelop IDE for C Programming
    MonoDevelop IDE for C Programming

    20. Gambas

    Gambas is a powerful free and open-source development environment platform based on a Basic interpreter with object extensions similar to those in Visual Basic. To greatly improve its usability and feature set its developers have several additions in the pipeline such as an enhanced web component, a graph component, an object persistence system, and upgrades to its database component.

    Among its several current feature highlights are:

    • A Just-in-Time compiler
    • Declarable local variables from anywhere in a function’s body
    • Smooth scrolling animation
    • Gambas playground
    • JIT compilation in the background
    • Support for PowerPC64 and ARM64 architectures
    • Built-in Git support
    • Auto-closing of braces, markups, strings, and brackets
    • A dialog for inserting special characters
    Gambas IDE Editor
    Gambas IDE Editor

    21. The Eric Python IDE

    The Eric Python IDE is a full-featured Python IDE written in Python based on the Qt UI toolkit to integrate with Scintilla editor control. It is designed for use by both beginner programmers and professional developers and it contains a plugin system that enables users to easily extend its functionality.

    Its feature highlights include:

    • 100% free and open-source
    • 2 tutorials for beginners – a Log Parser and Mini Browser application
    • An integrated web browser
    • A source documentation interface
    • A wizard for Python regular expressions
    • Graphic module diagram import
    • A built-in icon editor, screenshot tool, difference checker
    • A plugin repository
    • Code autocomplete, folding
    • Configurable syntax highlighting and window layout
    • Brace matching
    The Eric Python IDE
    The Eric Python IDE

    22. Stani’s Python Editor

    Stani’s Python Editor is a cross-platform IDE for Python programming. It was developed by Stani Michiels to offer Python developers a free IDE capable of call tips, auto-indentation, PyCrust shell, source index, blender support, etc. It uses a simple UI with tabbed layouts and integration support for several tools.

    Stani’s Python Editor’s features include:

    • Syntax coloring & highlighting
    • A UML viewer
    • A PyCrust shell
    • File browsers
    • Drag and drop support
    • Blender support
    • PyChecker and Kiki
    • wxGlade right out of the box
    • Auto indentation & completion
    Stanis Python Editor
    Stanis Python Editor

    23. Boa Constructor

    Boa Constructor is a simple free Python IDE and wxPython GUI builder for Linux, Windows, and Mac Operating Systems. It offers users with Zope support for object creation and editing, visual frame creation and manipulation, property creation and editing from the inspector, etc.

    Feature highlights include:

    • An object inspector
    • A tabbed layout
    • A wxPython GUI builder
    • Zope support
    • An advanced debugger and integrated help
    • Inheritance hierarchies
    • Code folding
    • Python script debugging
    Boa Constructor Python IDE
    Boa Constructor Python IDE

    24. Graviton

    Graviton is a free and open-source minimalist source code editor built with a focus on speed, customizability, and tools that boost productivity for Windows, Linux, and macOS. It features a customizable UI with colorful icons, syntax highlighting, auto-indentation, etc.

    Graviton’s features include:

    • 100% free and open-source
    • A minimalist, clutter-free User Interface
    • Customizability using themes
    • Plugins
    • Autocomplete
    • Zen mode
    • Full compatibility with CodeMirror themes
    Graviton Source Code Editor
    Graviton Source Code Editor

    25. MindForger

    MindForger is a robust free and open-source performance-driven Markdown IDE developed as a smart note-taker, editor, and organizer with respect for the security and privacy of users. It offers many features for advanced note-taking, management, and sharing such as tag support, data backup, metadata editing, Git and SSH support, etc.

    Its features include:

    • Free and open source
    • Privacy-focused
    • Supports several encryption tools e.g. ecryptfs
    • Sample mapper
    • Automatic linking
    • HTML preview and zooming
    • Import/export
    • Support for tags, metadata editing, and sorting
    MindForger Markdown IDE
    MindForger Markdown IDE

    26. Komodo IDE

    Komodo IDE is the most popular and powerful multi-language integrated development environment (IDE) for Perl, Python, PHP, Go, Ruby, web development (HTML, CSS, JavaScript), and more.

    Check out some of the following key features of Komodo IDE.

    • A powerful editor with syntax highlighting, autocomplete, and more.
    • A visual debugger to debug, inspect, and test your code.
    • Support for Git, Subversion, Mercurial, and more.
    • Useful add-ons for customizing and extending features.
    • Supports Python, PHP, Perl, Go, Ruby, Node.js, JavaScript, and more.
    • Set your own workflow using easy file and project navigation.
    Komodo IDE
    Komodo IDE

    27. VI/VIM Editor

    Vim an improved version of the VI editor, is a free, powerful, popular, and highly configurable text editor. It is built to enable efficient text editing and offers exciting editor features for Unix/Linux users, therefore, it is also a good option for writing and editing C/C++ code.

    To learn how to use Vim editor in Linux, read our following articles:

    Generally, IDEs offer more programming comfort than traditional text editors, therefore it is always a good idea to use them. They come with exciting features and offer a comprehensive development environment, sometimes programmers are caught up in choosing the best IDE to use for C/C++ programming.

    There are many other IDEs you can find out and download from the Internet, but trying out several of them can help you find that which suits your needs.

     

    Run Windows 11 in a Docker Container (Access it via the Browser)

    https://linuxtldr.com/windows-docker-container

    Run Windows 11 in a Docker Container (Access it via the Browser)

    The Windows Docker container is gaining significant popularity, allowing users to easily deploy Windows 11, 10, 8.1, XP, etc., as a container and later access it via a browser (with VNC).

    Before you confuse it with just a container, let me clarify that it uses Docker to download Windows images from the Microsoft server and then automatically configure it for installation, but behind the scenes, the downloaded image will be running in KVM (virtual emulator).

    So, you need to ensure that virtualization is enabled in your BIOS settings, but the question arises: why do you need to run Windows in a Docker container then? The answer is quite simple. I’ve written a few points below that explain the advantages of running Windows in a Docker container.

    Ezoic
    • It is completely free, open-source, and legal.
    • Automatically download the chosen Windows image from the Microsoft Server (for the latest Windows) or Bob Pony (for legacy Windows).
    • Easy access to Windows 11, 10, 8.1, 7, Vista, XP, or Windows Server 2022, 2019, 2016, 2012, 2008, and more.
    • It automatically configures the image and installs Windows, eliminating the need for going through manual installation. So, you can just run the Docker command and wait for your system to boot up.
    • Access your RAM, storage, GPU, USB devices, etc., within the container.
    • Easily delete and reinstall Windows like a sandbox.
    • Access Windows locally or remotely via a browser.
    • Use keyboard shortcuts through the remote desktop.
    • Access the Windows applications and games that Wine cannot handle properly.

    Now, there are certain things (consider them cons) that you need to take care of; thus, they are.

    • Make sure that virtualization is enabled in the BIOS settings for Windows running in the Docker container, which uses KVM.
    • The Windows within the container remains unactivated (though activation is possible through a purchased license key).
    • Hardware devices like PCI and WiFi adapters cannot function (instead, opt for virtual machines).
    • It demands the same system requirements as the original Windows (thus, less RAM results in slower speeds).

    So, let’s see how you can install and set up the Windows 11 Docker container and access it via a web browser in Linux (such as Debian, Ubuntu, Arch, RedHat, Fedora, etc.).

    Table of Contents

    How to Setup a Windows 11 Docker Container on Linux

    To set up a Windows 11 Docker container, you need to ensure that Docker and Docker Compose are installed and configured on your system, after which you can follow one of the below-mentioned methods to set it up based on your preference.

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    • Using a single “docker run” command (ease of use).
    • Using the “docker-compose.yml” file (customization options are available).

    I’ll explain how to set it up using both of these methods, so you can decide which is the perfect choice for you. Starting with…

    Method 1: Using the Docker Run Command

    This method is quite easy to follow because all you need to do is run the following command:

    $ docker run -it --rm --name windows -v /var/win:/storage -p 8006:8006 -p 3389:3389 --device=/dev/kvm --cap-add NET_ADMIN --stop-timeout 120 dockurr/windows

    Whereas:

    • docker run -it --rm“: This is a Docker command to initiate a container in interactive mode, and with the “--rm” option, the container will be removed once terminated.
    • --name windows“: This sets the name of the container (which you can verify using the “docker ps” command).
    • -v /var/win:/storage“: The downloaded image and configuration files will be stored here, so later, when the container is reinitialized, you do not have to start from scratch.
    • -p 8006:8006 -p 3389:3389“: This exposes port 8006 for browser access through VNC and port 3389 for remote desktop. If you do not plan to use remote desktop, then remove the “-p 3389:3389” part.
    • --device=/dev/kvm“: Specifies the KVM file.
    • --cap-add NET_ADMIN“: Grants additional network capabilities to the container.
    • --stop-timeout 120“: Specifies a grace period in seconds (in this case, 120) for a running container to shut down gracefully before it is forcefully terminated.
    • dockurr/windows“: This is the image of the container.

    Once you issue the command, you can check the status of the Windows 11 container by visiting “http://localhost:8006” in your browser.

    Method 2: Using Docker Compose File

    This method is for advanced users, as it requires a few manual steps to create the Windows 11 container using a compose file. So, to begin, first create a directory, and inside it, create a compose file with the following commands:

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    $ mkdir ~/Windows-Docker && cd ~/Windows-Docker
    $ touch docker-compose.yml

    Now, within the compose file, you can copy and paste the following compose template, which I manually adjusted while keeping customization and ease of use in mind. Feel free to change the highlighted red values according to your preferences.

    version: "3"
    services:
      windows:
        image: dockurr/windows
        container_name: windows
        devices:
          - /dev/kvm
        cap_add:
          - NET_ADMIN
        ports:
          - 8006:8006
          - 3389:3389/tcp
          - 3389:3389/udp
        stop_grace_period: 2m
        restart: on-failure
        environment:
          VERSION: "win11"
          RAM_SIZE: "4G"
          CPU_CORES: "4"
          DISK_SIZE: "64G"
        volumes:
          - /var/win:/storage

    In the above compose template, most of the stuff is the same as the previously mentioned “docker run” command in method 1, so if you are directly visiting this method, make sure to first check that out.

    The remaining options, which are new and consist of environment parameters such as “RAM_SIZE“, “CPU_CORES“, and “DISK_SIZE“, can be adjusted based on your preference and ensure that your system has the specified resources.

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    Now, once you have copied and pasted the provided compose template into the compose file, you can save, close the file, and execute the following command to start the container.

    $ docker compose up -d

    How to Access Windows 11 Running on a Docker Container

    Once the container is initialized, it will begin downloading the mentioned Windows image, extracting it, and building it. You can open your favorite Firefox or Chrome browser and visit “http://localhost:8006” to monitor the status of your container.

    The following is a picture of when the Windows 11 image is being downloaded.

    window image is downloading

    Once the download process is complete, it will automatically begin installing Windows 11 in a Docker container without requiring any manual steps.

    windows 11 is installed in docker container

    This process will take a few minutes, so you can take a coffee break and come back when you see the following Windows 11 home screen.

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    windows 11 home screen

    Congratulations! You have successfully set up a Windows 11 Docker container on your Linux system. Now, below, I’ve attached a few images of running different applications to give you an idea of how they look.

    The following is an image of Notepad running on a Windows 11 Docker container:

    running notepad in windows 11 docker container

    The following is an image of File Explorer on a Windows 11 Docker container:

    file explorer in windows 11

    The following is an image of the Control Panel on a Windows 11 Docker container:

    control panel in windows 11 container

    That’s it. Now you can use it like your regular Windows 11 machine on your Linux system without a virtual machine. Once you’re done using it, you can terminate it from your terminal.

    Additional Tips on Using Windows on a Docker Container

    Instead of accessing the Windows 11 Docker container from your browser through VNC, I would suggest you first enable remote desktop from Windows settings and then access it via a remote desktop client application to easily use keyboard shortcuts and achieve a proper screen view.

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    Now, in this article, we focus on setting up a Windows 11 container, but you can set up different Windows versions, such as 10, 8.1, 7, XP, or Windows Server, by simply replacing “win11” from “VERSION: "win11"” under environment in the compose file with the value mentioned in the following tables.

    ValueDescriptionSourceTransferSize
    win11Windows 11 ProMicrosoftFast6.4 GB
    win10Windows 10 ProMicrosoftFast5.8 GB
    ltsc10Windows 10 LTSCMicrosoftFast4.6 GB
    win81Windows 8.1 ProMicrosoftFast4.2 GB
    win7Windows 7 SP1Bob PonyMedium3.0 GB
    vistaWindows Vista SP2Bob PonyMedium3.6 GB
    winxpWindows XP SP3Bob PonyMedium0.6 GB
    2022Windows Server 2022MicrosoftFast4.7 GB
    2019Windows Server 2019MicrosoftFast5.3 GB
    2016Windows Server 2016MicrosoftFast6.5 GB
    2012Windows Server 2012 R2MicrosoftFast4.3 GB
    2008Windows Server 2008 R2MicrosoftFast3.0 GB
    core11Tiny 11 CoreArchive.orgSlow2.1 GB
    tiny11Tiny 11Archive.orgSlow3.8 GB
    tiny10Tiny 10Archive.orgSlow3.6 GB

    Final Word

    I find it very interesting to use a Windows machine within a Docker container, with the added benefit of its automatic installation process eliminating the need for manual steps. However, you can opt for manual installation by specifying “MANUAL: "Y"” in the environment.

    Another great aspect of using it is running legacy games on your system that require older versions of Windows, or free games shipped with Windows XP and 7. It’s better for running most applications that the Windows compatibility layer (such as Wine) can’t handle.

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    However, I want to know if you find it interesting and, if so, what you plan to use it for. Let me know in the comment section.

    Till then, peace!