diff options
author | Daniel Baumann <daniel.baumann@progress-linux.org> | 2024-04-16 16:20:50 +0000 |
---|---|---|
committer | Daniel Baumann <daniel.baumann@progress-linux.org> | 2024-04-16 16:20:50 +0000 |
commit | 318b0d0e7515e0a97e647906387ecf89455f3878 (patch) | |
tree | 905dcee34012fd33308dbfda2f7114343dd36e8b /README.md | |
parent | Initial commit. (diff) | |
download | golang-github-containers-storage-318b0d0e7515e0a97e647906387ecf89455f3878.tar.xz golang-github-containers-storage-318b0d0e7515e0a97e647906387ecf89455f3878.zip |
Adding upstream version 1.51.0+ds1.upstream/1.51.0+ds1
Signed-off-by: Daniel Baumann <daniel.baumann@progress-linux.org>
Diffstat (limited to 'README.md')
-rw-r--r-- | README.md | 46 |
1 files changed, 46 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..fef46a6 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,46 @@ +`storage` is a Go library which aims to provide methods for storing filesystem +layers, container images, and containers. A `containers-storage` CLI wrapper +is also included for manual and scripting use. + +To build the CLI wrapper, use 'make binary'. + +Operations which use VMs expect to launch them using 'vagrant', defaulting to +using its 'libvirt' provider. The boxes used are also available for the +'virtualbox' provider, and can be selected by setting $VAGRANT_PROVIDER to +'virtualbox' before kicking off the build. + +The library manages three types of items: layers, images, and containers. + +A *layer* is a copy-on-write filesystem which is notionally stored as a set of +changes relative to its *parent* layer, if it has one. A given layer can only +have one parent, but any layer can be the parent of multiple layers. Layers +which are parents of other layers should be treated as read-only. + +An *image* is a reference to a particular layer (its _top_ layer), along with +other information which the library can manage for the convenience of its +caller. This information typically includes configuration templates for +running a binary contained within the image's layers, and may include +cryptographic signatures. Multiple images can reference the same layer, as the +differences between two images may not be in their layer contents. + +A *container* is a read-write layer which is a child of an image's top layer, +along with information which the library can manage for the convenience of its +caller. This information typically includes configuration information for +running the specific container. Multiple containers can be derived from a +single image. + +Layers, images, and containers are represented primarily by 32 character +hexadecimal IDs, but items of each kind can also have one or more arbitrary +names attached to them, which the library will automatically resolve to IDs +when they are passed in to API calls which expect IDs. + +The library can store what it calls *metadata* for each of these types of +items. This is expected to be a small piece of data, since it is cached in +memory and stored along with the library's own bookkeeping information. + +Additionally, the library can store one or more of what it calls *big data* for +images and containers. This is a named chunk of larger data, which is only in +memory when it is being read from or being written to its own disk file. + +**[Contributing](CONTRIBUTING.md)** +Information about contributing to this project. |