docker-tinycore

Docker from scratch image of Tinycore Linux

Quick guide

To build on top of it, just pull from the docker-tinycore package

echo FROM ghcr.io/innovarew/docker-tinycore > Dockerfile
docker build -t docker-tinycore-scratch .

To run, just docker run as show below:

sudo docker run -it ghcr.io/innovarew/docker-tinycore:latest

To build locally, just make as show below:

# prepare the rootfs, build, and run the container
sudo make TC_URL=http://tinycorelinux.net/15.x/x86_64/

Supported versions

Ready to use docker images from docker-tinycore (see link on how-to use):

Release/Arch	Docker Image
latest	FROM ghcr.io/innovarew/docker-tinycore:latest
15.x-x86_64	FROM ghcr.io/innovarew/docker-tinycore:15.x-x86_64
14.x-x86_64	FROM ghcr.io/innovarew/docker-tinycore:14.x-x86_64
14.x-x86	FROM ghcr.io/innovarew/docker-tinycore:14.x-x86
13.x-x86_64	FROM ghcr.io/innovarew/docker-tinycore:13.x-x86_64
12.x-x86_64	FROM ghcr.io/innovarew/docker-tinycore:12.x-x86_64
11.x-x86_64	FROM ghcr.io/innovarew/docker-tinycore:11.x-x86_64
10.x-x86_64	FROM ghcr.io/innovarew/docker-tinycore:10.x-x86_64

Detailed steps

What goes on under the hood is shown below:

cat > Dockerfile <<EOF
FROM scratch
ADD data/rootfs-x86_64-15.x.tar.xz /
EOF

# unpack tinycore rootfs, sudo needed to unpack cpio proper perms
sudo scripts/tc-docker tce_rootfs_init data/

# build and run the tinycore docker container
sudo docker build -t docker-tinycore-local:latest .
sudo docker run -it docker-tinycore-local:latest /bin/sh

Overview

tc-docker provides the main functionalities for running tinycore on docker:

• First, provides tc-docker tce_rootfs_init that extracts the rootfs of a tinycore ISO image. This rootfs, can then be used on a Dockerfile, using FROM scratch and adding the rootfs.

• Second, provides tc-docker tce_install ext.tcz root/, that fetches a ext.tcz and unpacks it under root/. This allows to install squashfs-tools.tcz, so the running container can use unsquashfs to install tcz extensions into the designated root/.

• Last, once tinycore rootfs, and, unsquashfs are in place inside the container, the tce-load -wi whois command can be used on the running container to install new extensions.

One limitation of this approach is that if for any reason the unsquashfs stops working, say squashfs-tools.tcz or any of its dependences is removed then, tce-load stops working, and the ability of installing new tce extensions is lost.

A benefit of using the TinyCore ISO image as source, is that extensions shipped inside the TinyCore ISO under <iso>/cde are available, and can be provided as a docker volume to be used for shipping as offline extensions without requiring download.