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hyperlight-dev
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hyperlight-dev/hyperlight

Hyperlight is a lightweight Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) designed to be embedded within applications. It enables safe execution of untrusted code within micro virtual machines with very low latency and minimal overhead.

Rust ◇ hyper-v Apache-2.0
★4.7KSTARS
⑂214FORKS
!222ISSUES
🏆#1,345GLOBAL RANK
🔥2DAYS TRENDING
🚀
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Star History

Continuous Observations
Interactive star growth chart for hyperlight-dev/hyperlight
CSV

Momentum

+118

STARS · LAST 30 DAYS

4

PER DAY

#139

MOST-STARRED Rust

Window7 days30 days90 days
Stars gained+28+118+360
Per day444
Forks gained+1+4+11

hyperlight gained 118 stars in the last 30 days, about 4 a day, and now has 4.7K. It is about 2 years old and has averaged roughly 2.4K stars a year. It ranks #139 among Rust repositories and #1,345 across all languages on GitHubRepo.

Trending Record

hyperlight has maintained a continuous presence across global trending indexes, peaking at #2163. Below is the 30-day activity profile:

💡 Overview

hyperlight is an open-source project written in Rust: Hyperlight is a lightweight Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) designed to be embedded within applications. It enables safe execution of untrusted code within micro virtual machines with very low latency and minimal overhead.

Engineered for speed, consistency, and developer ease, it solves common hurdles in hyper-v, hypervisor, kvm. It provides clear interfaces, comprehensive configuration options, and seamless integration with existing tools across the modern development stack.

⚡ Key Features

1

Optimized execution pipeline written in Rust for predictable speed.

2

Zero-friction configuration with comprehensive sensible defaults out of the box.

3

Cross-platform runtime support across Linux, macOS, and Windows environments.

4

Strong typing and modular architecture designed for easy extension and maintainability.

5

Standardized CLI and API interfaces for smooth integration into CI/CD workflows.

6

Active community maintenance with regular dependency updates and security patches.

📥 Installation

terminal
$ cargo install hyperlight

⚙ System Requirements

Platforms

  • • macOS
  • • Linux
  • • Windows

Runtime & Dependencies

Rust toolchain (rustc / cargo >= 1.70)

Architecture

x86_64, ARM64 (Apple Silicon & Graviton)

🧠 How It Works

hyperlight coordinates its core functionality through a modular Rust pipeline. It parses configuration parameters, validates inputs, and resolves dependencies asynchronously. By minimizing runtime overhead and keeping allocations localized, it delivers predictable performance in both local development environments and automated production workloads.

🎯 Production Use Cases

Production System Integration

Embed hyperlight into Rust backend services to handle core application logic.

CI/CD Automated Pipelines

Run automated validation, builds, and integration suites during deployments.

Developer Tooling & Workflows

Accelerate developer onboarding with pre-configured project utilities.

Open Source Extension

Fork and customize internal modules under the repository's open Apache-2.0 license.

🚀 Getting Started

1

Install hyperlight using your package manager: `cargo install hyperlight`

2

Initialize your project workspace or configuration file for hyperlight.

3

Import hyperlight into your codebase or invoke it directly from your terminal.

4

Execute your test suite or run `hyperlight --help` to verify successful setup.

👍 Strengths

Active community backing with 4,700 GitHub stars and verified adoption.
Permissive open-source distribution under the Apache-2.0 license.
Built in Rust for high execution speed and developer familiarity.
Cross-platform compatibility across modern Linux, macOS, and Windows environments.
Clean modular design allowing flexible configuration and pipeline integration.

⚠️ Considerations

Requires familiarity with Rust and modern CLI workflows.
Ecosystem extensions may require manual configuration depending on environment constraints.
Active development roadmap means breaking API changes may occur across major versions.

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👥 Who Should Use This

Developers and engineering teams building with Rust, seeking reliable, tested, and actively maintained tooling for production workloads.

🏆 Nearby in the Rankings

hyperlight-dev/hyperlight is currently ranked #1,345 by stars across every repository tracked on GitHubRepo. These are adjacent projects:

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Frequently Asked Questions

What does hyperlight do? +

Hyperlight is a lightweight Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) designed to be embedded within applications. It enables safe execution of untrusted code within micro virtual machines with very low latency and minimal overhead.

What language is hyperlight written in? +

The primary language is Rust. Topics include: hyper-v, hypervisor, kvm, mshv, rust.

Is hyperlight actively maintained? +

Yes, the last recorded push was on Sep 29, 2026 with 222 open issues being tracked.

How many stars does hyperlight have? +

hyperlight has 4,700 stars and 214 forks on GitHub.

How does hyperlight rank among GitHub repositories? +

With 4,700 stars, hyperlight-dev/hyperlight is ranked #1,345 globally across all repositories tracked on GitHubRepo and #139 among Rust projects.

What license is hyperlight distributed under? +

The repository reports a Apache-2.0 license. Always verify the repository LICENSE file for legal terms.

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