opencontainers/runc
CLI tool for spawning and running containers according to the OCI specification
Star History
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+337
STARS · LAST 30 DAYS
11
PER DAY
#114
MOST-STARRED Go
| Window | 7 days | 30 days | 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stars gained | +77 | +337 | +990 |
| Per day | 11 | 11 | 11 |
| Forks gained | +12 | +47 | +117 |
runc gained 337 stars in the last 30 days, about 11 a day, and now has 13.5K. It is about 11 years old and has averaged roughly 1.2K stars a year. It ranks #114 among Go repositories and #794 across all languages on GitHubRepo.
Trending Record
2
DAYS ON TRENDING
#2704
BEST RANK
Oct 2, 2026
FIRST APPEARANCE
Active
STATUS TODAY
runc has maintained a continuous presence across global trending indexes, peaking at #2704. Below is the 30-day activity profile:
💡 Overview
runc is an open-source project written in Go: CLI tool for spawning and running containers according to the OCI specification.
Engineered for speed, consistency, and developer ease, it solves common hurdles in containers, docker, oci. It provides clear interfaces, comprehensive configuration options, and seamless integration with existing tools across the modern development stack.
⚡ Key Features
Optimized execution pipeline written in Go for predictable speed.
Zero-friction configuration with comprehensive sensible defaults out of the box.
Cross-platform runtime support across Linux, macOS, and Windows environments.
Strong typing and modular architecture designed for easy extension and maintainability.
Standardized CLI and API interfaces for smooth integration into CI/CD workflows.
Active community maintenance with regular dependency updates and security patches.
📥 Installation
$ go install github.com/opencontainers/runc@latest⚙ System Requirements
Platforms
- • macOS
- • Linux
- • Windows
Runtime & Dependencies
Go >= 1.21 runtime environment
Architecture
x86_64, ARM64 (Apple Silicon & Graviton)
🧠 How It Works
runc coordinates its core functionality through a modular Go 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
Autonomous AI Agents
Orchestrate intelligent workflows and tool-calling routines with runc.
Model Inference & Prompting
Integrate fast, local or cloud-hosted generative AI models directly into production code.
Context Memory & RAG
Augment language models with dynamic vector retrieval and structured project memory.
Developer Productivity
Automate repetitive engineering tasks, code generation, and test creation using AI agents.
🚀 Getting Started
Install runc using your package manager: `go install github.com/opencontainers/runc@latest`
Initialize your project workspace or configuration file for runc.
Import runc into your codebase or invoke it directly from your terminal.
Execute your test suite or run `runc --help` to verify successful setup.
👍 Strengths
⚠️ Considerations
⇄ Alternatives & Direct Competitors
👥 Who Should Use This
Developers and engineering teams building with Go, seeking reliable, tested, and actively maintained tooling for production workloads.
🏆 Nearby in the Rankings
opencontainers/runc is currently ranked #794 by stars across every repository tracked on GitHubRepo. These are adjacent projects:
| Rank | Repository | Language | Stars | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #789 | fluent/fluentd | Ruby | ★ 13.6K | Compare ↗ |
| #790 | rust-lang/rust-clippy | Rust | ★ 13.5K | Compare ↗ |
| #791 | element-hq/element-web | TypeScript | ★ 13.5K | Compare ↗ |
| #792 | facebook/astryx | TypeScript | ★ 13.5K | Compare ↗ |
| #793 | hajimehoshi/ebiten | Go | ★ 13.5K | Compare ↗ |
| #794 | opencontainers/runc This Project | Go | ★ 13.5K | |
| #795 | anomalyco/opentui | TypeScript | ★ 13.4K | Compare ↗ |
| #796 | mealie-recipes/mealie | Python | ★ 13.4K | Compare ↗ |
| #797 | huggingface/speech-to-speech | Python | ★ 13.4K | Compare ↗ |
| #798 | plantuml/plantuml | Java | ★ 13.4K | Compare ↗ |
| #798 | jonas/tig | C | ★ 13.4K | Compare ↗ |
Frequently Asked Questions
What does runc do? +
CLI tool for spawning and running containers according to the OCI specification
What language is runc written in? +
The primary language is Go. Topics include: containers, docker, oci.
Is runc actively maintained? +
Yes, the last recorded push was on Oct 2, 2026 with 344 open issues being tracked.
How many stars does runc have? +
runc has 13,469 stars and 2,339 forks on GitHub.
How does runc rank among GitHub repositories? +
With 13,469 stars, opencontainers/runc is ranked #794 globally across all repositories tracked on GitHubRepo and #114 among Go projects.
What license is runc distributed under? +
The repository reports a Apache-2.0 license. Always verify the repository LICENSE file for legal terms.
