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.TH "DISTROBOX\-ASSEMBLE" "1" "Mar 2026" "Distrobox" "User Manual"
.SH NAME
.IP
.EX
distrobox assemble
distrobox\-assemble
.EE
.SH DESCRIPTION
distrobox\-assemble takes care of creating or destroying containers in
batches, based on a manifest file.
The manifest file by default is \f[CR]./distrobox.ini\f[R], but can be
specified using the \f[CR]\-\-file\f[R] flag.
.SH SYNOPSIS
\f[B]distrobox assemble\f[R]
.IP
.EX
\-\-file:         path or URL to the distrobox manifest/ini file
\-\-name/\-n:      run against a single entry in the manifest/ini file
\-\-replace/\-R:       replace already existing distroboxes with matching names
\-\-dry\-run/\-d:       only print the container manager command generated
\-\-verbose/\-v:       show more verbosity
\-\-version/\-V:       show version
.EE
.SH EXAMPLES
This is an example manifest file to create two containers:
.IP
.EX
[ubuntu]
additional_packages=\[dq]git vim tmux nodejs\[dq]
image=ubuntu:latest
init=false
nvidia=false
pull=true
root=false
replace=true
start_now=false

# You can add comments using this #
[arch] # also inline comments are supported
additional_packages=\[dq]git vim tmux nodejs\[dq]
home=/tmp/home
image=archlinux:latest
init=false
start_now=true
init_hooks=\[dq]touch /init\-normal\[dq]
nvidia=true
pre_init_hooks=\[dq]touch /pre\-init\[dq]
pull=true
root=false
replace=false
volume=\[dq]/tmp/test:/run/a /tmp/test:/run/b\[dq]
.EE
.PP
\f[B]Create\f[R]
.PP
We can bring them up simply using
.IP
.EX
distrobox assemble create
.EE
.PP
If the file is called \f[CR]distrobox.ini\f[R] and is in the same
directory you\[cq]re launching the command, no further arguments are
needed.
You can specify a custom path for the file using
.IP
.EX
distrobox assemble create \-\-file /my/custom/path.ini
.EE
.PP
Or even specify a remote file, by using an URL:
.IP
.EX
distrobox\-assemble create \-\-file https://raw.githubusercontent.com/89luca89/dotfiles/master/distrobox.ini
.EE
.PP
\f[B]Replace\f[R]
.PP
By default, \f[CR]distrobox assemble\f[R] will replace a container only
if \f[CR]replace=true\f[R] is specified in the manifest file.
.PP
In the example of the manifest above, the ubuntu container will always
be replaced when running \f[CR]distrobox assemble create\f[R], while the
arch container will not.
.PP
To force a replace for all containers in a manifest use the
\f[CR]\-\-replace\f[R] flag
.IP
.EX
distrobox assemble create \-\-replace [\-\-file my/custom/path.ini]
.EE
.PP
\f[B]Remove\f[R]
.PP
We can bring down all the containers in a manifest file by simply doing
.IP
.EX
distrobox assemble rm
.EE
.PP
Or using a custom path for the ini file
.IP
.EX
distrobox assemble rm \-\-file my/custom/path.ini
.EE
.PP
\f[B]Test\f[R]
.PP
You can always test what distrobox \f[B]would do\f[R] by using the
\f[CR]\-\-dry\-run\f[R] flag.
This command will only print what commands distrobox would do without
actually running them.
.PP
\f[B]Clone\f[R]
.PP
\f[B]Disclaimer\f[R]: You need to start the container once to ensure it
is fully initialized and created before cloning it.
The container being copied must also be stopped before the cloning
process can proceed.
.PP
\f[B]Available options\f[R]
.PP
This is a list of available options with the corresponding type:
.PP
Types legend:
.IP \[bu] 2
bool: true or false
.IP \[bu] 2
string: a single string, for example
\f[CR]home=\[dq]/home/luca\-linux/dbox\[dq]\f[R]
.IP \[bu] 2
string_list: multiple strings, for example
\f[CR]additional_packages=\[dq]htop vim git\[dq]\f[R].
Note that \f[CR]string_list\f[R] can be declared multiple times to be
compounded:
.RS 2
.IP
.EX
\f[B][ubuntu]\f[R]
image=ubuntu:latest
additional_packages=\[dq]git vim tmux nodejs\[dq]
additional_packages=\[dq]htop iftop iotop\[dq]
additional_packages=\[dq]zsh fish\[dq]
.EE
.RE
.PP
.TS
tab(@);
lw(23.3n) lw(23.3n) lw(23.3n).
T{
Flag Name
T}@T{
Type
T}@T{
T}
_
T{
additional_flags
T}@T{
string_list
T}@T{
Additional flags to pass to the container manager
T}
T{
additional_packages
T}@T{
string_list
T}@T{
Additional packages to install inside the container
T}
T{
home
T}@T{
string
T}@T{
Which home directory should the container use
T}
T{
hostname
T}@T{
string
T}@T{
Set hostname of the container
T}
T{
image
T}@T{
string
T}@T{
Which image should the container use, look here for a list
T}
T{
clone
T}@T{
string
T}@T{
Name of the Distrobox container to use as the base for a new container
(the container must be stopped).
T}
T{
include
T}@T{
string
T}@T{
Name of the entry in the manifest to include in the current definition.
T}
T{
init_hooks
T}@T{
string_list
T}@T{
Commands to run inside the container, after the packages setup
T}
T{
pre_init_hooks
T}@T{
string_list
T}@T{
Commands to run inside the container, before the packages setup
T}
T{
volume
T}@T{
string_list
T}@T{
Additional volumes to mount inside the containers
T}
T{
exported_apps
T}@T{
string_list
T}@T{
App names or desktopfile paths to export
T}
T{
exported_bins
T}@T{
string_list
T}@T{
Binaries to export
T}
T{
exported_bins_path
T}@T{
string
T}@T{
Optional path where to export binaries (default: $HOME/.local/bin)
T}
T{
entry
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Generate an entry for the container in the app list (default: false)
T}
T{
start_now
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Start the container immediately (default: false)
T}
T{
init
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Specify if this is an initful container (default: false)
T}
T{
nvidia
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Specify if you want to enable NVidia drivers integration (default:
false)
T}
T{
pull
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Specify if you want to pull the image every time (default: false)
T}
T{
root
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Specify if the container is rootful (default: false)
T}
T{
unshare_groups
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Specify if the container should unshare users additional groups
(default: false)
T}
T{
unshare_ipc
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Specify if the container should unshare the ipc namespace (default:
false)
T}
T{
unshare_netns
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Specify if the container should unshare the network namespace (default:
false)
T}
T{
unshare_process
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Specify if the container should unshare the process (pid) namespace
(default: false)
T}
T{
unshare_devsys
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Specify if the container should unshare /dev (default: false)
T}
T{
unshare_all
T}@T{
bool
T}@T{
Specify if the container should unshare all the previous options
(default: false)
T}
.TE
.PP
The \f[CR]include\f[R] option copies the attributes of a definition into
another one.
Recursive inclusions are allowed.
It operates on the manifest file and the consequent \f[CR]distrobox\f[R]
containers have no relation of any kind.
Please be aware that attributes in the including definition will not
override nor shadow the ones in the included definition, they will
simply duplicate.
.PP
For further explanation of each of the other options in the list, take a
look at the distrobox create usage, each option corresponds to one of
the \f[CR]create\f[R] flags.
.PP
\f[B]Advanced example\f[R]
.IP
.EX
[tumbleweed_distrobox]
image=registry.opensuse.org/opensuse/distrobox
pull=true
additional_packages=\[dq]acpi bash\-completion findutils iproute iputils sensors inotify\-tools unzip\[dq]
additional_packages=\[dq]net\-tools nmap openssl procps psmisc rsync man tig tmux tree vim htop xclip yt\-dlp\[dq]
additional_packages=\[dq]git git\-credential\-libsecret\[dq]
additional_packages=\[dq]patterns\-devel\-base\-devel_basis\[dq]
additional_packages=\[dq]ShellCheck ansible\-lint clang clang\-tools codespell ctags desktop\-file\-utils gcc golang jq python3\[dq]
additional_packages=\[dq]python3\-bashate python3\-flake8 python3\-mypy python3\-pipx python3\-pycodestyle python3\-pyflakes python3\-pylint python3\-python\-lsp\-server python3\-rstcheck python3\-yapf python3\-yamllint rustup shfmt\[dq]
additional_packages=\[dq]kubernetes\-client helm\[dq]
init_hooks=GOPATH=\[dq]${HOME}/.local/share/system\-go\[dq] GOBIN=/usr/local/bin go install github.com/golangci/golangci\-lint/cmd/golangci\-lint\[at]latest;
init_hooks=GOPATH=\[dq]${HOME}/.local/share/system\-go\[dq] GOBIN=/usr/local/bin go install github.com/onsi/ginkgo/v2/ginkgo\[at]latest;
init_hooks=GOPATH=\[dq]${HOME}/.local/share/system\-go\[dq] GOBIN=/usr/local/bin go install golang.org/x/tools/cmd/goimports\[at]latest;
init_hooks=GOPATH=\[dq]${HOME}/.local/share/system\-go\[dq] GOBIN=/usr/local/bin go install golang.org/x/tools/gopls\[at]latest;
init_hooks=GOPATH=\[dq]${HOME}/.local/share/system\-go\[dq] GOBIN=/usr/local/bin go install sigs.k8s.io/kind\[at]latest;
init_hooks=ln \-sf /usr/bin/distrobox\-host\-exec /usr/local/bin/conmon;
init_hooks=ln \-sf /usr/bin/distrobox\-host\-exec /usr/local/bin/crun;
init_hooks=ln \-sf /usr/bin/distrobox\-host\-exec /usr/local/bin/docker;
init_hooks=ln \-sf /usr/bin/distrobox\-host\-exec /usr/local/bin/docker\-compose;
init_hooks=ln \-sf /usr/bin/distrobox\-host\-exec /usr/local/bin/flatpak;
init_hooks=ln \-sf /usr/bin/distrobox\-host\-exec /usr/local/bin/podman;
init_hooks=ln \-sf /usr/bin/distrobox\-host\-exec /usr/local/bin/xdg\-open;
exported_apps=\[dq]htop\[dq]
exported_bins=\[dq]/usr/bin/htop /usr/bin/git\[dq]
exported_bins_path=\[dq]\[ti]/.local/bin\[dq]
.EE
.PP
\f[B]Clone example\f[R]
.IP
.EX
[ubuntu]
additional_packages=\[dq]git vim tmux\[dq]
image=ubuntu:latest
init=false
nvidia=false
pull=true
root=false
replace=true
start_now=true

[deno_ubuntu]
clone=ubuntu
init=false
nvidia=false
pull=true
root=false
replace=true
start_now=true
pre_init_hooks=curl \-fsSL https://deno.land/install.sh | sh;

[bun_ubuntu]
clone=ubuntu
init=false
nvidia=false
pull=true
root=false
replace=true
start_now=true
pre_init_hooks=curl \-fsSL https://bun.sh/install | bash;
.EE
.PP
\f[B]Custom login shell example\f[R]
.IP
.EX
[ubuntu]
image=ubuntu:latest
pre_init_hooks=\[dq]export SHELL=/bin/bash;\[dq]
.EE
.PP
\f[B]Include example (inherit fields from another distrobox)\f[R]
.IP
.EX
[ubuntu]
image=ubuntu:latest
additional_packages=\[dq]git vim tmux nodejs\[dq]
additional_packages=\[dq]htop iftop iotop\[dq]
additional_packages=\[dq]zsh fish\[dq]

[ubuntu\-nvidia]
include=ubuntu
nvidia=true
.EE
