Windows (dockur)
A Docker container that downloads, installs and runs Windows inside a KVM-accelerated virtual machine.
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About Windows (dockur)
dockur/windows runs a full Windows installation inside a Docker container. It downloads the chosen Windows release automatically and installs it without manual steps, supporting both modern and legacy versions. With KVM acceleration performance is close to native, and you can set CPU, memory and storage sizes, use memory ballooning, pass through USB devices and share host folders.
Networking supports NAT, user-mode and macvlan setups, and the repository includes Compose and Kubernetes files. It suits people running Linux servers or home labs who need a Windows machine managed like any other container.
Strengths
- Automatic Windows download and hands-free installation
- Near-native speed with KVM acceleration
- USB passthrough and host folder sharing
- Compose and Kubernetes files included
Limitations
- Needs a host with KVM support for good performance
- Windows license terms still apply to the guest
- Configured through Docker rather than a desktop app
Details
- Pricing
- FreeThe container is free; Windows licensing is the user's responsibility.
- License
- Proprietary
- Developer
- dockur
- Platforms
- Linux, Self-hosted
- How it runs
- Self-hosted
- Account
- Not required
- Best suited for
- Home lab and server users who want Windows managed as a Docker container
- Categories
- Virtual machines, Container tools
- Last verified
- Added
- Provenance
- Facts checked against the developer's own pages and store listings, 1 sources on file.
Alternatives to Windows (dockur)
Compare allSoftware that can replace Windows (dockur) for an important use case, and what changes if you switch.
Virtual Machine Manager
The standard desktop front end for KVM on Linux, plus the command line tools that go with it.
Virtual Machine Manager runs Windows as a KVM guest through a Linux desktop app and libvirt, with manual installation instead of automatic download and Docker Compose configuration.
Quickemu
Downloads an operating system and builds a properly configured QEMU virtual machine from one short config file.
Quickemu downloads Windows and builds a QEMU virtual machine from a short config file on Linux or macOS, run from the command line rather than through Docker.
GNOME Boxes
A simple GNOME desktop app for creating and running virtual machines on Linux.
GNOME Boxes is a graphical Linux desktop app that downloads and installs common systems automatically, with USB redirection and shared folders, but no container-based management.
VirtualBox
The free desktop hypervisor most people start with: run Windows, Linux or BSD in a window on the machine you already have.
VirtualBox runs Windows guests in a desktop app on Windows, macOS and Linux hosts without Docker or KVM, though its Extension Pack is not open source.
Proxmox VE
A bare-metal server platform that runs KVM virtual machines and LXC containers from one web interface.
Proxmox VE runs Windows as a KVM virtual machine on dedicated server hardware through a web interface, replacing the host operating system rather than running as a container.
VMware Workstation Pro
Type-2 hypervisor for running virtual machines on Windows and Linux desktops.
VMware Workstation Pro is a closed-source desktop hypervisor for Windows and Linux, free for personal use but needing a paid licence commercially and a Broadcom account.
WinBoat
A Linux desktop app that runs Windows programs from a containerized Windows virtual machine.
WinBoat also runs a containerized Windows guest on Linux, but through a graphical desktop app that shows individual Windows programs integrated with the Linux desktop.
Similar software
Related functionality, not necessarily a direct replacement.
macOS (dockur)
A Docker container that runs a macOS virtual machine through QEMU with KVM acceleration.
WinApps
Runs Windows applications from a background virtual machine as if they were native Linux apps.
Docker-OSX
Runs a macOS virtual machine inside a Docker container using KVM on Linux.
KVM
The Linux kernel's built-in hypervisor for hardware-accelerated virtual machines.
QEMU
The machine emulator and virtualiser that most of the Linux virtualisation stack is built on.
Looking Glass
A low-latency viewer that shows a GPU-passthrough Windows virtual machine inside a Linux window.
