Recent macOS ships Apple’s own container runtime (the container tool) for running lightweight Linux containers natively on your Mac — no VM to babysit. Bifrost gives it a native interface, and can manage them locally on your Mac or on a remote host over SSH.
What you can do
- Containers — list, inspect, start/stop, remove, and view details.
- Images — browse and remove the images available to the runtime.
- Networks — browse and remove container networks.
- Local or remote — manage your Mac’s own Apple Containers, or a remote machine’s over SSH.
Local vs remote
- Local — Bifrost drives the
containertool on your Mac. The connection is labelled Local in the dashboard; nothing to configure beyond having the runtime installed. - Remote — point Bifrost at another host over SSH (host + SSH credentials, like an SSH connection) to manage its Apple Containers from your Mac.
1. Requirements
- A Mac with the
containerruntime available (recent macOS). - For a remote host: SSH access, and the
containertool installed there for the user you connect as.
2. Add the connection
Create a new connection and choose Apple Container. For a local one, that’s all — open it and Bifrost lists your containers. For a remote one, add the host and your SSH credentials first.
3. Work with containers and images
Select a container to inspect it, then start, stop or remove it from the toolbar. Switch to the Images tab to see what’s available to run.
Free vs Pro
Viewing your Apple Containers is free. Actions on them are a Bifrost Pro feature. Everything is unlocked during the 14-day free trial.
Troubleshooting
Nothing shows / “command not found.”
The container runtime isn’t available for the user Bifrost is running as (locally) or connecting as (remotely). Confirm container list works in a terminal in that same context.
Prefer Docker? If your workflow is Docker-based, see managing Docker over SSH — Bifrost handles both.
Still stuck? Get in touch — include the exact error text Bifrost shows.