Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Linux kernel VS Podman

Compare Linux kernel VS Podman and see what are their differences

Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

Linux kernel logo Linux kernel

The Linux kernel is the operating system kernel used by the Linux family of Unix-like operating...

Podman logo Podman

Simple debugging tool for pods and images
  • Linux kernel Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-24
  • Podman Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-30

Linux kernel features and specs

  • Open Source
    The Linux kernel is released under the GNU General Public License, allowing users to view, modify, and distribute the source code freely. This promotes transparency, collaboration, and innovation within the community.
  • Customizability
    Due to its open-source nature and modular design, users can customize the Linux kernel to suit specific needs by enabling or disabling features, which is particularly beneficial for embedded systems or unique hardware environments.
  • Security
    The many contributors working on the Linux kernel can quickly identify and fix security vulnerabilities, and the kernel's design allows for implementation of strong security measures, making it a preferred choice for many security-conscious applications.
  • Stability and Reliability
    Linux is known for its stability and reliability, capable of running for years without crashing or needing a reboot, which is crucial for server environments and critical applications.
  • Hardware Support
    The Linux kernel supports a wide range of hardware architectures and devices due to the contributions of developers across the globe, which allows it to be used on everything from supercomputers to smartphones.

Possible disadvantages of Linux kernel

  • Complexity
    The Linux kernel's extensive feature set and flexibility can lead to complexity, making it difficult for beginners to understand and configure without a steep learning curve.
  • Limited Commercial Support
    Unlike some proprietary operating systems, Linux may have limited dedicated support options, which can be a challenge for companies that require guaranteed, on-demand technical support.
  • Software Compatibility
    Some commercial software applications and games are not natively supported on Linux, which can limit its usability for certain users unless they use compatibility layers like Wine or alternative software.
  • Device Driver Availability
    While the Linux kernel supports a variety of hardware, some cutting-edge or proprietary devices may lack official drivers, requiring users to rely on community-driven development or workarounds.
  • Fragmentation
    The flexibility of Linux allows for numerous variations (distributions), which can result in fragmentation. This diversity can confuse new users and complicate software compatibility across different systems.

Podman features and specs

  • Daemonless Architecture
    Podman does not require a daemon to run containers, which simplifies its architecture and minimizes the potential attack surface.
  • Rootless Containers
    Podman allows running containers as a non-root user, enhancing security by reducing the risk associated with running processes as the root user.
  • Kubernetes Support
    Podman has built-in support for Kubernetes, enabling easier transition and orchestration of containers at scale.
  • Compatibility with Docker CLI
    Podman provides a Docker-compatible command line interface, making it easy for users to migrate from Docker with minimal changes to their workflows.
  • Enhanced Security
    With features like user namespaces and no central daemon, Podman offers improved security compared to traditional container runtimes.
  • Open Source
    Podman is an open-source project, which provides transparency and community-driven development.

Possible disadvantages of Podman

  • Limited Ecosystem
    The ecosystem around Podman is not as extensive as that of Docker, potentially limiting the availability of third-party tools and integrations.
  • Learning Curve
    Users familiar with Docker may face a learning curve when adapting to some of Podman’s unique features and CLI differences.
  • Performance Overhead
    Running rootless containers can introduce some performance overhead due to the additional layers of user namespace translation.
  • Less Mature
    Podman is relatively newer compared to Docker, which means it might not be as battle-tested in enterprise environments.
  • Inconsistent Behavior
    Certain Podman features may behave differently than Docker, which might lead to unexpected issues during container management and automation.

Linux kernel videos

Linux Kernel 5.0 Initial Review

More videos:

  • Review - Let's Talk To Linux Kernel Developer Greg Kroah-Hartman | Open Source Summit, 2019
  • Review - Linux Kernel 4.19 Overview

Podman videos

PODMAN vs DOCKER - should you switch now?

More videos:

  • Review - Actually, podman Might Be Better Than docker
  • Review - Container (Podman) Review - Kominfo PROA Training Lab 2

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Linux kernel and Podman)
Linux
100 100%
0% 0
Developer Tools
6 6%
94% 94
Linux Distribution
100 100%
0% 0
Cloud Computing
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Linux kernel and Podman

Linux kernel Reviews

We have no reviews of Linux kernel yet.
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Podman Reviews

Podman vs Docker: Comparing the Two Containerization Tools
Rootless processes. Because of its daemonless architecture, Podman can perform truly rootless operations. Users do not have to be granted root privileges to run Podman commands, and Podman does not have to rely on a root-privileged process.
Source: www.linode.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Linux kernel should be more popular than Podman. It has been mentiond 228 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Linux kernel mentions (228)

  • If Linux is so great why isn't everyone using it?
    Linux is a family of free and open source operating systems based on the Linux kernel. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • I Solve Problems (talk at EuroBSDCon 2024)
    You mean apart from 6.6 being the current latest longterm kernel? https://kernel.org/. - Source: Hacker News / 7 months ago
  • What Is PID 0?
    I don't like that, it's not good practice. One should give links to original sources, i.e. https://kernel.org as far as Linux is concerned. Even if git guarantees that the content is the same (if someone bothers to verify that the SHA-1 is the same and we exclude the possibility of a SHA-1 collision in git, which is yet to be demonstrated). kernel.org existed before github. - Source: Hacker News / 11 months ago
  • Thinking about building a operating system
    - Modern Operating Systems, 5th Edition by Andrew Tanenbaum (of MINIX fame) and Herbert Bos (https://www.pearson.com/en-us/subject-catalog/p/modern-operating-systems/P200000003295/9780137618880) is the latest edition of a solid graduate-level textbook on operating system concepts. It may also be beneficial studying the source code of existing operating systems. I recommend starting with smaller, simpler... - Source: Hacker News / 11 months ago
  • problem with connman
    Those other flashy distros like mint and ubuntus are designed with rich people with very fresh machines in mind, they don't care if you have an AMDx4 or core2duo or even 32bit older machine. Even Mint and ubuntu people will tell you, if you have an old machine with little ram, use antiX. It still works very well with machines not even released yet, buy one in May 2024 and I "guaranty you" antiX will run fine. ... Source: over 1 year ago
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Podman mentions (123)

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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Linux kernel and Podman, you can also consider the following products

Ubuntu - Ubuntu is a Debian Linux-based open source operating system for desktop computers.

containerd - An industry-standard container runtime with an emphasis on simplicity, robustness and portability

Arch Linux - You've reached the website for Arch Linux, a lightweight and flexible Linux® distribution that tries to Keep It Simple. Currently we have official packages optimized for the x86-64 architecture.

Flox - Manage and share development environments with all the frameworks and libraries you need, then publish artifacts anywhere. Harness the power of Nix.

FreeBSD - FreeBSD is an advanced operating system for x86 compatible (including Pentium® and Athlon™)...

Buildah - Buildah is a web-based OCI container tool that allows you to manage the wide range of images in your OCI container and helps you to build the image container from the scratch.