Nspawn comeback: an OCI hub, new images and nspawn 1.0.0

After a two-year hiatus, nspawn has returned with a new OCI hub, updated images, and version 1.0.0. The revamped system, now running zot, provides a real registry and a client that handles both pulling and assembling images. The hub, located at hub.nspawn.org, offers anonymous pull and authenticated push functionality, along with deduplication and garbage collection.

The images are sourced from nspawn/mkosi-definitions and follow a similar layout to systemd and ParticleOS mkosi trees. Each image includes systemd-networkd, systemd-resolved, and shared services. The images are versioned using mkosi.bump, which sets the version based on a date and then creates a dated tag. New images are built upon pull requests, and the entire set is rebuilt weekly to incorporate updates.

The nspawn client, written in Rust, communicates directly with systemd-machined and systemd through D-Bus, eliminating the need for machinectl or importctl. The system requires systemd 255 or newer and provides packages for Fedora, Debian/Ubuntu, and Arch Linux. The website, built with Hugo and Docsy, offers documentation for the new version, including getting started, images, machines, networking, building your own images, and a command reference.

While 1.0.0 is functional, there are still some features missing. Users can report issues or contribute by opening pull requests in the relevant repositories.