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Uncloud - Tool for deploying containerised apps across servers without k8s

(uncloud.run)
176 points rgun | 5 comments | 04 Dec 25 06:02 UTC | HN request time: 0.655s | source
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psviderski ◴[04 Dec 25 06:53 UTC] No.46144570[source]▶
Hey, creator here. Thanks for sharing this!

Uncloud[0] is a container orchestrator without a control plane. Think multi-machine Docker Compose with automatic WireGuard mesh, service discovery, and HTTPS via Caddy. Each machine just keeps a p2p-synced copy of cluster state (using Fly.io's Corrosion), so there's no quorum to maintain.

I’m building Uncloud after years of managing Kubernetes in small envs and at a unicorn. I keep seeing teams reach for K8s when they really just need to run a bunch of containers across a few machines with decent networking, rollouts, and HTTPS. The operational overhead of k8s is brutal for what they actually need.

A few things that make it unique:

- uses the familiar Docker Compose spec, no new DSL to learn

- builds and pushes your Docker images directly to your machines without an external registry (via my other project unregistry [1])

- imperative CLI (like Docker) rather than declarative reconciliation. Easier mental model and debugging

- works across cloud VMs, bare metal, even a Raspberry Pi at home behind NAT (all connected together)

- minimal resource footprint (<150MB ram)

[0]: https://github.com/psviderski/uncloud

[1]: https://github.com/psviderski/unregistry

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1. tex0 ◴[04 Dec 25 11:10 UTC] No.46146244[source]▶
This is a cool tool, I like the idea. But the way `uc machine init` works under the hood is really scary. Lot's of `curl | bash` run as root.

While I would love to test this tool, this is not something I would run on any machine :/

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2. redrove ◴[04 Dec 25 11:35 UTC] No.46146439[source]▶
+1 on this

I wanted to try it out but was put off by this[0]. It’s just straight up curl | bash as root from raw.githubusercontent.com.

If this is the install process for a server (and not just for the CLI) I don’t want to think about security in general for the product.

Sorry, I really wanted to like this, but pass.

[0] https://github.com/psviderski/uncloud/blob/ebd4622592bcecedb...

3. psviderski ◴[04 Dec 25 11:55 UTC] No.46146615[source]▶
Totally valid concern. That was a shortcut to iterate quickly in early development. It’s time to do it properly now. Appreciate the feedback. This is exactly the kind of thing I need to hear before more people try it.
4. tontony ◴[04 Dec 25 12:03 UTC] No.46146680[source]▶
Curious, what would be an ideal (secure) approach for you to install this (or similar) tool?
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5. rovr138 ◴[04 Dec 25 12:15 UTC] No.46146802[source]▶
It's deploying a script, which then downloads uncloud using curl.

The alternative is, deploying the script and with it have the uncloud files it needs.