Container Runtime Environment

A Container Runtime Environment is a computing environment that enables the running of software containers.

• Context:
  • It can (typically) provide an abstraction layer that isolates software applications from the underlying operating system and hardware resources.
  • It can (typically) offer features like Resource Allocation, Resource Isolation, and Security Enforcement for containers.
  • It can (often) be a part of a larger containerization ecosystem, which includes container orchestration and Container Image Management.
  • It can (often) include tools for container monitoring and container lifecycle management.
  • It can be a Cloud Computing Platform Service (e.g. offering a serverless computing model).
  • ...
• Example(s):
  • a Docker Container supporting one:
    • Docker Container-based Virtualization Platform, with a Docker Engine.
    • containerd, an industry-standard container runtime
    • CRI-O, a lightweight container runtime specifically for Kubernetes.
    • ...
  • a Open Container Initiative (OCI) format supporting one.
    • ...
• Counter-Example(s):
  • A Virtual Machine (VM), which also isolates applications but does so at a hardware level rather than at the operating system level.
  • A Physical Server, which does not abstract the operating system from the hardware.
• See: Software Container, Container Orchestration, Kubernetes, Cloud-Native Computing.

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