How to Install Podman on CentOS 8

Containerization has become an integral part of modern software development, enabling developers to create, deploy, and run applications in isolated environments. Podman, a container management tool, provides a lightweight and daemonless alternative to Docker. If you're using CentOS 8 and looking to harness the power of Podman, this guide will walk you through the installation process.

Prerequisites:

Before you begin, make sure you have a CentOS 8 system with administrative privileges.

Step 1: Update System Packages

Ensure that your system's package repositories are up to date by running the following commands:

sudo dnf update -y

Step 2: Install Podman

Podman is available in the default CentOS 8 repositories. Install it using the following command:

sudo dnf install -y podman

Step 3: Verify Installation

After the installation is complete, verify that Podman is installed successfully by checking the version:

podman --version

Step 4: Basic Podman Commands

List Running Containers:

To view the list of currently running containers, use the following command:

podman ps

Search for Images:

Explore available container images on the default registry by using:

podman search <image_name>

Step 5: Pulling and Running a Container

Let's pull and run a simple container to test Podman. Consider the example of an Nginx web server:

podman run -d -p 8080:80 --name my_nginx nginx

This command pulls the Nginx image and runs it as a detached container, exposing port 8080 on the host.

Step 6: Accessing the Containerized Application

Open your web browser and navigate to http://localhost:8080. You should see the default Nginx page, indicating a successful deployment.

More Examples:

Explore additional Podman capabilities by experimenting with commands like:

• Building a custom image:

  podman build -t custom_image .
  

• Running a container with a specific user:

  podman run --userns=keep-id -it --rm fedora
  

Congratulations! You've successfully installed Podman on CentOS 8 and run a containerized application. Podman offers a versatile and lightweight container management solution, making it a valuable tool for developers and system administrators alike.