windows

If you don't need it to be "instant" (can wait 15-20 minutes, can be even faster if you pick a lightweight version) then Windows in Docker is a pretty decent, free and local alternative. https://github.com/dockur/windows

I use a single Docker container [1] to run a full VM on Linux, and it works like a charm for Excel and Word when I still need them. [1] https://github.com/dockur/windows

it reminds me of https://github.com/dockur/windows with its compose-style YAML over QEMU/KVM. The difference i'm seeing is scope: dockur ships curated OS images (Windows/macOS), while holos looks more like a generic single-host VM runner. Is that a fair read? also curious any plans to support running unattended processes for OS installs?

The container is a Linux container running a virtual machine inside. WinApps needs a Windows RDP server to work. Most of the functionality doesn't care where that Windows RDP server is actually running as long as its FreeRDP client can connect to it. The container or libvirt VM options are just ways to accomplish that via virtualization. I imagine the container part makes it easier to automate QEMU virtualization using bash scripting without worrying about distribution specific differences in the environment. These kinds of scripts become fairly ossified to their environment. Making them run consistently on different Linux distributions is its own adventure unrelated to installing and running Windows, so the containerization eliminates the need for a lot more bash scripting to account for those differences. The container's bash scripts do

The container runs a virtual machine using the host kernel's KVM device. Windows is then automatically installed inside said virtual machine. https://github.com/dockur/windows

Technically they are using (abusing?) a container containing Windows 11. https://github.com/basecamp/omarchy/blob/master/bin/omarchy-... The container they spin up: https://github.com/dockur/windows And vanilla Arch is still in play, the only thing they do is a shit ton of configuration so you don't have to do it yourself. Basically dotfiles but on steroids. It's also great for some inspiration if you want to do some ricing yourself.

The docker container hosts QEMU and the docker files to run Windows. The author probably chose this method because the dockur/windows project basically automates and simplifies the whole process of installing and configuring QEMU, and installing and configuring Windows etc. See: https://github.com/dockur/windows

Sort of, but nowhere as polished. For graphics intensive apps, you can get GPU passthrough working with some effort[1] but it's not really end-user friendly. Also, I wouldn't say it's an alternative to Proton, in fact it's probably worse than Proton because of the limited refresh rate, colors, and added latency of the RDP protocol that it uses to display the desktop. But it can be an alternative to Wine, since you're able to run certain apps that can't run in Wine, like Office 365, Adobe etc. This is where it shines, for people who are dependent on productivity apps like Office. [1] https://github.com/dockur/windows/issues/22

It is a VM running Windows, specifically it's a QEMU VM in a Docker container and KVM backend. See: https://github.com/dockur/windows

A few folks have managed to get GPU passthrough working https://github.com/dockur/windows/issues/22

It appear to download windows on the fly from Microsoft's server and uses trial keys [0] [0] https://github.com/dockur/windows?tab=readme-ov-file#is-this...

I know nothing about this project, but this appears to be using a docker image from here "https://github.com/dockur/windows/pkgs/container/windows". Which says "Any product keys found in the code are just generic placeholders provided by Microsoft for trial purposes." This app appears to be using windows with trial keys which goes against their intended usage and would have questionable legality. I would think if you do use this you would need to have a licensed version of windows and alter the docker settings to use your purchased key instead of the included trial keys. Ideally this project would have this detail in big bold letters in it's README.

I got a good chuckle from the https://github.com/dockur/windows#how-do-i-select-the-window... table 11 Windows 11 Pro 5.4 GB 2k Windows 2000 Professional 0.4 GB confirming the adage that all projects expand to fill available ~time~ disk space

This appear to use https://github.com/dockur/windows which is a VM inside a Docker container? Otherwise looking at the code this feels like something that could be a short bash script wrapped in a electron app.