orbstack-best-practices

OrbStack is a fast Docker and Linux VM runtime for macOS. Replaces Docker Desktop with better performance and seamless macOS integration.

Core Commands

# Machine lifecycle
orb list                               # List machines
orb create ubuntu:noble myvm           # Create (distro:version name)
orb create --arch amd64 ubuntu x86vm  # x86 emulation via Rosetta
orb create ubuntu myvm -c cloud.yml   # With cloud-init
orb start/stop/restart/delete myvm
orb default myvm                       # Set default machine

# Shell and exec
orb                           # Shell into default machine
orb -m myvm -u root           # Specific machine + user
orb -m myvm ./script.sh       # Run command in machine

# File transfer
orb push ~/local.txt          # Copy to default machine home
orb pull ~/remote.txt         # Copy from default machine
orb push -m vm ~/f.txt /tmp/  # Specific machine + path

# Docker/K8s
orb restart docker            # Restart Docker engine
orb logs docker               # Docker engine logs
orb start k8s / orb delete k8s

# Config
orb config set memory_mib 8192
orb config set cpu 4
orb config set rosetta true
orb config set network_proxy http://proxy:8080

Key Paths

| Location | Path | |----------|------| | Linux files from macOS | ~/OrbStack/<machine>/ | | Docker volumes from macOS | ~/OrbStack/docker/volumes/ | | macOS files from Linux | /mnt/mac/Users/... (also at same path directly) | | Other machines from Linux | /mnt/machines/<name>/ | | SSH key | ~/.orbstack/ssh/id_ed25519 | | Docker daemon config | ~/.orbstack/config/docker.json |

Networking (OrbStack-Specific)

Servers in Linux machines are automatically available on localhost on macOS — no port mapping required.

DNS names: | Pattern | Resolves to | |---------|-------------| | <machine>.orb.local | Linux VM | | <container>.orb.local | Docker container | | <svc>.<project>.orb.local | Compose service | | host.orb.internal | macOS host (from Linux machine) | | host.docker.internal | macOS host (from container) |

All .orb.local domains get zero-config HTTPS automatically.

Custom container domain: docker run -l dev.orbstack.domains=myapp.local nginx

VPN-compatible; follows macOS proxy settings automatically.

SSH Access

Single multiplexed SSH server — no per-machine setup needed:

ssh orb                    # Default machine
ssh myvm@orb               # Specific machine
ssh user@myvm@orb          # Specific user + machine

IDE config: VS Code "Remote - SSH" → orb or myvm@orb. JetBrains: host localhost, port 32222, key ~/.orbstack/ssh/id_ed25519. SSH agent forwarding is automatic.

Docker Differences from Docker Desktop

• Container domains resolve without port mapping (web.orb.local instead of localhost:8080).
• Prefer named volumes over bind mounts — data stays in Linux, no cross-filesystem overhead.
• x86 images on Apple Silicon: docker run --platform linux/amd64 ubuntu or export DOCKER_DEFAULT_PLATFORM=linux/amd64.
• SSH agent in containers: -v /run/host-services/ssh-auth.sock:/agent.sock -e SSH_AUTH_SOCK=/agent.sock.
• Kubernetes: all service types accessible from macOS without kubectl port-forward; cluster.local DNS works directly.

macOS Commands from Linux

mac open https://example.com   # Open in macOS browser
mac notify "Build done"        # macOS notification
ORBENV=AWS_PROFILE:EDITOR orb ./deploy.sh  # Forward env vars

Troubleshooting

orb report              # Generate diagnostic report
orb logs myvm           # Machine boot logs
orb restart docker      # Restart Docker engine
orb reset               # Factory reset (deletes everything)
docker context use orbstack  # Fix "cannot connect to Docker daemon"

Rosetta x86 error: sudo dpkg --add-architecture amd64 && sudo apt install libc6:amd64

Cloud-init debug: orb -m myvm cloud-init status --long or orb -m myvm cat /var/log/cloud-init-output.log