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Discover top open-source software, updated regularly with real-world adoption signals.
Discover top open-source software, updated regularly with real-world adoption signals.
Create instant, isolated, reproducible development shells with a single command
Devbox lets you define OS‑level packages in a devbox.json file and spin up isolated, reproducible shells instantly, avoiding version conflicts and keeping your laptop clean.
Devbox is a command‑line tool that creates isolated development shells based on a devbox.json manifest. By listing the required OS‑level packages—drawn from the Nix Package Registry with over 400 k versions—developers can spin up a deterministic environment with a single command. The shell runs directly on the host machine, avoiding the overhead of virtual machines while keeping the installed tools separate from the rest of the system.
devbox shellWhen you run devbox init a manifest is generated and committed to source control. Adding packages (e.g., devbox add python@3.10) updates the manifest, and the next devbox shell resolves the exact versions and builds an isolated environment. The same definition can be exported as a VS Code devcontainer, a Dockerfile, or a cloud‑ready environment, ensuring that development, testing, and production use identical toolchains.
When teams consider Devbox, these hosted platforms usually appear on the same shortlist.
Looking for a hosted option? These are the services engineering teams benchmark against before choosing open source.
Onboard new developers quickly
They run `devbox shell` and get the exact same tool versions as the rest of the team, eliminating setup friction.
Test multiple language versions
Spin up separate shells with Python 3.9, 3.10, or Go 1.17, 1.18 to verify compatibility without global installs.
Build production Docker images
Generate a Dockerfile from the devbox definition, ensuring the container uses identical binaries as the development shell.
Remote cloud development
Launch a cloud VM that mirrors the local devbox environment, providing seamless transition from local to remote work.
Devbox provides a simplified CLI and JSON manifest that abstracts Nix commands, making OS‑level package management approachable while still leveraging Nix under the hood.
No. Devbox creates isolated shells locally without containers; Docker is only needed if you export the environment as a Dockerfile.
Yes. Commit the file to source control; any teammate can run `devbox shell` to reproduce the same environment.
Devbox runs on macOS and Linux where Nix is available; Windows support is limited to WSL2.
Run `devbox add <package>@<version>` or edit devbox.json; Devbox will fetch the specified version from the Nix registry on the next `devbox shell`.
Project at a glance
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