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podman-container-tools/skopeo

A command-line tool to inspect, copy, sync, sign and delete container images across registries and local storage without a daemon.

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What is it?

Skopeo is a command-line utility for working with container images and image repositories. It talks to API V2 registries such as Docker Hub and Quay, private registries, local directories, OCI-layout directories and local container storage. Most operations do not require root, and no background daemon is needed.

The main commands cover inspecting a remote image's metadata, layers and available tags before pulling it, copying images between registries or into local storage, deleting images from a repository, and syncing an external repository to a local directory or internal registry. Authentication uses credentials from skopeo login or per-command credential flags.

Skopeo supports both OCI and Docker v2 image formats. Its project documentation also covers sigstore key generation and standalone signing and verification for debugging.

Key features

  • 01Inspect remote images, tags and layers without pulling them.
  • 02Copy images between registries, local directories and container storage.
  • 03Sync image repositories to local directories or internal registries.
  • 04Delete images from registries that support the API.
  • 05Works without root and without a running daemon.
  • 06Supports OCI and Docker v2 image formats.

Use cases

  • Copying images from a public registry into a private registry.
  • Mirroring a repository into an air-gapped environment via a USB drive or internal registry.
  • Checking an image's labels, digest and layers before downloading it.
  • Scripting registry cleanup or image promotion pipelines.

Quick start

  1. 1

    Install skopeo by following the install guide in the README

  2. 2

    Inspect a remote image without pulling it

    skopeo inspect docker://registry.fedoraproject.org/fedora:latest

In collections

CLI & terminal tools

Topics

#containers#container-images#oci#docker-registry#cli#image-copy#go

FAQ

What is skopeo?
A command-line tool to inspect, copy, sync, sign and delete container images across registries and local storage without a daemon. Skopeo is a command-line utility for working with container images and image repositories. It talks to API V2 registries such as Docker Hub and Quay, private registries, local directories, OCI-layout directories and local container storage. Most operations do not require root, and no background daemon is needed.
Is skopeo free to use? What license does it have?
skopeo is open source under the Apache-2.0 license. Check the license terms before using it in commercial products.
Is skopeo still maintained?
Actively maintained. The last commit to skopeo was on Nov 5, 2026.
What can I use skopeo for?
Copying images from a public registry into a private registry. Mirroring a repository into an air-gapped environment via a USB drive or internal registry. Checking an image's labels, digest and layers before downloading it. Scripting registry cleanup or image promotion pipelines.
How do I install skopeo?
Install skopeo by following the install guide in the README Inspect a remote image without pulling it: skopeo inspect docker://registry.fedoraproject.org/fedora:latest
Where can I get skopeo?
The source code and installation instructions are on GitHub: https://github.com/podman-container-tools/skopeo

Summary generated by AI from the project's README. GitHub stats refresh daily.

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