Skip to main content
Redhat Developers  Logo
  • Products

    Featured

    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux
      Red Hat Enterprise Linux Icon
    • Red Hat OpenShift AI
      Red Hat OpenShift AI
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux AI
      Linux icon inside of a brain
    • Image mode for Red Hat Enterprise Linux
      RHEL image mode
    • Red Hat OpenShift
      Openshift icon
    • Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform
      Ansible icon
    • Red Hat Developer Hub
      Developer Hub
    • View All Red Hat Products
    • Linux

      • Red Hat Enterprise Linux
      • Image mode for Red Hat Enterprise Linux
      • Red Hat Universal Base Images (UBI)
    • Java runtimes & frameworks

      • JBoss Enterprise Application Platform
      • Red Hat build of OpenJDK
    • Kubernetes

      • Red Hat OpenShift
      • Microsoft Azure Red Hat OpenShift
      • Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization
      • Red Hat OpenShift Lightspeed
    • Integration & App Connectivity

      • Red Hat Build of Apache Camel
      • Red Hat Service Interconnect
      • Red Hat Connectivity Link
    • AI/ML

      • Red Hat OpenShift AI
      • Red Hat Enterprise Linux AI
    • Automation

      • Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform
      • Red Hat Ansible Lightspeed
    • Developer tools

      • Red Hat Trusted Software Supply Chain
      • Podman Desktop
      • Red Hat OpenShift Dev Spaces
    • Developer Sandbox

      Developer Sandbox
      Try Red Hat products and technologies without setup or configuration fees for 30 days with this shared Openshift and Kubernetes cluster.
    • Try at no cost
  • Technologies

    Featured

    • AI/ML
      AI/ML Icon
    • Linux
      Linux Icon
    • Kubernetes
      Cloud icon
    • Automation
      Automation Icon showing arrows moving in a circle around a gear
    • View All Technologies
    • Programming Languages & Frameworks

      • Java
      • Python
      • JavaScript
    • System Design & Architecture

      • Red Hat architecture and design patterns
      • Microservices
      • Event-Driven Architecture
      • Databases
    • Developer Productivity

      • Developer productivity
      • Developer Tools
      • GitOps
    • Secure Development & Architectures

      • Security
      • Secure coding
    • Platform Engineering

      • DevOps
      • DevSecOps
      • Ansible automation for applications and services
    • Automated Data Processing

      • AI/ML
      • Data Science
      • Apache Kafka on Kubernetes
      • View All Technologies
    • Start exploring in the Developer Sandbox for free

      sandbox graphic
      Try Red Hat's products and technologies without setup or configuration.
    • Try at no cost
  • Learn

    Featured

    • Kubernetes & Cloud Native
      Openshift icon
    • Linux
      Rhel icon
    • Automation
      Ansible cloud icon
    • Java
      Java icon
    • AI/ML
      AI/ML Icon
    • View All Learning Resources

    E-Books

    • GitOps Cookbook
    • Podman in Action
    • Kubernetes Operators
    • The Path to GitOps
    • View All E-books

    Cheat Sheets

    • Linux Commands
    • Bash Commands
    • Git
    • systemd Commands
    • View All Cheat Sheets

    Documentation

    • API Catalog
    • Product Documentation
    • Legacy Documentation
    • Red Hat Learning

      Learning image
      Boost your technical skills to expert-level with the help of interactive lessons offered by various Red Hat Learning programs.
    • Explore Red Hat Learning
  • Developer Sandbox

    Developer Sandbox

    • Access Red Hat’s products and technologies without setup or configuration, and start developing quicker than ever before with our new, no-cost sandbox environments.
    • Explore Developer Sandbox

    Featured Developer Sandbox activities

    • Get started with your Developer Sandbox
    • OpenShift virtualization and application modernization using the Developer Sandbox
    • Explore all Developer Sandbox activities

    Ready to start developing apps?

    • Try at no cost
  • Blog
  • Events
  • Videos

Container development for all: Red Hat’s Container Development Kit

 

June 23, 2015
Mike Guerette
Related topics:
Containers
Related products:
Red Hat OpenShift

Share:

    RH_Icon_Container_with_App_FlatSo Docker containers are all the rage, right?  (If you didn't know this, you do now.)  :)  For a while now, Red Hatters have already been doing a ton of upstream container work on Docker, Kubernetes, and a new item called Nulecule.

    But while Docker containers have skyrocketed in popularity, there's been no convenient means to set up a development environment for building containerized apps.  Wouldn’t it be handy to develop YOUR containerized apps for Red Hat Enterprise Linux from YOUR desktop?  Apps that you can depend on for production?

    The Red Hat® Container Developer Kit (CDK) does that - it was designed to allow you to set up a Red Hat Enterprise Linux container development environment on your own desktop(s), whether running Windows®, OS X, or Linux®.

    The CDK is an evolving collection of tools designed to ease the creation and repeatable deployment of container-based applications. Today, version 1 includes Vagrantfiles and plug-ins, Red Hat Enterprise Linux images, and documentation. By utilizing the CDK and Vagrant, you'll be able to more easily create container-based applications for use with Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Red Hat Enterprise Linux Atomic Host, and/or OpenShift V3. Rather than starting from scratch, as a developer using Windows, OS X, Fedora, and other Linux distributions, you can take advantage of pre-configured CDK images and tested Vagrant files to make installing Red Hat Enterprise Linux containers and developing container-based applications as quick and easy as possible.

    How do you get the CDK?

    There are 2 easy ways.

    1. If your company is a software (ISV) or hardware (IHV) firm that qualifies for the Red Hat Connect Technology Partner Program, you can join the “Container Zone" and get access to both RHEL and the CDK.  Joining is free, as is the subscription.
    2. Join the new Red Hat Developers program (free to join) and acquire a Red Hat Enterprise Linux Developer Subscription.  A list of the five Red Hat Enterprise Linux Developer Subscriptions can be found here.

    With both options, you have access to the CDK as well as a lot of how-to's, recommended practices, and more.

    Here's a bit more information about some of the CDK components.

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux Vagrant Boxes

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux Vagrant Boxes are Red Hat Enterprise Linux system install images pre-configured for use with Vagrant. They are being made available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux Atomic Host, both available in formats for VirtualBox and libvirt.

    Subscription Manager Vagrant registration plug-in

    The subscription Manager plug-in automatically registers the Red Hat Enterprise Linux container host with the Red Hat Customer Portal when the vagrant up command is run and (then) un-registers the container host whenever you vagrant halt or vagrant destroy.

    Vagrant Atomic plug-in

    As Atomic Host uses a different update model from a traditional Linux distribution, it needs to be handled slightly differently by Vagrant. As a result, when using Atomic Host as a Vagrant Guest, we highly recommend installing this plugin.

    So next, you're ready to write code.

    Once you have your container development environment set up, remember that we have dockerfiles for quickly utilizing the technologies in Red Hat Software Collections (scripting languages, databases, more) and Red Hat Developer Toolset (gcc, Eclipse, etc.).

    And...

    If you are lucky enough to be here in Boston at Red Hat Summit and DevNation, you've got more options:

    1. Attend Langdon White’s session, Enterprise Containers 101, Thursday, June 25, 3:40 pm., and learn how to use the CDK.
    2. Stop come by the Project Atomic booth (in the Community Lounge) for a demonstration of what is being assembled for the next version of CDK: the ability to create, test and deploy composite container applications for the complete Red Hat container portfolio.  (using the Nulecule composite app specification).

    It's a wrap

    So if you haven’t already, join the Red Hat Developers program or Red Hat Connect Technology Partner Program, grab the CDK, and start hacking on your container-based applications.

    Last updated: March 15, 2023

    Recent Posts

    • AI meets containers: My first step into Podman AI Lab

    • Live migrating VMs with OpenShift Virtualization

    • Storage considerations for OpenShift Virtualization

    • Upgrade from OpenShift Service Mesh 2.6 to 3.0 with Kiali

    • EE Builder with Ansible Automation Platform on OpenShift

    What’s up next?

     

    Red Hat Developers logo LinkedIn YouTube Twitter Facebook

    Products

    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux
    • Red Hat OpenShift
    • Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform

    Build

    • Developer Sandbox
    • Developer Tools
    • Interactive Tutorials
    • API Catalog

    Quicklinks

    • Learning Resources
    • E-books
    • Cheat Sheets
    • Blog
    • Events
    • Newsletter

    Communicate

    • About us
    • Contact sales
    • Find a partner
    • Report a website issue
    • Site Status Dashboard
    • Report a security problem

    RED HAT DEVELOPER

    Build here. Go anywhere.

    We serve the builders. The problem solvers who create careers with code.

    Join us if you’re a developer, software engineer, web designer, front-end designer, UX designer, computer scientist, architect, tester, product manager, project manager or team lead.

    Sign me up

    Red Hat legal and privacy links

    • About Red Hat
    • Jobs
    • Events
    • Locations
    • Contact Red Hat
    • Red Hat Blog
    • Inclusion at Red Hat
    • Cool Stuff Store
    • Red Hat Summit
    © 2025 Red Hat

    Red Hat legal and privacy links

    • Privacy statement
    • Terms of use
    • All policies and guidelines
    • Digital accessibility

    Report a website issue