Run Kali in a docker

Hey there! 👋

Yes, you can run Kali Linux in a Docker container just like you would in a VM, but there are some key differences to be aware of.

Getting Started with Kali Linux Docker Image

To get started, you can pull the official Kali Linux Docker image and run it with the following commands:

docker pull docker.io/kalilinux/kali-rolling
docker run -ti kalilinux/kali-rolling

This will give you a running instance of Kali inside a Docker container. You’ll notice that the prompt looks like this:

┌──(root㉿e4ae79503654)-[/]
└─#

One important thing to note is that systemd is not supported out of the box in Docker. This means you won’t be able to use systemctl without some extra work. If you need systemd, you’ll have to modify the Dockerfile and adjust the docker run flags accordingly.

Installing Metapackages

Also, the image doesn’t come with the default Kali metapackage. You can install it manually by running:

apt update && apt -y install kali-linux-headless

Managing Your Kali Docker Container

If your container exits, don’t worry! You can list all containers, start it again, and reattach like this:

docker container list --all
docker start <CONTAINER_ID>
docker attach <CONTAINER_ID>

You’ll drop back into the same state as before. Just hit return to see the prompt.

Cleaning Up

When you’re done with the container, you can remove it with:

docker rm <CONTAINER_ID>

For more details, check out the official Kali Linux Docker documentation.

Hope this helps! 🚀

- Bobby