Getting started
isb is two things in one binary, and you can use either without the other:
- Sandboxes you describe. An
isb.yamlfile (docker compose's format) lists the containers or VMs you want;isb upmakes incus match it. This is for dev environments, agents and throwaway test machines, and needs nothing but incus. - A platform you run. The
isb servedaemon keeps apps running for months: orgs that keep tenants apart, apps from an image or a git repository, deployments with rollback, databases with backups, domains with certificates, a web UI and MCP tools for agents.
Start with the first two pages either way, then pick a path.
| Step | Page | You get |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Install | incus, the isb binary, and the SDKs if you want them |
| 2 | Your first sandbox | an isb.yaml, isb up, isb exec, isb down |
| 3 | Your first org and app | the daemon, an admin account, an org, an app answering on a URL |
| 4 | The web UI | a tour of what the browser UI shows and does |
On a Mac, isb runs incus in a Linux VM it manages: read isb on macOS after installing.
When you know what you want to build, the concepts explain the model (orgs, apps, stacks, workspaces, placement, security) and the guides walk through each task.