Install - Barely docs

Q: Do I need Docker Desktop?

No. Barely runs its own Docker engine and needs only the docker command. If you already have Docker Desktop, you can keep it, see Alongside Docker Desktop.

Q: What does setup change on my Mac?

It registers a Docker context called barely and asks whether to make it the current one, points /var/run/docker.sock at Barely, and can set DOCKER_HOST in your shell profile. Setup asks before each change it makes, see Setup.

You need an Apple Silicon Mac with macOS 14 or later.

Install with Homebrew. This installs the Barely VM, the Barely CLI and the Barely app:

brew install barelyvm/tap/barely
barely setup

Barely needs the docker command. If you don't have it, install it first:

brew install docker docker-compose docker-buildx

Update with brew upgrade.

Questions

Do I need Docker Desktop?

No. Barely runs its own Docker engine and needs only the docker command. If you already have Docker Desktop, you can keep it, see Alongside Docker Desktop.

What does setup change on my Mac?

It registers a Docker context called barely and asks whether to make it the current one, points /var/run/docker.sock at Barely, and can set DOCKER_HOST in your shell profile. Setup asks before each change it makes, see Setup.