install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install labctl

local Homebrew formula metadata

Linux

Nixverified · 92%

nix profile install nixpkgs#labctl

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/la/labctl/package.nix · source: api.github.com

overview

Package summary

CLI tool for interacting with iximiuz labs and playgrounds

Project links

Commands and aliases

labctl

history

Project history and usage

labctl is the command-line client for iximiuz Labs, a hands-on learning platform for Linux, containers, Kubernetes, networking, and DevOps playgrounds. It starts, lists, stops, destroys, and connects to remote playground environments from a local terminal.

Its history is tightly coupled to iximiuz Labs rather than to a broad standalone ecosystem, so the package history is best understood as the CLI surface of a hosted microVM playground service.

Project history

The labctl repository documents the tool as a way to start remote microVM playgrounds from the command line. The README lists Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, networking, and other DevOps playground types and describes those environments as ephemeral and disposable.

As the iximiuz Labs playground model evolved, labctl accumulated commands for browser opening, SSH access, IDE integration, public web terminals, HTTP exposure, port forwarding, and lifecycle management.

Adoption history

Adoption is mostly iximiuz Labs users who prefer terminal access over a browser-only workflow. The README documents both the iximiuz install script and Homebrew installation on macOS and Linux, putting labctl into ordinary package-manager workflows despite its service-specific nature.

The public release page shows frequent 0.1.x releases, including additions for playground status, wait behavior, regions, IDE integration, and readiness handling.

How it is used

A typical workflow is `labctl auth login`, followed by `labctl playground start docker`, `labctl playground start k3s --open`, or `labctl ssh <playground-id>`. The CLI can also expose shell sessions, forward ports, open local IDEs, and destroy playgrounds when finished.

Credentials and SSH material are stored under the iximiuz labctl configuration and SSH paths documented in the package curation, which makes the Homebrew package both a CLI and a local session manager for remote training machines.

Why package nerds care

labctl is a useful example of a modern package-manager CLI whose main value is not local computation but authenticated orchestration of disposable remote environments. It turns a hosted learning product into scriptable terminal infrastructure.

For DevOps learners and authors, that means reproducible playgrounds can be launched, connected to, exposed, and torn down with commands rather than browser clicks.

Timeline

2020s: iximiuz Labs popularized hands-on Linux, container, Kubernetes, and networking playgrounds.
2020s: labctl became the command-line access layer for starting and connecting to those playgrounds.
2025: The Playgrounds 2.0 write-up described labctl as an SSH access path for microVM-based playgrounds.
2026: v0.1.x releases added region, readiness, IDE, and playground lifecycle improvements.

Related projects

iximiuz Labs playgrounds are the hosted service labctl controls.
Firecracker is relevant to the platform architecture because iximiuz Labs describes its playground machines as microVMs.
VS Code Remote SSH, Cursor, Windsurf, and SSH tooling are adjacent user-facing integrations documented by labctl.

Sources

security posture

No protected-tool coverage found yet

No matching local secret-handling manifest was found for labctl. Nucleus package metadata is still published here so future coverage has a stable package URL.

Install behavior

No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 6 platform targets.
Build metadata lists 1 build dependencies.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

local files

Configuration and credential file locations

These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval.

Configuration files

Config paths the tool may read or write during local use.

Unix: ~/.iximiuz/labctl/config.yaml

Credential files

Credential-bearing paths to review before unattended agent runs.

Unix: ~/.iximiuz/labctl/config.yaml~/.ssh/iximiuz_labs_user

executables

Installed executables

Command	Kind	Exposure	Note
`labctl`	cli	global executable

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-07-08

manager version0.1.97

manager updated2026-07-06

local dataok

upstreamcurrent

latest detectedv0.1.97

https://github.com/iximiuz/labctl

okNo freshness warnings were generated.

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:labctl
Version	0.1.97
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/labctl
Homepage	https://labs.iximiuz.com/playgrounds
Repository	https://github.com/iximiuz/labctl
Upstream docs	https://github.com/iximiuz/labctl#readme
License	Apache-2.0
Source archive	https://github.com/iximiuz/labctl/archive/refs/tags/v0.1.97.tar.gz
Last updated	2026-07-06T10:07:37Z
Pulse	updated
Build dependencies	go
Bottle	available (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-install	not defined
Service	none declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source Database	Homebrew formula API
Tap	homebrew/core
Full Name	labctl
Version Scheme	0
Revision	0
Bottle Stable Root URL	https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecated	no
Disabled	no
Keg Only	no
URL Keys	stable

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

Nix95%

labctl

nix profile install nixpkgs#labctl

normalized package name match
Matched by: Labctl

nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/la/labctl/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub.

combined/labctl.yml

Used sources

Geiger risk classifier
Nucleus package database
av.db category and tag curation
cross-ecosystem install command graph
curated configuration and credential file locations
curated package history
external package-manager database matches
package relationship graph
package version freshness
package-page enrichment

Install labctl with Homebrew, Nix