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Version: v2.9

Kubernetes on the Desktop with Rancher Desktop

Rancher Desktop bundles together essential tools for developing and testing cloud-native applications from your desktop.

If you're working from your local machine on apps intended for cloud environments, you normally need a lot of preparation. You need to select a container run-time, install Kubernetes and popular utilities, and possibly set up a virtual machine. Installing components individually and getting them to work together can be a time-consuming process.

To reduce the complexity, Rancher Desktop offers teams the following key features:

  • Simple and easy installation on macOS, Linux and Windows operating systems.
  • K3s, a ready-to-use, light-weight Kubernetes distribution.
  • The ability to easily switch between Kubernetes versions.
  • A GUI-based cluster dashboard powered by Rancher to explore your local cluster.
  • Freedom to choose your container engine: dockerd (moby) or containerd.
  • Preference settings to configure the application to suit your needs.
  • Bundled tools required for your container, for Kubernetes-based development, and for operation workflows.
  • Periodic updates to keep bundled tools up to date.
  • Integration with popular tools/IDEs, including VS Code and Skaffold.
  • Image & Registry access control.
  • Support for Docker extensions.

Visit the Rancher Desktop website and read the docs to learn more.

To install Rancher Desktop on your machine, refer to the installation guide.

Trying Rancher on Rancher Desktop​

Rancher Desktop offers the setup and tools you need to easily try out containerized, Helm-based applications. You can get started with the Rancher Kubernetes Management platform using Rancher Desktop, by following this how-to guide.