podman-pull(1)

NAME
podman-pull - Pull an image from a registry

SYNOPSIS
podman pull [options] source [source...]

podman image pull [options] source [source...]

podman pull [options] [transport]name[:tag|@digest]

podman image pull [options] [transport]name[:tag|@digest]

DESCRIPTION
podman pull copies an image from a registry onto the local machine. The command can pull one or more images. If the image reference in the command line argument does not contain a registry, it is referred to as a short-name reference. If the image is a 'short-name' reference, Podman prompts the user for the specific container registry to pull the image from, if an alias for the short-name has not been specified in the short-name-aliases.conf. If an image tag is not specified, podman pull defaults to the image with the latest tag (if it exists) and pulls it. After the image is pulled, podman prints the full image ID. podman pull can also pull images using a digest podman pull image@digest and can also be used to pull images from archives and local storage using different transports. IMPORTANT: Images are stored in local image storage.

SOURCE
SOURCE is the location from which the container image is pulled from. It supports all transports from containers-transports(5). If no transport is specified, the input is subject to short-name resolution and the docker (i.e., container registry) transport is used. For remote clients, including Mac and Windows (excluding WSL2) machines, docker is the only supported transport.

    # Pull from a container registry
    $ podman pull quay.io/username/myimage

    # Pull from a container registry with short-name resolution
    $ podman pull fedora

    # Pull from a container registry via the docker transport
    $ podman pull docker://quay.io/username/myimage

    # Pull from a local directory
    $ podman pull dir:/tmp/myimage

    # Pull from a tarball in the docker-archive format
    $ podman pull docker-archive:/tmp/myimage

    # Pull from a local docker daemon
    $ sudo podman pull docker-daemon:docker.io/library/myimage:33

    # Pull from a tarball in the OCI-archive format
    $ podman pull oci-archive:/tmp/myimage

OPTIONS

  --all-tags, -a
All tagged images in the repository are pulled.

*IMPORTANT: When using the all-tags flag, Podman does not iterate over the search registries in the containers-registries.conf(5) but always uses docker.io for unqualified image names.*

  --arch=ARCH
Override the architecture, defaults to hosts, of the image to be pulled. For example, arm. Unless overridden, subsequent lookups of the same image in the local storage matches this architecture, regardless of the host.

  --authfile=path
Path of the authentication file. Default is ${XDG_RUNTIME_DIR}/containers/auth.json on Linux, and $HOME/.config/containers/auth.json on Windows/macOS. The file is created by podman login. If the authorization state is not found there, $HOME/.docker/config.json is checked, which is set using docker login.

Note: There is also the option to override the default path of the authentication file by setting the REGISTRY_AUTH_FILE environment variable. This can be done with export REGISTRY_AUTH_FILE=path.

  --cert-dir=path
Use certificates at path (*.crt, *.cert, *.key) to connect to the registry. (Default: /etc/containers/certs.d) For details, see containers-certs.d(5). (This option is not available with the remote Podman client, including Mac and Windows (excluding WSL2) machines)

  --creds=[username[:password]]
The [username[:password]] to use to authenticate with the registry, if required. If one or both values are not supplied, a command line prompt appears and the value can be entered. The password is entered without echo.

Note that the specified credentials are only used to authenticate against target registries. They are not used for mirrors or when the registry gets rewritten (see containers-registries.conf(5)); to authenticate against those consider using a containers-auth.json(5) file.

  --decryption-key=key[:passphrase]
The [key[:passphrase]] to be used for decryption of images. Key can point to keys and/or certificates. Decryption is tried with all keys. If the key is protected by a passphrase, it is required to be passed in the argument and omitted otherwise.

  --disable-content-trust
This is a Docker-specific option to disable image verification to a container registry and is not supported by Podman. This option is a NOOP and provided solely for scripting compatibility.

  --help, -h
Print the usage statement.

  --os=OS
Override the OS, defaults to hosts, of the image to be pulled. For example, windows. Unless overridden, subsequent lookups of the same image in the local storage matches this OS, regardless of the host.

  --platform=OS/ARCH
Specify the platform for selecting the image. (Conflicts with --arch and --os) The --platform option can be used to override the current architecture and operating system. Unless overridden, subsequent lookups of the same image in the local storage matches this platform, regardless of the host.

  --policy
Pull image policy. The default is always.

•   always: Always pull the image and throw an error if the pull fails.

•   missing: Only pull the image if it could not be found in the local containers storage. Throw an error if no image could be found and the pull fails.

•   never: Never pull the image; only use the local version. Throw an error if the image is not present locally.

•   newer: Pull if the image on the registry is newer than the one in the local containers storage. An image is considered to be newer when the digests are different. Comparing the time stamps is prone to errors. Pull errors are suppressed if a local image was found.

  --quiet, -q
Suppress output information when pulling images

  --retry=attempts
Number of times to retry pulling or pushing images between the registry and local storage in case of failure. Default is 3.

  --retry-delay=duration
Duration of delay between retry attempts when pulling or pushing images between the registry and local storage in case of failure. The default is to start at two seconds and then exponentially back off. The delay is used when this value is set, and no exponential back off occurs.

  --tls-verify
Require HTTPS and verify certificates when contacting registries (default: true). If explicitly set to true, TLS verification is used. If set to false, TLS verification is not used. If not specified, TLS verification is used unless the target registry is listed as an insecure registry in containers-registries.conf(5)

  --variant=VARIANT
Use VARIANT instead of the default architecture variant of the container image. Some images can use multiple variants of the arm architectures, such as arm/v5 and arm/v7.

FILES
short-name-aliases.conf (/var/cache/containers/short-name-aliases.conf, $HOME/.cache/containers/short-name-aliases.conf)

When users specify images that do not include the container registry where the image is stored, this is called a short name. The use of unqualified-search registries entails an ambiguity as it is unclear from which registry a given image, referenced by a short name, may be pulled from.

Using short names is subject to the risk of hitting squatted registry namespaces. If the unqualified-search registries are set to ["public-registry.com", "my-private-registry.com"] an attacker may take over a namespace of public-registry.com such that an image may be pulled from public-registry.com instead of the intended source my-private-registry.com.

While it is highly recommended to always use fully-qualified image references, existing deployments using short names may not be easily changed. To circumvent the aforementioned ambiguity, so called short-name aliases can be configured that point to a fully-qualified image reference. Distributions often ship a default shortnames.conf expansion file in /etc/containers/registries.conf.d/ directory. Administrators can use this directory to add their own local short-name expansion files.

When pulling an image, if the user does not specify the complete registry, container engines attempt to expand the short-name into a full name. If the command is executed with a tty, the user is prompted to select a registry from the default list unqualified registries defined in registries.conf. The user's selection is then stored in a cache file to be used in all future short-name expansions. Rootful short-names are stored in /var/cache/containers/short-name-aliases.conf. Rootless short-names are stored in the $HOME/.cache/containers/short-name-aliases.conf file.

For more information on short-names, see containers-registries.conf(5)

registries.conf (/etc/containers/registries.conf)

registries.conf is the configuration file which specifies which container registries is consulted when completing image names which do not include a registry or domain portion.

NOTE: Use the environment variable TMPDIR to change the temporary storage location of downloaded container images. Podman defaults to use /var/tmp.

EXAMPLES
Pull a single image with short name resolution.

    $ podman pull alpine:latest
    Resolved "alpine" as an alias (/etc/containers/registries.conf.d/000-shortnames.conf)
    Trying to pull docker.io/library/alpine:latest...
    Getting image source signatures
    Copying blob 5843afab3874 done
    Copying config d4ff818577 done
    Writing manifest to image destination
    Storing signatures
    d4ff818577bc193b309b355b02ebc9220427090057b54a59e73b79bdfe139b83

Pull multiple images with/without short name resolution.

    podman pull busybox:musl alpine quay.io/libpod/cirros
    Trying to pull docker.io/library/busybox:musl...
    Getting image source signatures
    Copying blob 0c52b060233b [--------------------------------------] 0.0b / 0.0b
    Copying config 9ad2c435a8 done
    Writing manifest to image destination
    Storing signatures
    9ad2c435a887e3f723654e09b48563de44aa3c7950246b2e9305ec85dd3422db
    Trying to pull docker.io/library/alpine:latest...
    Getting image source signatures
    Copying blob 5843afab3874 [--------------------------------------] 0.0b / 0.0b
    Copying config d4ff818577 done
    Writing manifest to image destination
    Storing signatures
    d4ff818577bc193b309b355b02ebc9220427090057b54a59e73b79bdfe139b83
    Trying to pull quay.io/libpod/cirros:latest...
    Getting image source signatures
    Copying blob 8da581cc9286 done
    Copying blob 856628d95d17 done
    Copying blob f513001ba4ab done
    Copying config 3c82e4d066 done
    Writing manifest to image destination
    Storing signatures
    3c82e4d066cf6f9e50efaead6e3ff7fddddf5527826afd68e5a969579fc4db4a

Pull an image using its digest.

    $ podman pull alpine@sha256:d7342993700f8cd7aba8496c2d0e57be0666e80b4c441925fc6f9361fa81d10e
    Trying to pull docker.io/library/alpine@sha256:d7342993700f8cd7aba8496c2d0e57be0666e80b4c441925fc6f9361fa81d10e...
    Getting image source signatures
    Copying blob 188c0c94c7c5 done
    Copying config d6e46aa247 done
    Writing manifest to image destination
    Storing signatures
    d6e46aa2470df1d32034c6707c8041158b652f38d2a9ae3d7ad7e7532d22ebe0

Pull an image by specifying an authentication file.

    $ podman pull --authfile temp-auths/myauths.json docker://docker.io/umohnani/finaltest
    Trying to pull docker.io/umohnani/finaltest:latest...Getting image source signatures
    Copying blob sha256:6d987f6f42797d81a318c40d442369ba3dc124883a0964d40b0c8f4f7561d913
     1.90 MB / 1.90 MB [========================================================] 0s
    Copying config sha256:ad4686094d8f0186ec8249fc4917b71faa2c1030d7b5a025c29f26e19d95c156
     1.41 KB / 1.41 KB [========================================================] 0s
    Writing manifest to image destination
    Storing signatures
    03290064078cb797f3e0a530e78c20c13dd22a3dd3adf84a5da2127b48df0438

Pull an image by authenticating to a registry.

    $ podman pull --creds testuser:testpassword docker.io/umohnani/finaltest
    Trying to pull docker.io/umohnani/finaltest:latest...Getting image source signatures
    Copying blob sha256:6d987f6f42797d81a318c40d442369ba3dc124883a0964d40b0c8f4f7561d913
     1.90 MB / 1.90 MB [========================================================] 0s
    Copying config sha256:ad4686094d8f0186ec8249fc4917b71faa2c1030d7b5a025c29f26e19d95c156
     1.41 KB / 1.41 KB [========================================================] 0s
    Writing manifest to image destination
    Storing signatures
    03290064078cb797f3e0a530e78c20c13dd22a3dd3adf84a5da2127b48df0438

Pull an image using tls verification.

    $ podman pull --tls-verify=false --cert-dir image/certs docker.io/umohnani/finaltest
    Trying to pull docker.io/umohnani/finaltest:latest...Getting image source signatures
    Copying blob sha256:6d987f6f42797d81a318c40d442369ba3dc124883a0964d40b0c8f4f7561d913
     1.90 MB / 1.90 MB [========================================================] 0s
    Copying config sha256:ad4686094d8f0186ec8249fc4917b71faa2c1030d7b5a025c29f26e19d95c156
     1.41 KB / 1.41 KB [========================================================] 0s
    Writing manifest to image destination
    Storing signatures
    03290064078cb797f3e0a530e78c20c13dd22a3dd3adf84a5da2127b48df0438

Pull an image by overriding the host architecture.

    $ podman pull --arch=arm arm32v7/debian:stretch
    Trying to pull docker.io/arm32v7/debian:stretch...
    Getting image source signatures
    Copying blob b531ae4a3925 done
    Copying config 3cba58dad5 done
    Writing manifest to image destination
    Storing signatures
    3cba58dad5d9b35e755b48b634acb3fdd185ab1c996ac11510cc72c17780e13c

Pull an image with up to 6 retries, delaying 10 seconds between retries in quet mode.

    $ podman --remote pull -q --retry 6 --retry-delay 10s ubi9
    4d6addf62a90e392ff6d3f470259eb5667eab5b9a8e03d20b41d0ab910f92170

Pull an image only if not present locally.

    $ podman pull --policy missing alpine:latest

Never pull the image, only use local version.

    $ podman pull --policy never alpine:latest

Always pull the image even if present locally.

    $ podman pull --policy always alpine:latest
    Trying to pull docker.io/library/alpine:latest...
    Getting image source signatures
    Copying blob 5843afab3874 done
    Copying config d4ff818577 done
    Writing manifest to image destination
    Storing signatures
    d4ff818577bc193b309b355b02ebc9220427090057b54a59e73b79bdfe139b83

SEE ALSO
podman(1), podman-push(1), podman-login(1), containers-certs.d(5), containers-registries.conf(5), containers-transports(5)

  Troubleshooting
See podman-troubleshooting(7) for solutions to common issues.

HISTORY
July 2017, Originally compiled by Urvashi Mohnani umohnani@redhat.com ⟨mailto:umohnani@redhat.com⟩