What is BuildKit?
Next-generation Docker image build engine with parallel builds and better caching.
BuildKit is the improved backend for building Docker images, enabled by default in Docker 23+. It supports parallel execution of independent build stages, efficient layer caching, cache mounts (for package managers), secret mounts (for build-time secrets), and cross-platform builds via QEMU. BuildKit makes multi-stage builds significantly faster. Enable it with DOCKER_BUILDKIT=1 on older Docker versions.
Related Terms
More Containers Terms
Container
A lightweight, isolated process that packages code and its dependencies together.
Container Image
A read-only template with layers used to create containers.
Container Registry
A repository for storing, versioning, and distributing container images.
Dockerfile
A text file with instructions for building a container image layer by layer.
Docker Compose
A tool for defining and running multi-container Docker applications using YAML.
Multi-stage Build
A Dockerfile pattern using multiple FROM stages to create smaller, leaner final images.
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