# uber-archive/makisu

Fast and flexible Docker image building tool, works in unprivileged containerized environments like Mesos and Kubernetes.

Repository: https://github.com/uber-archive/makisu
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/makisu
Language: Go
License: Apache-2.0
License Family: permissive
Topics: docker, docker-image, container, kubernetes, ci-cd, uber, mesos
Archived: true
Last push: 2021-04-20T10:38:19+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 10/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 8, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 2864, "days_push": 1961, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: archived
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 2392, forks 150 (observed 2026-08-28T04:06:43.381834+00:00)

## What it is
Makisu is a fast and flexible Docker image build tool designed for unprivileged containerized environments such as Mesos or Kubernetes. It requires no elevated privileges or Docker daemon, offers a distributed layer cache, and lets users control generated layers with a #!COMMIT keyword.

## Use cases
- build docker images without a docker daemon
- build container images inside kubernetes pods without privileged mode
- speed up image builds across a cluster with a shared layer cache
- reduce the number of layers in generated docker images
- build images in mesos or other unprivileged sandboxed environments
- replace docker build in ci pipelines

## When to choose
- you need daemonless, rootless docker image builds in restricted environments like kubernetes or mesos
- you want a distributed layer cache shared across a build cluster
- you need fine-grained control over layer generation in dockerfiles

## When to avoid
- you need an actively maintained tool - the project was archived in May 2021
- you build images only on developer machines where docker is available
- you rely on full dockerfile compatibility, since makisu's parser is opinionated in some scenarios

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: abandoned
- function: build-tool, container-runtime, ci-cd, caching
- domain: cloud-computing, developer-tools
- platform: go, cli
- tags: docker-image-builder, daemonless, distributed-layer-cache, mesos, unprivileged-builds, archived, containers, devops, linux, docker, kubernetes

## Member repositories
- uber-archive/makisu (main) score 10

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:06:43.381834+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T02:34:28.037868+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/uber-archive/makisu (fetched 2026-08-28T04:06:43.381834+00:00, sha d63dbb7795d1)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.