What is Alpine Linux? Alpine Linux is a Linux distribution built around musl libc and BusyBox. The image is only 5 MB in size and has access to a package repository that is much more complete than other BusyBox based images.

Why is Alpine Linux so small?

Alpine Linux is built around musl libc and busybox. This makes it smaller and more resource efficient than traditional GNU/Linux distributions. A container requires no more than 8 MB and a minimal installation to disk requires around 130 MB of storage.

Is Alpine Linux good?

Alpine Linux is a great choice for any system that is network-oriented and single-purpose. Intrusion detection, network monitoring, and IP telephony are examples of good applications for Alpine Linux. And it’s a natural choice for containers.