Quickstart

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Overview

Get Container Use running with your coding agent in just a few minutes. This guide will walk you through installation, agent setup, and creating your first environment.

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Installation

Choose your preferred installation method:

brew install dagger/tap/container-use

container-use version

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Agent Setup

Configure Container Use with your coding agent. Choose your agent below:

cd /path/to/repository
claude mcp add container-use -- container-use stdio

curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dagger/container-use/main/rules/agent.md >> CLAUDE.md

claude --allowedTools mcp__container-use__environment_checkpoint,mcp__container-use__environment_create,mcp__container-use__environment_add_service,mcp__container-use__environment_file_delete,mcp__container-use__environment_file_list,mcp__container-use__environment_file_read,mcp__container-use__environment_file_write,mcp__container-use__environment_open,mcp__container-use__environment_run_cmd,mcp__container-use__environment_update

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Your First Environment

Now let’s create your first containerized environment and see Container Use in action!

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Setting Up a Demo Project

Let’s start with a fresh repository:

mkdir hello
cd hello
git init
touch README.md
git add README.md
git commit -m "initial commit"

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Creating Your First Environment

Ask your agent to create something simple:

Create a hello world app in python using flask

Your agent will work in an isolated environment and respond with something like:

[agent creates the Flask app with styling and templates]

✅ The application is now running and accessible at: http://127.0.0.1:58455
🔍 You can view all the files using: `container-use checkout fancy-mallard`
📋 You can view the development log using: `container-use log fancy-mallard`

Navigate to the provided URL to see your app running!

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Understanding What Happened

Notice that your local directory is still empty:

$ ls
README.md

This is because the agent worked in an isolated environment. Your local files are untouched.

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Exploring Environments

List all environments:

$ container-use list
ID                 TITLE                               CREATED        UPDATED
fancy-mallard      Flask Hello World with Blue Design  2 minutes ago  1 minute ago

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Viewing the Development Log

See exactly what your agent did with container-use log:

$ container-use log fancy-mallard
9e3a5c9d  Write templates/index.html (2 minutes ago)
$ python app.py &

d94b6ab8  Write app.py (3 minutes ago)
$ mkdir -p templates

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Reviewing the Code

See exactly what files were created with container-use diff:

$ container-use diff fancy-mallard
diff --git a/app.py b/app.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f88d1fb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app.py
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+from flask import Flask, render_template
+
+app = Flask(__name__)
+
+@app.route('/')
+def hello_world():
+    return render_template('index.html')
+
+if __name__ == '__main__':
+    app.run(host='0.0.0.0', port=5000)
...

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Exploring the Environment

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Option 1: Check Out Locally

Bring the environment’s work into your local Git workspace:

$ container-use checkout fancy-mallard
Switched to branch 'cu-fancy-mallard'

$ ls
README.md  app.py  templates/

Now you can explore the files in your IDE, make changes, or continue development.

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Option 2: Drop Into the Container

Get a terminal inside the exact environment your agent used:

$ container-use terminal fancy-mallard

● Attaching terminal
cu /workdir $ ls
app.py  templates/

cu /workdir $ python app.py
 * Running on all addresses (0.0.0.0)
 * Running on http://127.0.0.1:5000

This gives you the same Python environment, dependencies, and setup your agent used.

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Accepting the Work

Once you’re satisfied with the agent’s work, you have two options to accept it:

$ git checkout main
$ container-use merge fancy-mallard
Updating 95bb17b..9e3a5c9
Fast-forward
 app.py           | 10 ++++++++++
 templates/index.html | 20 ++++++++++++++++++++
 2 files changed, 30 insertions(+)
 create mode 100644 app.py
 create mode 100644 templates/index.html

Choose merge when you want to preserve the agent’s commit history, or apply when you want to create your own commit message and review the changes before committing.

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Essential Commands

Here are the key commands you’ll use regularly:

# List all environments
container-use list

# View what an agent did
container-use log <environment-id>

# See the code changes
container-use diff <environment-id>

# Check out the environment locally
container-use checkout <environment-id>

# Get a terminal in the container
container-use terminal <environment-id>

# Merge the work into your branch (preserves commit history)
container-use merge <environment-id>

# Apply the work as staged changes (customize commit)
container-use apply <environment-id>

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Success! 🎉

You’ve successfully:

• ✅ Installed Container Use
• ✅ Configured your agent
• ✅ Created your first environment
• ✅ Explored the development process
• ✅ Learned the essential commands

Your coding agent now has its own containerized playground. No more babysitting - let your agents work safely and independently!

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Next Steps