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Build a simple application chromium from scratch

Goal: Build and register a fully labeled chromium application container with an abcdesktop.io instance.

Requirements

You need to have:

  • A Kubernetes cluster with abcdesktop.io installed and running.
  • kubectl configured to communicate with your cluster.
  • docker command-line tool installed to build the image.
  • Your own public or private container registry.

Create a simple application chromium

To illustrate how to package a web browser as an abcdesktop.io application, this guide walks through installing chromium inside a container image and registering it with the platform.

  • Create a Dockerfile to install the chromium application from a debian base image
FROM debian
RUN echo 'debconf debconf/frontend select Noninteractive' | debconf-set-selections
ENV DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive
RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y chromium && apt-get clean && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*
# End of install package
LABEL oc.icon="circle_chromium.svg"
LABEL oc.icondata="PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iNjQiIGhlaWdodD0iNjQiIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgeG1sbnM9Imh0dHA6Ly93d3cudzMub3JnLzIwMDAvc3ZnIiB4bWxuczp4bGluaz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMTk5OS94bGluayI+CiA8ZGVmcz4KICA8bGluZWF
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LABEL oc.keyword="chromium,web,browser,internet"
LABEL oc.cat="office"
LABEL oc.desktopfile="chromium-browser.desktop"
LABEL oc.launch="chromium.Chromium"
LABEL oc.name="chromium"
LABEL oc.displayname="chromium"
LABEL oc.type=app
LABEL oc.mimetype="text/html;text/xml;application/xhtml+xml;application/xml;application/rss+xml;application/rdf+xml;video/webm;"
LABEL oc.fileextensions="html;xml;gif"
LABEL oc.legacyfileextensions="html;xml"

CMD [ "/usr/bin/chromium" ]

Dockerfile description

This image is based on Debian and installs the chromium package. The default command is set to /usr/bin/chromium via the CMD instruction.

  • oc.keyword label defines the search keywords used by the application catalog
  • oc.cat label defines the category of the application
  • oc.desktopfile label specifies the name of the .desktop file (chromium-browser.desktop) located in the /usr/share/applications directory
  • oc.launch label is the name of the X11 window's WM_CLASS. The value is chromium.Chromium
  • oc.icon is the filename of the application icon
  • oc.icondata is the base64-encoded content of the chromium.svg icon file
  • oc.displayname defines the human-readable display name of the application
  • oc.mimetype defines the MIME types supported by this application
  • oc.fileextensions defines the file extensions supported by this application

  • oc.legacyfileextensions defines the legacy file extensions supported by this application for backward compatibility

  • Build the image for the chromium application

REGISTRY=abcdesktopio
docker build -t $REGISTRY/chromium .

Replace the value of REGISTRY=abcdesktopio with your own registry name. If you do not have one, you can use abcdesktopio/chromium as a read-only Docker Hub registry.

  • Push the image to your registry (only if you have your own registry)
REGISTRY=abcdesktopio
docker push $REGISTRY/chromium
  • Inspect the image to create a JSON file
REGISTRY=abcdesktopio
docker inspect $REGISTRY/chromium > chromium.json
  • Send the image to the abcdesktop pyos instance

The following commands retrieve the PYOS_POD name, copy the chromium.json file to the /tmp directory inside the pyos pod, and submit the file to the REST API server.

NAMESPACE=abcdesktop
PYOS_POD_NAME=$(kubectl get pods -l run=pyos-od -o jsonpath={.items..metadata.name} -n "$NAMESPACE" | awk '{print $1}')
kubectl cp chromium.json $PYOS_POD_NAME:/tmp -n $NAMESPACE
kubectl exec -i $PYOS_POD_NAME -n abcdesktop -- curl -X POST -H 'Content-Type: text/javascript' http://localhost:8000/API/manager/image -d @/tmp/chromium.json

The image endpoint returns a JSON document

[
  {
    "cmd": [
      "/usr/bin/chromium"
    ],
    "path": null,
    "sha_id": "sha256:c903fbb2b4d66dc6eb5d2554a302fdab18dba6e1994bd4367fd5029e0ae474b6",
    "id": "abcdesktopio/chromium:latest",
    "architecture": "amd64",
    "os": "linux",
    "rules": {},
    "acl": {
      "permit": [
        "all"
      ]
    },
    "launch": "chromium.Chromium",
    "wm_class": null,
    "name": "chromium",
    "icon": "circle_chromium.svg",
    "icondata": "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",
    "keyword": "chromium,web,browser,internet",
    "uniquerunkey": null,
    "cat": "office",
    "args": null,
    "execmode": null,
    "showinview": null,
    "displayname": "chromium",
    "desktopfile": "chromium-browser.desktop",
    "executeclassname": null,
    "runtimeClassName": null,
    "executablefilename": "chromium",
    "usedefaultapplication": false,
    "mimetype": [
      "text/html",
      "text/xml",
      "application/xhtml+xml",
      "application/xml",
      "application/rss+xml",
      "application/rdf+xml",
      "video/webm"
    ],
    "fileextensions": [
      "html",
      "xml",
      "gif"
    ],
    "legacyfileextensions": [
      "html",
      "xml"
    ],
    "secrets_requirement": null,
    "containerengine": "ephemeral_container",
    "securitycontext": {},
    "created": "2026-04-06T17:34:04.099233325+02:00"
  }
]

Execute the new application chromium

  • Open your web browser, navigate to your abcdesktop URL, and log in to create a desktop

login to create a desktop

  • Search for the newly registered chromium application

Look for the new application chromium

  • Wait for the container image pull to complete

application chromium

  • chromium is now running