--- title: Mix Containers and VMs with netlab Release 1.5.0 «... description: netlab release 1.5.0 introduces the ability to mix KVM virtual machines and Docker containers in the same virtual network lab. Users can designate libvirt as... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/mix-containers-and-vms-with-netlab-release-1-5-0-ipspace-net-blog-0eicpi733 twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Mix Containers and VMs with netlab Release 1.5.0 « ipSpace.net blog | daily.dev og:description: netlab release 1.5.0 introduces the ability to mix KVM virtual machines and Docker containers in the same virtual network lab. Users can designate libvirt as... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/mix-containers-and-vms-with-netlab-release-1-5-0-ipspace-net-blog-0eicpi733 og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/0eICpi733.png og:image:alt: Mix Containers and VMs with netlab Release 1.5.0 « ipSpace.net blog og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Mix Containers and VMs with netlab Release 1.5.0 « ipSpace.net blog **[ipSpace.net Blog](https://daily.dev/sources/ipspace)** · 3 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary netlab release 1.5.0 introduces the ability to mix KVM virtual machines and Docker containers in the same virtual network lab. Users can designate libvirt as the primary provider and containerlab as a secondary provider, allowing lightweight busybox containers to serve as endpoints alongside heavier VM-based network devices like Nexus OS. Behind the scenes, netlab handles management subnet sharing, UDP tunnel conversion to Linux bridges, and sequential startup of vagrant and containerlab. The lab must be started with `netlab up` to avoid configuration issues. Upgrade via `pip3 install --upgrade networklab`. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### How do I mix KVM virtual machines and Docker containers in a netlab virtual lab? In netlab 1.5.0, set libvirt as the primary provider in the topology and assign containerlab as the provider for specific nodes or groups. For example, Linux hosts can run as containers while Nexus OS switches run as VMs. Behind the scenes, netlab shares a management bridge, converts UDP tunnels to Linux bridges where needed, and orchestrates startup via `netlab up`, which must be used to avoid configuration issues. _Network engineers building mixed VM/container labs track netlab releases and topology patterns on daily.dev._ ### How do I upgrade netlab to the latest version? Run `pip3 install --upgrade networklab` to upgrade netlab to the latest release. _Keeping lab tooling current matters — netlab upgrade notes and networking automation content surface on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Networking Aspects of Running VMs in Containers « ipSpace.net blog](https://daily.dev/posts/networking-aspects-of-running-vms-in-containers-ipspace-net-blog-gttjndloc) · ipSpace.net Blog · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [netlab 26.09: Syslog, More DNS, Netmiko « ipSpace.net blog](https://daily.dev/posts/netlab-26-09-syslog-more-dns-netmiko-ipspace-net-blog-7hzbp4smq) · ipSpace.net Blog · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [libvirt provider « ipSpace.net blog](https://daily.dev/posts/libvirt-provider-ipspace-net-blog-jtcrzcqxc) · ipSpace.net Blog · 1 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#docker](https://daily.dev/tags/docker), [#networking](https://daily.dev/tags/networking) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/mix-containers-and-vms-with-netlab-release-1-5-0-ipspace-net-blog-0eicpi733) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Mix Containers and VMs with netlab Release 1.5.0 « ipSpace.net blog","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/mix-containers-and-vms-with-netlab-release-1-5-0-ipspace-net-blog-0eicpi733","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/mix-containers-and-vms-with-netlab-release-1-5-0-ipspace-net-blog-0eicpi733"},"datePublished":"2026-08-11T08:56:01.740Z","dateModified":"2026-10-14T02:27:41.774Z","description":"netlab release 1.5.0 introduces the ability to mix KVM virtual machines and Docker containers in the same virtual network lab. Users can designate libvirt as...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--VDukGCjf--/f_auto/v1722860399/public/Placeholder%2002","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--VDukGCjf--/f_auto/v1722860399/public/Placeholder%2002","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"ipSpace.net Blog","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"ipSpace.net Blog","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--xS7E82MT--/f_auto,q_auto/v1786438303/logos/ipspace?_a=BAMAMicg0","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/ipspace"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/mix-containers-and-vms-with-netlab-release-1-5-0-ipspace-net-blog-0eicpi733","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"docker,networking","timeRequired":"PT3M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"ipSpace.net Blog","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/ipspace"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Mix Containers and VMs with netlab Release 1.5.0 « ipSpace.net blog"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/mix-containers-and-vms-with-netlab-release-1-5-0-ipspace-net-blog-0eicpi733#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"How do I mix KVM virtual machines and Docker containers in a netlab virtual lab?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"In netlab 1.5.0, set libvirt as the primary provider in the topology and assign containerlab as the provider for specific nodes or groups. For example, Linux hosts can run as containers while Nexus OS switches run as VMs. Behind the scenes, netlab shares a management bridge, converts UDP tunnels to Linux bridges where needed, and orchestrates startup via `netlab up`, which must be used to avoid configuration issues. Network engineers building mixed VM/container labs track netlab releases and topology patterns on daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"How do I upgrade netlab to the latest version?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Run `pip3 install --upgrade networklab` to upgrade netlab to the latest release. Keeping lab tooling current matters — netlab upgrade notes and networking automation content surface on daily.dev."}}]} ```