# Skopeo ## About this Install Guide | | | |---------------------|--------------| | **Reading time:** | 10 min | | **Last updated:** | 7 Aug 2026 | | **Ecosystem dashboard:** | [View](https://developer.arm.com/ecosystem-dashboard/linux?package=Skopeo) | This guide shows you how to install and use the tool with the most common configuration. For advanced options and complete reference information, see the official documentation. Some install guides also include optional next steps to help you explore related workflows or integrations. Skopeo is a command-line utility that performs various operations on container images and image repositories. It does not require a daemon to be running on your computer. This article explains how to install Skopeo for Ubuntu on Arm. Skopeo is available for Windows, macOS, and Linux and supports the Arm architecture. See [Installing Skopeo](https://github.com/containers/skopeo/blob/main/install.md) for further information about other operating systems and architectures. ## What should I consider before installing Skopeo on Arm? Confirm you are using an Arm machine by running: ``` uname -m ``` The output should be: ``` __output__ aarch64 ``` If you see a different result, you are not using an Arm computer running 64-bit Linux. ## How do I download and Install Skopeo for Ubuntu on Arm? The easiest way to install Skopeo is to use the package manager: ``` sudo apt update sudo apt install -y skopeo ``` Confirm the installation by checking the version: ``` skopeo --version ``` To see the help message use this command: ``` skopeo --help ``` The output that you will see should be: ``` __output__ Various operations with container images and container image registries __output__ __output__ Usage: __output__ skopeo [flags] __output__ skopeo [command] __output__ __output__ Available Commands: __output__ copy Copy an IMAGE-NAME from one location to another. __output__ delete Delete image IMAGE-NAME. __output__ generate-sigstore-key Generate a sigstore public/private key pair. __output__ help Help about any command. __output__ inspect Inspect image IMAGE-NAME. __output__ list-tags List tags in the transport/repository specified by the SOURCE-IMAGE. __output__ login Log in to a container registry. __output__ logout Log out of a container registry. __output__ manifest-digest Compute a manifest digest of a file. __output__ standalone-sign Create a signature using local files. __output__ standalone-verify Verify a signature using local files. __output__ sync Synchronize one or more images from one location to another. __output__ __output__ Flags: __output__ --command-timeout duration Timeout for the command execution. __output__ --debug Enable debug output. __output__ -h, --help Help for skopeo. __output__ --insecure-policy Run the tool without any policy check. __output__ --override-arch ARCH Use ARCH instead of the architecture of the machine for choosing images. __output__ --override-os OS Use OS instead of the running OS for choosing images. __output__ --override-variant VARIANT Use VARIANT instead of the running architecture variant for choosing images. __output__ --policy string Path to a trust policy file. __output__ --registries.d DIR Use registry configuration files in DIR (for example, for container signature storage). __output__ --tmpdir string Directory used to store temporary files. __output__ -v, --version Version for Skopeo. __output__ __output__ Use "skopeo [command] --help" for more information about a command. ``` ## How do I get started with Skopeo? You can use the commands listed below to get you started with Skopeo. ### How can I check if a container image supports Arm? To find out if an image is multi-architecture, including Arm, you can inspect the image’s manifest. For example, to check if the dev container available for creating Arm Learning Paths supports the Arm architecture, run: ``` skopeo inspect --raw docker://docker.io/armswdev/learn-dev-container:latest | jq '.manifests[] | select(.platform.architecture == "arm64")' ``` The output is similar to: ``` __output__ { __output__ "mediaType": "application/vnd.docker.distribution.manifest.v2+json", __output__ "size": 1574, __output__ "digest": "sha256:b7abfdc06d4cb06dfbb644f0d7c50202f99f83298da7903ea6463de23b55fb10", __output__ "platform": { __output__ "architecture": "arm64", __output__ "os": "linux" __output__ } __output__} ``` If the command returns a result for an image, the image supports the `arm64` architecture. ### How can I check if a container image supports multiple architectures? To find out if an image supports both `arm64` and `amd64` architectures, you can inspect the image’s manifest for both architectures. For example, to check if the same dev container supports both architectures run: ``` skopeo inspect --raw docker://docker.io/armswdev/learn-dev-container:latest | jq '.manifests[] | select(.platform.architecture == "arm64" or .platform.architecture == "amd64")' ``` The output confirms that both `arm64` and `amd64` are supported architectures as shown below: ``` __output__ { __output__ "mediaType": "application/vnd.docker.distribution.manifest.v2+json", __output__ "size": 1574, __output__ "digest": "sha256:15fe2dc0925c6e5da27048edcd034660f51216ad700cb7cf12cb7779c16e9bce", __output__ "platform": { __output__ "architecture": "amd64", __output__ "os": "linux" __output__ } __output__} __output__ { __output__ "mediaType": "application/vnd.docker.distribution.manifest.v2+json", __output__ "size": 1574, __output__ "digest": "sha256:b7abfdc06d4cb06dfbb644f0d7c50202f99f83298da7903ea6463de23b55fb10", __output__ "platform": { __output__ "architecture": "arm64", __output__ "os": "linux" __output__ } __output__} ``` ## What are some other uses for Skopeo? Copy an image from a registry to a local directory. This command is similar to `docker pull` and copies the image from the remote registry to your local directory. ``` skopeo copy docker://docker.io/armswdev/uname:latest dir:./uname ``` The output is: ``` __output__ Getting image source signatures __output__ Copying blob cd741b12a7ea done | __output__ Copying config d11135df72 done | __output__ Writing manifest to image destination ``` Inspect an image in a remote registry: ``` skopeo inspect docker://docker.io/armswdev/uname:latest ``` The output is: ``` __output__ { __output__ "Name": "docker.io/armswdev/uname", __output__ "Digest": "sha256:4f1fe1e1e1ad179bb2cec6b3c8b458d6ead02bd7459798a357791353b867462d", __output__ "RepoTags": [ __output__ "latest" __output__ ], __output__ "Created": "2023-03-08T04:32:41.063980445Z", __output__ "DockerVersion": "", __output__ "Labels": { __output__ "org.opencontainers.image.ref.name": "ubuntu", __output__ "org.opencontainers.image.version": "22.04" __output__ }, __output__ "Architecture": "arm64", __output__ "Os": "linux", __output__ "Layers": [ __output__ "sha256:cd741b12a7eaa64357041c2d3f4590c898313a7f8f65cd1577594e6ee03a8c38" __output__ ], __output__ "LayersData": [ __output__ { __output__ "MIMEType": "application/vnd.oci.image.layer.v1.tar+gzip", __output__ "Digest": "sha256:cd741b12a7eaa64357041c2d3f4590c898313a7f8f65cd1577594e6ee03a8c38", __output__ "Size": 27347481, __output__ "Annotations": null __output__ } __output__ ], __output__ "Env": [ __output__ "PATH=/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin" __output__ ] __output__} ``` List tags in a remote registry for the Ubuntu image with many tags: ``` skopeo list-tags docker://docker.io/library/ubuntu ``` The partial output is: ``` __output__ { __output__ "Repository": "docker.io/library/ubuntu", __output__ "Tags": [ __output__ "10.04", __output__ "12.04", __output__ "12.04.5", __output__ "12.10", __output__ "13.04", __output__ "13.10", __output__ "14.04", __output__ "14.04.1", __output__ "14.04.2", __output__ "14.04.3", __output__ "14.04.4", __output__ "14.04.5", __output__ "14.10", __output__ "15.04", __output__ "15.10", __output__ "16.04", __output__ "16.10", __output__ "17.04", __output__ "17.10", __output__ "18.04", __output__ "18.10", __output__ "19.04", __output__ "19.10", __output__ "20.04", __output__ "20.10", __output__ "21.04", __output__ "21.10", __output__ "22.04", __output__ "22.10", __output__ "23.04", __output__ "23.10", __output__ "24.04", __output__ "24.10", __output__ "25.04", __output__ < many more tag with Ubuntu release names omitted> __output__ ] __output__} ``` You are ready to use Skopeo for your projects.