> Documentation index: https://docs.kiste.run/llms.txt, a list of every page in this documentation.

# What is Kiste

> Kisten are fast, isolated cloud machines with a desktop, for people and for agents.

A **Kiste** (German for crate; plural *Kisten*) is a cloud machine (a
Firecracker microVM) of your own. It starts in seconds, runs Ubuntu 24.04 with a full GNOME desktop
and a complete developer toolchain, and is isolated from every other Kiste by
its own kernel, memory and disk.

You work in a Kiste the way you prefer:

- in a **terminal**, over SSH, without opening a single port on your network;
- in the **browser**, on its desktop, from any computer, tablet or phone;
- from **scripts and agents**, with exact command execution, a JSON output mode
  and an HTTP API.

When you are done, you **stop** it and it costs no compute while its disk waits
for you, or you **stop it with its session** and it resumes in about a second
with every window and process as you left them. You can **fork** a running
Kiste into an independent copy, **publish** a port at its own web address, and
every Kiste is **checkpointed automatically**, encrypted and kept off-site.

## What is in a Kiste

|  |  |
| --- | --- |
| Operating system | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS with GNOME |
| Default size | 4 vCPU, 8 GiB memory, 80 GiB disk |
| Large size | 8 vCPU, 16 GiB memory, 160 GiB disk |
| Browsers | Firefox, Google Chrome |
| Languages | Node.js with npm, pnpm, Bun and Deno; Python with pip and uv; Go; Rust; Java, Kotlin, Scala; Ruby; PHP; .NET; Erlang and Elixir; R |
| Tools | git, Docker, GCC, Clang, CMake, SQLite, jq, ripgrep, media and Android tools |
| Coding agents | Codex and Claude Code, ready to run |
| Access | SSH (`root`), the browser desktop, a browser terminal, the HTTP API |

The exact versions are listed in [Images and environments](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/images.md).

## How you use it

1. **Install the CLI** with one command; it verifies its own signature. See
   [Install the CLI](https://docs.kiste.run/get-started/install.md).

2. **Sign in** with `kiste login`. Your browser approves the computer, and the
   computer gets an SSH key that all your Kisten accept.

3. **Create a Kiste** with `kiste new`. You land in its shell; `kiste desktop`
   opens its desktop in the browser.

The [Quickstart](https://docs.kiste.run/get-started/quickstart.md) walks through it in five minutes.

## Where to go next

- [Quickstart](https://docs.kiste.run/get-started/quickstart.md): From nothing to a running Kiste with a desktop.
- [Core concepts](https://docs.kiste.run/get-started/concepts.md): Kisten, the current selection, states, sizes, snapshots and devices.
- [Kisten](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten.md): Everything about creating, stopping, forking and deleting Kisten.
- [CLI reference](https://docs.kiste.run/cli.md): Every command and flag of kiste.

## Related topics

- [Quickstart](https://docs.kiste.run/get-started/quickstart.md)
- [Install the CLI](https://docs.kiste.run/get-started/install.md)
- [Core concepts](https://docs.kiste.run/get-started/concepts.md)
- [FAQ](https://docs.kiste.run/get-started/faq.md)
- Next: [Quickstart](https://docs.kiste.run/get-started/quickstart.md)