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

# Fork

> Copy a running Kiste into a new, independent Kiste in seconds.

```bash
kiste fork review-42-try --source review-42
kiste fork review-42-try          # forks the current Kiste
```

A fork copies the disk of a **running** Kiste into a new Kiste. The copy is
made with copy-on-write, so it takes seconds regardless of the disk's size, and
from then on the two are independent: changes in one never show up in the
other.

- The fork **boots fresh** from the copied disk: files and installed packages
  are there, the source's running processes are not.

- It keeps the source's size, [environment](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/images.md#environments) and
  checkpoint interval.

- It does **not** inherit the source's automatic stop. Give it its own with
  `--ttl`:

  ```bash
  kiste fork experiment --ttl 4h
  ```

- A checkpoint of the source is taken before it is copied.

- The fork becomes your current Kiste.

Forks count as Kisten for your [limits](https://docs.kiste.run/limits.md#account-limits).

To copy a stopped Kiste, or a past state of one, [restore a
snapshot](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/snapshots.md#restore) instead.

Typical uses: try a risky upgrade without touching the original; give each of
several agents its own copy of a prepared Kiste; keep a pristine setup and
fork it for every task.

## Related topics

- [Overview](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten.md)
- [Create a Kiste](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/create.md)
- [Lifecycle](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/lifecycle.md)
- [Checkpoints and snapshots](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/snapshots.md)
- [Manage](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/manage.md)
- [Images and environments](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/images.md)
- [Automation](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/automation.md)
- Previous: [Checkpoints and snapshots](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/snapshots.md)
- Next: [Manage](https://docs.kiste.run/kisten/manage.md)