CNCF Distribution
A cloud-hosted registry for discovering, publishing, and managing containerized applications
- Vendor
- Docker Inc.
- Also known as
- cncf-distribution
What is CNCF Distribution?
A service for sharing and collaborating on container images. Users can push images to repositories, manage team access, and leverage pre-built official images. The platform includes vulnerability scanning and offers hardened base images with built-in security updates.
CNCF Distribution pricing
We don't have CNCF Distribution's full plan breakdown yet (its pricing page resisted automated reading). Here's what we could confirm. Always check live pricing for exact numbers.
What CNCF Distribution does
The capabilities that matter for container registries, normalised so it lines up with every alternative. “-” means we haven't confirmed it, not that it's missing.
- Hosting
- Self-hosted only
- OCI Distribution Spec compliant
- ✓
- Artifact types
- Container images only
- Built-in vulnerability scanning
- ✓
- Image signing (Cosign/Notation)
- ✓
- SBOM generation / storage
- -
- Fine-grained RBAC / robot accounts
- -
- Private repositories
- ✓
- Geo-replication / mirroring
- -
- Pull-through cache / proxy
- -
- Native cloud IAM integration
- -
- Pull-rate limits
- -
- Web UI / console
- ✓
- High-availability deployment
- -
Platform & deployment
Independently observed- Web
- Cloud / SaaS
Security & compliance
Known vulnerabilities: 4 (3 in the last 12 months), max severity HIGH sourcea count reflects scale & disclosure, not quality
CNCF Distribution FAQ
Common questions about CNCF Distribution, answered from independent, dated evidence.
What is CNCF Distribution?
Open-source implementation of the OCI Distribution Specification for storing and distributing container images. Enables organizations to tightly control their image storage and distribution pipeline with full ownership of their distribution infrastructure. It is indexed under Container Registries.
Is CNCF Distribution free to use?
CNCF Distribution is open source, so it can be self-hosted and used at no licence cost. It is released under the Apache-2.0 licence. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.
Can CNCF Distribution be self-hosted?
Yes. CNCF Distribution can be deployed on-premise and self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.
Is CNCF Distribution open source?
Yes. CNCF Distribution is published under the Apache-2.0 licence, a permissive licence that generally allows commercial use and modification. Licence terms can change between releases, so verify against the repository for the version you intend to use.
CNCF Distribution alternatives
Other container registries we track, ranked by the same independent score.
- HarborOpen-source container image registry with built-in security, signing, and vulnerability scanning for cloud-native environmentshigh · 78%
- Google Artifact RegistryA hosted repository service for organizing and managing build artifacts and package dependencies across multiple formatsmedium · 54%
- Docker HubA central registry for storing, managing, and sharing container images with your team and the broader developer communityhigh · 75%
- CloudsmithUniversal registry platform with integrated security scanning for managing artifacts across your software supply chainmedium · 52%
- Azure Container RegistryHosted storage for containerized application imagesmedium · 53%
- Chainguard RegistryContainer images and open source packages maintained without known vulnerabilitiesmedium · 73%
Compare CNCF Distribution
Side by side against other container registries, attribute by attribute, with a source on every value.
The vioscaleAI score: one lens on the evidence
Not user reviews and not a paid placement: a confidence-weighted blend of the independent signals below (adoption, activity, security posture, and more), which you can sort and re-weight yourself. Vendors can correct their listing but can never move their rank, and stars are weighted low as a vanity metric. It is one way to read the evidence for CNCF Distribution, not the verdict.
| Signal | Score | Weight | Contribution | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capabilities | 75 | 0.09 | 6.5 | ✓ |
| Security score | 76 | 0.08 | 6.2 | ✓ |
| Release cadence | 69 | 0.07 | 4.7 | ✓ |
| Dependent projects | 56 | 0.07 | 3.8 | ✓ |
| Development activity | 35 | 0.11 | 3.8 | ✓ |
| Stars | 76 | 0.03 | 2.1 | ✓ |
| Integrations | 0 | 0.05 | 0.0 | - |
| Security posture | 0 | 0.18 | 0.0 | - |
| Package downloads | 0 | 0.15 | 0.0 | - |
| Developer Q&A activity | 0 | 0.05 | 0.0 | - |
Computed . Re-weight it by intent, or see the full method.
All data & sourcesshow ↓
Every value we hold, with its source, retrieval date, and confidence. This is the evidence behind the score: don't trust it, verify it.
Activity
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Commits last 30d | 12 | mediumsource · 2026-09-10 · 65% |
Adoption
Content
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Faq | 4 items | mediumsource · 2026-09-10 · 69% |
Features
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Capabilities | Web ui: Yes · Hosting: self · Image signing: Yes · Oci compliant: Yes · Private repos: Yes · Artifact types: images | mediumsource · 2026-09-10 · 60% |
Language
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | Go | highsource · 2026-09-10 · 90% |
License
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Spdx | Apache-2.0 | highsource · 2026-09-10 · 95% |
Pricing
Release
Reliability
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Status page | Yes | mediumsource · 2026-08-03 · 60% |
Security
Is CNCF Distribution the right choice for you?
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