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Adding an Insecure Registry to Podman Desktop

In this guide, you will learn how to add an insecure registry to Podman Desktop. An insecure registry allows you to pull and push container images either over an unencrypted HTTP connection, or a HTTPS connection with a self-signed unverified certificate. Please note that using an insecure registry can expose your data to security risks, so it's recommended to use secure connections with a verifiable certificate whenever possible.

Prerequisites​

Procedure​

  1. Add your insecure registry within Settings > Registries.

    Adding a custom registry

  2. Click "Yes" to the insecure registry warning.

    Podman Desktop Registry Warning

  3. SSH into the Podman Machine to edit registries.conf.

    $ podman machine ssh [optional-machine-name]

  4. Open registries.conf.

    $ sudo vi /etc/containers/registries.conf

  5. Add the insecure registry: Add a new [[registry]] section for the URL of the insecure registry you want to use. For example, if your insecure registry is located at http://registry.example.com, add the following lines:

    [[registry]]
    location = "registry.example.com"
    insecure = true

    If you have multiple registries, you can add one [[registry]] block per registry.

  6. Save and exit the file.

  7. Restart Podman by the CLI or through Podman Desktop.

    $ podman machine stop
    $ podman machine start

Verification​

  1. Go to Images.
  2. You can pull a private image from the registry.
  3. You can push an image to the registry:
    1. Build an image with the fully qualified name required for your registry, such as quay.io/my-repository/my-image, ghcr.io/my-repository/my-image, docker.io/my-repository/my-image, or my-registry.tld/my-repository/my-image.
    2. On your image line, click .
    3. The contextual menu has a Push Image entry.