Do you remember the hype in 2020 when VMware announced their own OCI-compliant, Docker-compatible container support in their desktop virtualization solutions? I even wrote about it in 2021 after it had some time to mature.
So where is Project Nautilus in 2023, a good three years later? Dead, in the grave.
In 2021, I called vctl “a promising disappointment”, but in 2023 I will have to change that title to “an ambitious stillbirth”. After three whole years and a new major (paid) VMware Workstation version, vctl is still exactly where it was back in 2020.
When people poke VMware staff about this on Twitter, the response pretty much shuts the door on any further development:
I wish I could say it were in a better state. […] We’re taking the time to address this in a more holistic way.
Now, just in case you do not know what “taking the time to address this in a more holistic way” means in plain old English: There are no plans to put another second of development time into it, but marketing says it is a bad look to deprecate it after just one major version, especially since VMware already removed Shared VMs from the desktop virtualization solutions.
This is such a shame. VMware had an admittedly early but incredibly compelling feature in the pipeline that perfectly complemented its core technology and gave developers another reason to love Workstation or Fusion.
Rest in peace, Project Nautilus. I bemoan the waste of potential and awesomeness.
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