Also forked and updated with more info:

- https://codeberg.org/vermaden/freebsd-things/src/branch/main...

Done something similar in 2018:

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2018/08/21/syncthing-on-freeb...

You may find that useful in this topic:

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2025/07/08/crucial-freebsd-to...

I ditched Docker and Podman for FreeBSD Jails :)

More here:

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2023/06/28/freebsd-jails-cont...

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2025/04/11/freebsd-jails-secu...

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2025/04/08/are-freebsd-jails-...

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2024/11/22/new-jless-freebsd-...

Can you run MS SQL Server inside a FreeBSD jail? Or any of the thousands of other ready to run docker containers?

Whatever you gain by running FreeBSD comes at a high cost. And that high cost is keeping FreeBSD jails from taking over.

That's ... a lot of setup. Does FreeBSD have anything similar to containerd?

Check BastilleBSD https://bastillebsd.org/ along with Rocinante - https://bastillebsd.org/rocinante/rocinante/ from here.

How is that any different than running VMs on a linux host?

Because containers are not virtual machines - You can run 1000 FreeBSD Jails on your laprop while you will not be able to run 1000 VMs - Jails are a lot lighter on resources then VMs.

Very distro specific however.

Me too.

Especially in ASCIIDOC/HTML/TXT/PDF files - for PDF files also a copy of ODF/ODT for editing where possible.

Then I can search for anything needed with grep(1) or pdfgrep(1) commands.

You can create ZFS pools that are more or less compatible with anything.

Details here:

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2022/03/25/zfs-compatibility/

Yep. The 's0ix' is bullshit. S3 suspend/resume worked just fine.

... but in the end of the day what more can You do?

I would say 'vote with your wallet' ... but that also does not work anymore.

Take a look at laptop keyboard layouts [1] ... does not matter if MNT, Framework, KDE, ThinkPad, ... whatever - does not matter - NO ONE make 7-row keyboards in laptops anymore ... we are fucked :[

[1] https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2022/02/07/epitaph-to-laptops...

Root on ZFS is not a problem.

While You can spend some hours installing Linux with ZFSBootMenu and LUKS encrypted Root on ZFS - there are ZERO Linux distributions that allow ZFS Boot Environments out of the box.

That is the reason 'why' Linux is not the first class ZFS citizen.

LUKS-encrypted root on ZFS does not take hours. I chose encryption when I installed the OS.

When You make research how to make it for the first time - it can - if you want to check at least several different guides ... but that covers only the encryption part.

There is also the ZFSBootMenu part ...

If you have done this at least once - noted the commands, etc. - it will take shorter - but never shorter then FreeBSD 'Auto (ZFS)' option in the bsdinstall(8) installer where you just select the disk on which it needs to happen and hit [ENTER] key.

> … if you want to check at least several different guides ... but that covers only the encryption part. …

Reminder: I neither want, nor need, to check several different guides that cover only the encryption part.

I was talking about the ZFSBootMenu part - the encryption part is easy.

OK, that's clearer.

In any case, I'll take additional advice; it's impossible to trust apparently authoritative statements from you.

Funny because the only person they do not work for is you ... you seem to be very special.

I have not yet needed a ZFS boot environment.

I'm considering alternatives. Not ZFSBootMenu in isolation. I'm in no rush.

>I'm in no rush.

Ahh now i get the point why you have no problems destroy your system with a simple pkg command ;)

Earlier I used FreeBSD on ThinkPad W520 (because keyboard):

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2022/04/14/freebsd-13-1-on-th...

.. and recently moved to FrankenPad T25 that is based on T480 (because keyboard):

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2025/06/26/freebsd-14-3-on-fr...

I do everything on FreeBSD including work.

Some of the topics I covered:

- Unlock Laptop with Phone

- Conferencing and Meetings

- Netflix Signal Telegram

- Network Management with network.sh

- FreeBSD Power Management

- FreeBSD Suspend/Resume

- Oldschool Gaming on FreeBSD

- Minecraft Server in FreeBSD Jails Container

- Secure Containerized Browser

- Print on FreeBSD

- Scan on FreeBSD

- Sensible Firefox Setup

- Operate Android Device on FreeBSD

- FreeBSD Alongside Windows

To just name a few ... because I am slowly closing to 200 of these FreeBSD related articles.

    % ls ~/misc/verblog/POSTS | wc -l                   
         175

Regards, vermaden

Your blog was super helpful getting my machine set up, thanks!

Thanks.

> FrankenPad T25

TIL. It looks really nice!

Thanks. Its basically ThinkPad T480 with just ThinkPad T25 Palm Rest and Keyboard ... the problem is that Lenovo only made 5000 of these ThinkPad T25 ... and now all the ANSI US keyboards are GONE.

I also have the original ThinkPad T25 ... but its I just passed 2 years time of searching for ANSI US keyboard for it ... they are just like ghosts.

> Operate Android Device on FreeBSD

Can you clarify by what this means? Does that mean running Android in an emulator or something else? Thanks

All the details are here:

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2024/10/29/operate-android-de...

Awesome thanks!

If you just want a browser and notepad - then ANY system would do - even Android on X86 PC.

If you want a powerful development/work environment - and you do like what and how Linux provides here - use Linux - but as I was not satisfied with what/how Linux provided I looked somewhere else and I landed in FreeBSD.

Here are some of the reasons and conclusions I came to after using FreeBSD (and also Linux/AIX/HP-UX/Solaris in various jobs) for about 20 years.

Here:

- https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2020/09/07/quare-freebsd/

Have you ever tried Fedora Silverblue? It seems like it would match FreeBSD's advantages, as listed in the first section of your blog.

I have tried multiple Linux system and besides faster WiFi I never find what I look for on the Linux land - but thank You for suggestion.

Also - even if I would be forced to use Linux - I would probably setup it with ZFSBootMenu and Root on ZFS - I believe Fedora does not allow any of these?

That was a good read, thank you.

Thanks.