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Prerequisites

  • Go 1.26+ — install Go
  • A Linux server with KVM support (for microVM mode)

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Build from Source

git clone https://github.com/alexisbouchez/athanor.git
cd athanor
make build
The binary is written to bin/athanor.

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Cross-Compile for Linux

If you’re building on macOS for a Linux server: 
make build-linux
Produces bin/athanor-linux-amd64 and bin/athanor-linux-arm64.

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Deploy to a Server

Copy the binary to your server: 
scp bin/athanor-linux-amd64 root@your-server:/usr/local/bin/athanor

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Server Requirements

Your server needs:
RequirementMinimumNotes
KVM/dev/kvm presentRequired for CloudHypervisor
RAM4 GB~1 GB per concurrent VM
Disk20 GB~4 GB for the rootfs image
OSUbuntu 22.04+Tested on Ubuntu 24.04
NetworkPublic IPFor receiving GitHub webhooks

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Automated Setup

The repo includes a setup script that installs all dependencies: 
# On the server
sudo ./scripts/setup-vps.sh
This installs:
  • cloud-hypervisor — the VMM
  • virtiofsd — virtiofs daemon for workspace sharing
  • Go — for running workflows that need it
  • Network bridge + NAT for VM internet access
  • Rootfs image (Ubuntu 24.04 with Go, git, SSH)

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Manual Setup

If you prefer to set things up yourself:
  1. Install cloud-hypervisor:
curl -sL "https://github.com/cloud-hypervisor/cloud-hypervisor/releases/download/v45.0/cloud-hypervisor-static" \
    -o /usr/local/bin/cloud-hypervisor
chmod +x /usr/local/bin/cloud-hypervisor
  1. Install virtiofsd:
apt install virtiofsd
ln -sf /usr/libexec/virtiofsd /usr/local/bin/virtiofsd
  1. Set up the network bridge:
ip link add br0 type bridge
ip addr add 192.168.100.1/24 dev br0
ip link set br0 up
sysctl -w net.ipv4.ip_forward=1
iptables -t nat -A POSTROUTING -s 192.168.100.0/24 ! -o br0 -j MASQUERADE
  1. Copy the host kernel for VMs:
cp /boot/vmlinuz-$(uname -r) /var/lib/athanor/vmlinux
chmod 644 /var/lib/athanor/vmlinux
  1. Build the rootfs:
sudo ./scripts/build-rootfs.sh
  1. Generate an SSH key pair for VM access:
ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -f /var/lib/athanor/vm-ssh-key -N "" -C "athanor-vm"

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Systemd Service

Install the service file: 
cp deploy/athanor.service /etc/systemd/system/
systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl enable athanor
Create the config file at /etc/athanor/env: 
mkdir -p /etc/athanor
cat > /etc/athanor/env << 'EOF'
GITHUB_TOKEN=ghp_your_token_here
WEBHOOK_SECRET=your_webhook_secret_here
LISTEN_ADDR=:8080
WORKSPACE_DIR=/var/lib/athanor/workspaces
KERNEL_PATH=/var/lib/athanor/vmlinux
ROOTFS_PATH=/var/lib/athanor/rootfs.ext4
SSH_KEY_PATH=/var/lib/athanor/vm-ssh-key
VM_DISK_DIR=/var/lib/athanor/vm-disks
VM_CPUS=2
VM_MEMORY_MB=1024
VM_MAX_PARALLEL=0
EOF
chmod 600 /etc/athanor/env
Start the service: 
systemctl start athanor
journalctl -u athanor -f

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Run Tests

make test
make vet