OpenShift-Supported Container Images Registry

OpenShift provides officially supported container images that are fully compliant with its security and operational requirements. These images are designed to run smoothly on OpenShift with non-root users, proper permissions, and OpenShift-compatible configurations.

Here’s where you can find OpenShift-supported images:

✅ 1. Red Hat Ecosystem Catalog

• URL: https://catalog.redhat.com/software/containers/explore
• Features:
  • Browse certified container images for various platforms, including OpenShift.
  • Filter images by categories such as databases, middleware, and languages.
  • Access technical details, usage instructions, and security information

✅ 2. Red Hat Universal Base Images (UBI)

🔗 URL: https://developers.redhat.com/products/rhel/ubi

Why Use UBI?

• Universal Base Images are free to use and designed for building OpenShift-compatible applications.
• Includes minimal, standard, and init versions.
• Run as non-root, support Red Hat subscriptions, and are optimized for security updates.

Example to use in Dockerfile:

FROM registry.access.redhat.com/ubi8/nodejs-16

✅ 3. OpenShift Source-to-Image (S2I) Builder Images

🔗 GitHub: https://github.com/sclorg

What it is:

• These are S2I builder images that OpenShift uses for languages like Python, Node.js, PHP, Java, Ruby, etc.
• Maintained by Red Hat and the Software Collections team.
• Designed to be used with OpenShift’s build pipelines.

✅ 4. OpenShift ImageStreams (Internal Registry)

If you install OpenShift, it comes pre-configured with ImageStreams for supported languages and frameworks.

To view them:

oc get imagestreams -n openshift
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

You’ll see images like:

• python
• nodejs
• nginx
• dotnet
• java
• mysql
• postgresql

These images are pre-built and maintained to work seamlessly with OpenShift.

✅ 5. Quay.io (Red Hat’s Container Registry)

🔗 URL: https://quay.io/organization/redhat

Details:

• Red Hat hosts many supported images on Quay.io under the redhat organization.
• These are often used as mirrors or backups to the main Red Hat registry.
• Includes images for Red Hat Middleware, OpenShift Service Mesh, and other operator-backed services.

✅ 6. Red Hat Universal Base Images (UBI)

• Overview: UBIs are freely redistributable base images derived from Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). They are designed for building containerized applications that can run anywhere, with or without a Red Hat subscription.
• Access UBIs: https://catalog.redhat.com/software/base-images
• Example: The UBI 8 image is available at https://catalog.redhat.com/software/containers/ubi8/ubi/5c359854d70cc534b3a3784e

🔐 Important Notes:

• Non-root: OpenShift does not allow containers to run as root by default. All supported images from the Red Hat catalog are built to run as non-root users.
• Security: All images in Red Hat Catalog and UBI are scanned for vulnerabilities and follow security lifecycle policies.
• License: UBI images are free and don’t require a subscription. Other images may require a Red Hat subscription.

🛠️ Want to Search From CLI?

You can search for images with:

podman search registry.access.redhat.com
Code language: CSS (css)

Or pull directly:

podman pull registry.access.redhat.com/ubi8/nodejs-16

✅ Recommended Starting Point for Your Own App

If you’re building your own app, start with:

FROM registry.access.redhat.com/ubi8/ubi

Or a specific language runtime:

FROM registry.access.redhat.com/ubi8/python-39

Rajesh Kumar

I’m Rajesh Kumar, a DevOps, SRE, DevSecOps, Cloud, and Platform Engineering expert passionate about sharing practical knowledge, real-world experiences, and industry best practices. I have worked at Cotocus and regularly write about technology, travel, investing, health, product reviews, and digital marketing through my various platforms.

I publish technical articles at DevOps School, travel stories at Holiday Landmark, stock market insights at Stocks Mantra, health and fitness guidance at My Medic Plus, product reviews at TrueReviewNow, and SEO and digital marketing strategies at Wizbrand.