containerlint

Docker & container security anti-pattern analyzer -- detects Dockerfile issues, missing health checks, resource limit gaps, privileged containers, insecure networking, and orchestration anti-patterns

ContainerLint -- Docker & Container Security Anti-Pattern Analyzer

ContainerLint scans codebases for Docker and container security anti-patterns, Dockerfile issues, missing health checks, resource limit gaps, privileged containers, insecure networking, and orchestration misconfigurations. It uses regex-based pattern matching against 90 container-specific patterns across 6 categories, lefthook for git hook integration, and produces markdown reports with actionable remediation guidance. 100% local. Zero telemetry.

Commands

Free Tier (No license required)

containerlint scan [file|directory]

One-shot container security scan of files or directories.

How to execute:

bash

bash "<SKILL_DIR>/scripts/dispatcher.sh" --path [target]

What it does:

1. Accepts a file path or directory (defaults to current directory)
2. Discovers all source files (skips .git, node_modules, binaries, images, .min.js)
3. Runs 30 container security patterns against each file (free tier limit)
4. Calculates a container security score (0-100) per file and overall
5. Grades: A (90-100), B (80-89), C (70-79), D (60-69), F (<60)
6. Outputs findings with: file, line number, check ID, severity, description, recommendation
7. Exit code 0 if score >= 70, exit code 1 if container security is poor
8. Free tier limited to first 30 patterns (DF + SC categories)

Example usage scenarios:

• "Scan my code for Dockerfile issues" -> runs containerlint scan .
• "Check this file for container anti-patterns" -> runs containerlint scan docker-compose.yml
• "Find privileged containers" -> runs containerlint scan .
• "Audit container security in my project" -> runs containerlint scan .
• "Check for missing health checks" -> runs containerlint scan .

Pro Tier ($19/user/month -- requires CONTAINERLINT_LICENSE_KEY)

containerlint scan --tier pro [file|directory]

Extended scan with 60 patterns covering Dockerfile, security context, health checks, and resource management.

How to execute:

bash

bash "<SKILL_DIR>/scripts/dispatcher.sh" --path [target] --tier pro

What it does:

1. Validates Pro+ license
2. Runs 60 container security patterns (DF, SC, HC, RS categories)
3. Detects missing health checks and readiness probes
4. Identifies resource limit gaps and unbounded containers
5. Full category breakdown reporting

containerlint scan --format json [directory]

Generate JSON output for CI/CD integration.

bash

bash "<SKILL_DIR>/scripts/dispatcher.sh" --path [directory] --format json

containerlint scan --format html [directory]

Generate HTML report for browser viewing.

bash

bash "<SKILL_DIR>/scripts/dispatcher.sh" --path [directory] --format html

containerlint scan --category HC [directory]

Filter scan to a specific check category (DF, SC, HC, RS, NW, OR).

bash

bash "<SKILL_DIR>/scripts/dispatcher.sh" --path [directory] --category HC

Team Tier ($39/user/month -- requires CONTAINERLINT_LICENSE_KEY with team tier)

containerlint scan --tier team [directory]

Full scan with all 90 patterns across all 6 categories including networking and orchestration.

How to execute:

bash

bash "<SKILL_DIR>/scripts/dispatcher.sh" --path [directory] --tier team

What it does:

1. Validates Team+ license
2. Runs all 90 patterns across 6 categories
3. Includes networking checks (host networking, exposed ports, insecure registries)
4. Includes orchestration checks (compose anti-patterns, missing restart policies)
5. Full category breakdown with per-file results

containerlint scan --verbose [directory]

Verbose output showing every matched line and pattern details.

bash

bash "<SKILL_DIR>/scripts/dispatcher.sh" --path [directory] --verbose

containerlint status

Show license and configuration information.

bash

bash "<SKILL_DIR>/scripts/dispatcher.sh" status

Check Categories

ContainerLint detects 90 container security anti-patterns across 6 categories:

Category	Code	Patterns	Description	Severity Range
Dockerfile Best Practices	DF	15	Missing USER directive, ADD instead of COPY, latest tag, missing .dockerignore patterns, multiple FROM without alias	medium -- high
Security Context	SC	15	Privileged mode, running as root, exposed secrets, capability escalation, no seccomp profile	high -- critical
Health & Readiness	HC	15	No HEALTHCHECK, missing readiness probes, no liveness checks, no startup probes	medium -- high
Resource Management	RS	15	No resource limits, no memory limits, no CPU limits, unbounded storage, no ephemeral storage limits	medium -- high
Networking & Exposure	NW	15	Exposing all ports, host networking, no network policy, publishing on 0.0.0.0, insecure registries	medium -- critical
Orchestration & Compose	OR	15	No restart policy, no replicas, hardcoded IPs in compose, no volume mounts for secrets, latest tag in compose	low -- high

Tier-Based Pattern Access

Tier	Patterns	Categories
Free	30	DF, SC
Pro	60	DF, SC, HC, RS
Team	90	DF, SC, HC, RS, NW, OR
Enterprise	90	DF, SC, HC, RS, NW, OR + priority support

Scoring

ContainerLint uses a deductive scoring system starting at 100 (perfect):

Severity	Point Deduction	Description
Critical	-25 per finding	Severe security vulnerability (privileged mode, exposed secrets)
High	-15 per finding	Significant security problem (running as root, no resource limits)
Medium	-8 per finding	Moderate concern (latest tag, missing health check)
Low	-3 per finding	Informational / best practice suggestion

Grading Scale

Grade	Score Range	Meaning
A	90-100	Excellent container security
B	80-89	Good security with minor issues
C	70-79	Acceptable but needs improvement
D	60-69	Poor container security
F	Below 60	Critical security problems

• Pass threshold: 70 (Grade C or better)
• Exit code 0 = pass (score >= 70)
• Exit code 1 = fail (score < 70)

Configuration

Users can configure ContainerLint in ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json:

json

{
  "skills": {
    "entries": {
      "containerlint": {
        "enabled": true,
        "apiKey": "YOUR_LICENSE_KEY_HERE",
        "config": {
          "severityThreshold": "medium",
          "ignorePatterns": ["**/test/**", "**/fixtures/**", "**/*.test.*"],
          "ignoreChecks": [],
          "reportFormat": "text"
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

Important Notes

• Free tier works immediately with no configuration
• All scanning happens locally -- no code is sent to external servers
• License validation is offline -- no phone-home or network calls
• Pattern matching only -- no AST parsing, no external dependencies beyond bash
• Supports scanning all file types in a single pass
• Git hooks use lefthook which must be installed (see install metadata above)
• Exit codes: 0 = pass (score >= 70), 1 = fail (for CI/CD integration)
• Output formats: text (default), json, html

Error Handling

• If lefthook is not installed and user tries hooks, prompt to install it
• If license key is invalid or expired, show clear message with link to https://containerlint.pages.dev/renew
• If a file is binary, skip it automatically with no warning
• If no scannable files found in target, report clean scan with info message
• If an invalid category is specified with --category, show available categories

When to Use ContainerLint

The user might say things like:

• "Scan my code for Dockerfile issues"
• "Check my container security"
• "Find privileged containers"
• "Detect missing health checks"
• "Are there any hardcoded secrets in my Docker files?"
• "Check for missing resource limits"
• "Audit my container security practices"
• "Find insecure Docker configurations"
• "Check for missing network policies"
• "Scan for container anti-patterns"
• "Run a container security audit"
• "Generate a container security report"
• "Check if my containers have proper resource limits"
• "Find containers running as root"
• "Check my docker-compose for anti-patterns"