What is CRI-O?

CRI-O is a lightweight container runtime specifically designed for Kubernetes. It serves as an alternative to Docker as the container runtime interface (CRI) implementation for Kubernetes. CRI-O allows Kubernetes to manage and run containers using OCI (Open Container Initiative) compatible runtimes. It supports pulling container images, managing container lifecycles, and monitoring container resources. CRI-O focuses solely on providing the functionality needed for Kubernetes, resulting in a smaller footprint and improved security compared to using a full-fledged container engine. It's commonly used in Kubernetes clusters to run and manage containerized applications.