Headless virtual device in Docker image

Vega Open Beta Q&A
1

Hey team,

We have created a docker image with the kepler SDK & build tools so we can run end-to-end tests.

The SDK & tools are installed correctly, and building apps works, but when starting the headless device:

kepler device simulator start --gui=false [--gl-accel=false]

the launch fails with:

qemu-system-x86_64-headless: -chardev socket,port=46777,host=::1,nowait,nodelay,ipv6,id=gnss: address resolution failed for ::1:46777: Name or service not known
WARNING | QEMU main loop exits abnormally with code 1

The docker image is based on linux/amd64 ubuntu:24.04, using Vega SDK v0.21.4726.

I think it is referring to the localhost loopback config in /etc/hosts, but everything looks to be setup correctly there.

Has anyone already managed to run a virtual device like this? I didn’t find any publicly available vega Docker images.

Kind regards,
Tom.

3

Hey @Tom_Van_Laerhoven,

The IPv6 localhost resolution issue you’re encountering is a common Docker networking problem. Here are the most effective solutions to try:

Primary Solution: Use Official CI Documentation

Refer the documentation here for official guidance with Docker integration in the Vega SDK that addresses exactly this type of issue.

It has a complete Dockerfile example with proper networking configuration, Environment variable setup (NONINTERACTIVE=true, KEPLER_SDK_PATH, etc.), Option to skip VVD installation entirely by omitting the --sim-url flag during SDK installation.

Quick Docker Fixes to Try

  1. Host Networking (Simplest)

    docker run --network=host --privileged [your-image]
kepler device simulator start --gui=false --gl-accel=false`

  2. IPv6 Configuration

    docker run --dns=127.0.0.1 --dns=::1 --sysctl net.ipv6.conf.all.disable_ipv6=0 --privileged [your-image]

Alternative Approach: Skip Virtual Device

For CI/testing purposes, you might not need the Vega virtual device at all. Please do the basic installation by removing --sim-url option as mentioned here.

curl -fsSL <installer-script-url> | NONINTERACTIVE=true /bin/bash — --sdk-url <sdk-url> version <version>

Note: No --sim-url flag = no simulator installation

This eliminates the QEMU networking issue entirely and significantly reduces installation footprint.

Root Cause

The error occurs because QEMU is trying to bind to IPv6 localhost (::1:46777), but Docker containers often have IPv6 disabled or misconfigured by default.

Let me know which approach works for you!

Warm regards,
Ivy

4

Thanks Ivy, your suggested fixes work.

Kind regards,
Tom.

5

Thanks for the update Tom, we’ll close this topic for now.
Please reach out to us if you have any other issues/doubts.
Warm regards,
Ivy