# crane

> Apache-2.0 registry CLI — inspect, copy, mutate OCI images

**Category:** DevOps  
**Pricing:** open-source  
**URL:** https://github.com/google/go-containerregistry  
**GitHub:** https://github.com/google/go-containerregistry  
**Added:** 2026-09-14

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## The Hook

crane is registry surgery from a laptop when you need digest, copy, and manifest edits without a full container engine.

## What's Good

Apache-2.0. google/go-containerregistry ships `crane` (and `gcrane`) — pull/push/copy by digest, catalog, mutate configs/layers, and talk registries as HTTP. Library + CLI used widely in CI and supply-chain tooling. Source github.com/google/go-containerregistry.

## The Catch

Vs Skopeo (copy/inspect without a daemon) and Dive (*layer/size forensics* TUI): crane is the *go-containerregistry Swiss-army CLI* (mutate, digest math, gcr helpers), not Dive’s UI and not Buildah’s image builder. No daemon; you still need registry credentials that work.

## Verdict

Apache-2.0 registry CLI. Free forever; Skopeo siblings, Dive forensics, crane for scriptable registry ops.