# preloop

> MIT self-hosted GitHub Actions with microVM-isolated jobs

**Category:** DevOps  
**Pricing:** open-source  
**URL:** https://github.com/preloopdev/preloop  
**GitHub:** https://github.com/preloopdev/preloop  
**Added:** 2026-10-13

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## The Hook

preloop runs your existing GitHub Actions workflows on your own machines, putting each job in a hardware-isolated microVM on Windows, macOS or Linux — no GitHub-hosted minutes, and you can test uncommitted changes.

## What's Good

MIT (preloopdev/preloop), release v0.34.0. `preloop serve` accepts workflows the way GitHub does — expressions, matrix builds, reusable workflows, concurrency groups, OIDC — and runs `.github/workflows` unmodified. Speaks the official actions/runner protocol, and ships a smaller Rust runner as a drop-in replacement. MicroVMs resume in about 300 ms. ★~200.

## The Catch

You run a server, not a one-shot CLI — expose it on a tailnet, tunnel or your own domain and keep it patched. It is a small, young project (first commit mid-2026), so expect rough edges and pin versions. Vs act (runs workflows locally in Docker containers with one command): preloop is the heavier choice when you want real isolation and a standing CI service you own.

## Verdict

Self-hosted GitHub Actions with real VM isolation — promising, but young; try it beside your existing CI first.