Comparison

Comparison

Why wip, and how it relates to the tools next to it.

The short answer

wip is to WSLC roughly what dip is to Docker Compose: a project-local workflow CLI that turns long, flag-heavy runtime invocations into wip rspec. It doesn't replace wslc; every command ends in one.

Pages

• wip vs dip — shared ground, differences, what isn't covered yet
• wip vs docker compose — what consolidating into wip.yml buys you over driving wslc by hand
• Third Party Compose Tools — the compose-for-wslc ecosystem, and why wip doesn't pick a winner

At a glance

	wip	dip	docker compose	plain wslc
Runtime	WSLC	Docker	Docker	WSLC
Named project commands	✔ interaction:	✔ interaction:	✘	✘
Declares services	✔ dependencies: / reuses compose.yml	delegates to Compose	✔	✘
Reuses an existing compose.yml	✔ (two modes)	✔	✔ (it is it)	✘
.env support	✔	✔	✔	✘
.dockerignore honored on build	✔	via Docker	via Docker	✘
Source-sync for slow mounts	✔ sync:	✘	✘	✘
Restart policies	approximated by polling	via Compose	✔ native	✘
Health checks	✘	via Compose	✔	✘
Background daemon	✘ by design	✘	✔ (the engine)	—

The three ways to run a compose.yml under WSLC

	wip compose-native	wip compose	a compose-for-wslc tool directly
External binary	none	required	required
Named project commands	✔	✔	✘
Compose coverage	a documented subset	the tool's	the tool's
run (ephemeral)	✔ real wslc run --rm	falls back to exec	the tool's
logs	one service	the tool's	the tool's
--watch restarts	✔	✘	the tool's

Related upstream work

wslc has no native Compose support yet — tracked in microsoft/WSL#40948. Both of wip's compose modes exist because of that gap:

• compose-native is the stopgap wip maintains itself
• compose is the bridge to whatever the ecosystem produces in the meantime

wslc is new and still evolving, so expect this landscape to change. wip's stated intent is that wip.yml's shape stays stable across it.

When not to use wip

Being honest about the boundaries:

• You're on Docker, not WSLC. Use dip and docker compose. wip has no Docker backend.
• You need production orchestration. wip is a development workflow tool: no daemon, no backoff, no health checks, no scaling.
• Your compose.yml needs the full spec and you don't want an extra binary. compose-native's subset may not reach far enough; mode: compose plus a real tool will.