High CPU usage with no running containers

[al3x3i]

Description

Started fresh-installed Colima, CPU usage spikes dramatically after a couple of minutes, even with no containers running.

Version

colima version 0.10.1
git commit: ed90520

runtime: docker
arch: aarch64
client: v29.3.0
server: v29.2.1
limactl version 2.0.3
qemu-img version 10.2.1
Copyright (c) 2003-2025 Fabrice Bellard and the QEMU Project developers

Operating System

• macOS Intel <= 13 (Ventura)
• macOS Intel >= 14 (Sonoma)
• Apple Silicon <= 13 (Ventura)
• Apple Silicon >= 14 (Sonoma)
• Linux

Output of colima status

colima status
INFO[0001] colima is running using macOS Virtualization.Framework
INFO[0001] arch: aarch64
INFO[0001] runtime: docker
INFO[0001] mountType: virtiofs
INFO[0001] docker socket: unix:///Users/test/.colima/default/docker.sock
INFO[0001] containerd socket: unix:///Users/test/.colima/default/containerd.sock

Reproduction Steps

1. Start colima
2. colima start --vm-type vz --arch aarch64 --cpu 8 --memory 16

Expected behaviour

Colima process should use minimal CPU when idle.

Additional context

System Software Overview:

System Version: macOS 26.3.1 (25D2128)
Kernel Version: Darwin 25.3.0

Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: Mac16,8
Chip: Apple M4 Pro
Total Number of Cores: 12 (8 Performance and 4 Efficiency)
Memory: 24 GB

Monitor CPU usage of:

while true; do
  echo "$(date +%T): $(ps aux | grep usernet | grep -v grep | awk '{print $3}')% CPU"
  sleep 2
done

11:26:08: 0.0% CPU
11:26:10: 0.0% CPU
11:26:12: 0.0% CPU
11:26:14: 0.0% CPU
...
...
...
11:27:38: 0.0% CPU
11:27:40: 0.0% CPU
11:27:42: 0.0% CPU
11:27:44: 0.0% CPU
11:27:46: 196.1% CPU
11:27:48: 200.0% CPU
11:27:50: 199.3% CPU
11:27:52: 200.6% CPU
11:27:54: 194.5% CPU
11:27:56: 201.7% CPU
11:27:58: 202.5% CPU
11:28:00: 198.5% CPU
11:28:02: 196.7% CPU
11:28:04: 200.2% CPU
11:28:06: 201.0% CPU
11:28:09: 198.1% CPU
11:28:11: 196.9% CPU
11:28:13: 198.5% CPU
11:28:15: 188.6% CPU
11:28:17: 399.6% CPU

Another Observation:

• If I start Colima without an internet connection, the CPU remains low, and no spikes.
• If I start Colima without an internet connection, then the internet is enabled after a few minutes, and the CPU usage again high after a few minutes

[abiosoft]

I am not sure what is happening.
Can you start with --mount-inotify=false and see if it changes anything.

Also, are you sure you do not have any container running that is utilising resources? If yes, you may monitor with docker stats.

[al3x3i]

@abiosoft
I tried --mount-inotify=false but it did not help. CPU still spikes to ±400-1000% !!!!

• Switching between vm-type=vz and vm-type=qemu, virtiofs, sshfs , shared and bridged - Did not help

I started clean colima.
docker stats shows nothing. -> colima delete -> colima start

After debugging, I ran tcpdump and noticed, hundreds of times per minute, limactl was calling a proxy on a local machine, and the response all the time was 407 Unauthorized
Is there a way to test colima without a proxy to eliminate this issue? Or disables proxy auto-detection in Lima

[al3x3i]

Hi @abiosoft
I have found the root of my problem, and I want to share how I resolved it. Maybe it can help others.

The real problem was NTP (time sync) being blocked on my computer. Yes, sometimes we have strange things.

How to reproduce:

1. Block outgoing NTP protocol (UDP port 123) on the host
2. Start Colima normally
3. The VM cannot sync its clock from ntp.ubuntu.com
4. Check lolima logs

colima ssh
timedatectl status
#System clock synchroniz… no

sudo journalctl -u systemd-timesyncd | tail -10

5. Wait for ~2 minutes to get CPU high usage

Fixes:
Option 1:
colima start --vm-type vz --arch aarch64 --cpu 8 --memory 16 --edit

provision:
  - mode: system
    script: |
      printf '[Time]\nNTP=192.168.5.2\nFallbackNTP=192.168.5.2\n' > /etc/systemd/timesyncd.conf
      systemctl restart systemd-timesyncd

Option 2:

#!/bin/bash
colima start --vm-type vz --arch aarch64 --cpu 8 --memory 16

# Wait for VM to be ready
echo "Waiting for Colima to start..."
colima ssh -- sudo bash -c "
  printf '[Time]\nNTP=192.168.5.2\nFallbackNTP=192.168.5.2\n' > /etc/systemd/timesyncd.conf
  systemctl restart systemd-timesyncd
"
echo "Colima is ready!"

[magJ]

This happens for me sometimes, when I turn off my work VPN. limactl will climb to 700% cpu usage.