LinuxQuestions.org - runc won't start a container

Trying to get my head around containers and I'm trying to start simple, by using just runc.

There is a directory: /hsc/first_run. In it is a directory called rootfs, which contains an unzipped "image" of a small OS. I can do things like "chroot rootfs busybox sh" and get results. This indicates that the image is good.

According to my reading, the following should work, as root:

Code:

cd /hsc/first_run

runc spec

runc start makeupanameanynamejustpickoneandstickwithit

Nope. Every time:

Code:

container makeupanameanynamejustpickoneandstickwithit does not exist

one or more of container start failed

I tried using the directory name "rootfs" instead of "makeupanameanynamejustpickoneandstickwithit" but that does not work either. I looked inside the config.json file for a container name. Could not find anything.

What am I missing? What crucial thing is overlooked in all man pages, web pages and tutorials that I need to know?

Thank you.