Its NATO reporting name is SA-4 Ganef, after the Yiddish (originally Hebrew) word גנבֿ‎ meaning 'thief'; the name was used because the system resembled the Bristol Bloodhound.

[2] Development of the Krug ZRK-SD (2K11) air defense system started in 1957 by the Lyulev OKB design bureau.

[1] A target drone called 9M316M Virazh, developed from obsolete Krug missiles, was proposed for export in 1994.

[3][4] The 2K11 was briefly operated by the Soviet army during the war in Afghanistan in 1979 and 1980, but was withdrawn several months after the initial invasion.

Batteries may also feature Ural 375D trucks 2T6 carrying spare missiles for reloading the launchers.

In PI mode (ПИ) the system only briefly illuminated the target and the computer calculated its prolonged path based on data received from early warning radars.

As a result, the system emitted detectable signals only for a few seconds every few minutes, making it difficult to jam or launch an anti-radar missile against the Krug.