Book Image

kubectl: Command-Line Kubernetes in a Nutshell

By : Rimantas Mocevicius
Book Image

kubectl: Command-Line Kubernetes in a Nutshell

By: Rimantas Mocevicius

Overview of this book

The kubectl command line tool lets you control Kubernetes clusters to manage nodes in the cluster and perform all types of Kubernetes operations. This introductory guide will get you up to speed with kubectl in no time. The book is divided into four parts, touching base on the installation and providing a general overview of kubectl in the first part. The second part introduces you to managing Kubernetes clusters and working with nodes. In the third part, you’ll be taken through the different ways in which you can manage Kubernetes applications, covering how to create, update, delete, view, and debug applications. The last part of the book focuses on various Kubernetes plugins and commands. You’ll get to grips with using Kustomize and discover Helm, a Kubernetes package manager. In addition to this, you’ll explore how you can use equivalent Docker commands in kubectl. By the end of this book, you’ll have learned how to install and update an application on Kubernetes, view its logs, and inspect clusters effectively.
Table of Contents (16 chapters)
1
Section 1: Getting Started with kubectl
3
Section 2: Kubernetes Cluster and Node Management
6
Section 3: Application Management
10
Section 4: Extending kubectl

Introduction to Helm

Helm is a Kubernetes package manager that allows developers and users an easy way to package, configure, share, and deploy Kubernetes applications onto Kubernetes clusters.

You can think of Helm as the same as the Homebrew/APT/Yum package managers, but for Kubernetes.

Helm v3 is based on a client-only architecture. It connects to the Kubernetes API the same way as kubectl does, by using a kubeconfig file containing the Kubernetes cluster connection settings. So where kubectl works, the Helm CLI will work too, using the same kubectl capabilities and permissions.

To better understand Helm, you should get familiar with the following concepts:

  • The Helm CLI: A command-line tool that interacts with the Kubernetes API and does various functions, such as installing, upgrading, and deleting Helm releases.
  • A chart: This is a collection of template files that describe Kubernetes resources.
  • Chart templating: Helm chart templating language used in...