kubectl
The kubectl command-line tool is the primary way to interact with Kubernetes clusters. Below is a comprehensive list of kubectl commands, organized by category. This includes commands for managing resources, configuring the cluster, and obtaining cluster information.
1. Basic Commands
- View Kubernetes cluster information:
kubectl cluster-info - Get the Kubernetes server version:
kubectl version - Display help for kubectl commands:
kubectl help
2. Context and Configuration
- View the current context:
kubectl config current-context - List all contexts:
kubectl config get-contexts - Switch to a different context:
kubectl config use-context <context-name> - View the entire kubeconfig file:
kubectl config view - Set a new context:
kubectl config set-context <context-name> - Unset (delete) a context:
kubectl config unset contexts.<context-name>
3. Cluster Management
- Get cluster component statuses:
kubectl get componentstatuses - List nodes in the cluster:
kubectl get nodes - Get detailed information about a node:
kubectl describe node <node-name>
4. Pod Management
- List all pods in the default namespace:
kubectl get pods - List all pods in all namespaces:
kubectl get pods --all-namespaces - Describe a specific pod:
kubectl describe pod <pod-name> - Create a pod from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <pod.yaml> - Delete a pod:
kubectl delete pod <pod-name> - Get pod logs:
kubectl logs <pod-name> - Execute a command in a pod:
kubectl exec -it <pod-name> -- <command>
5. Service Management
- List all services:
kubectl get svc - Describe a service:
kubectl describe svc <service-name> - Create a service from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <service.yaml> - Delete a service:
kubectl delete svc <service-name>
6. Deployment Management
- List all deployments:
kubectl get deployments - Describe a deployment:
kubectl describe deployment <deployment-name> - Create a deployment from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <deployment.yaml> - Scale a deployment:
kubectl scale deployment <deployment-name> --replicas=<number> - Delete a deployment:
kubectl delete deployment <deployment-name>
7. Namespace Management
- List all namespaces:
kubectl get namespaces - Describe a namespace:
kubectl describe namespace <namespace-name> - Create a new namespace:
kubectl create namespace <namespace-name> - Delete a namespace:
kubectl delete namespace <namespace-name>
8. ConfigMap and Secret Management
- List all configmaps:
kubectl get configmaps - Describe a configmap:
kubectl describe configmap <configmap-name> - Create a configmap from a file:
kubectl create configmap <configmap-name> --from-file=<file-path> - Delete a configmap:
kubectl delete configmap <configmap-name> - List all secrets:
kubectl get secrets - Describe a secret:
kubectl describe secret <secret-name> - Create a secret from a file:
kubectl create secret generic <secret-name> --from-file=<file-path> - Delete a secret:
kubectl delete secret <secret-name>
9. Job and CronJob Management
- List all jobs:
kubectl get jobs - Describe a job:
kubectl describe job <job-name> - Create a job from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <job.yaml> - Delete a job:
kubectl delete job <job-name> - List all cronjobs:
kubectl get cronjobs - Describe a cronjob:
kubectl describe cronjob <cronjob-name> - Create a cronjob from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <cronjob.yaml> - Delete a cronjob:
kubectl delete cronjob <cronjob-name>
10. PersistentVolume (PV) and PersistentVolumeClaim (PVC) Management
- List all PVs:
kubectl get pv - Describe a PV:
kubectl describe pv <pv-name> - List all PVCs:
kubectl get pvc - Describe a PVC:
kubectl describe pvc <pvc-name> - Create a PVC from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <pvc.yaml> - Delete a PVC:
kubectl delete pvc <pvc-name>
11. Ingress and Network Policy Management
- List all ingresses:
kubectl get ingresses - Describe an ingress:
kubectl describe ingress <ingress-name> - Create an ingress from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <ingress.yaml> - Delete an ingress:
kubectl delete ingress <ingress-name> - List all network policies:
kubectl get networkpolicies - Describe a network policy:
kubectl describe networkpolicy <networkpolicy-name> - Create a network policy from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <networkpolicy.yaml> - Delete a network policy:
kubectl delete networkpolicy <networkpolicy-name>
12. Role-Based Access Control (RBAC)
- List all roles:
kubectl get roles - Describe a role:
kubectl describe role <role-name> - Create a role from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <role.yaml> - Delete a role:
kubectl delete role <role-name> - List all rolebindings:
kubectl get rolebindings - Describe a rolebinding:
kubectl describe rolebinding <rolebinding-name> - Create a rolebinding from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <rolebinding.yaml> - Delete a rolebinding:
kubectl delete rolebinding <rolebinding-name>
13. Resource Quota and Limits
- List all resource quotas:
kubectl get resourcequotas - Describe a resource quota:
kubectl describe resourcequota <resourcequota-name> - Create a resource quota from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <resourcequota.yaml> - Delete a resource quota:
kubectl delete resourcequota <resourcequota-name> - List all limit ranges:
kubectl get limitranges - **Describe a limit range:**
kubectl describe limitrange <limitrange-name> - Create a limit range from a YAML file:
kubectl apply -f <limitrange.yaml> - Delete a limit range:
kubectl delete limitrange <limitrange-name>
14. Advanced Commands
- Port-forward a local port to a port on a pod:
kubectl port-forward <pod-name> <local-port>:<pod-port> - Copy files to/from a pod:
kubectl cp <local-path> <pod-name>:<container-path> kubectl cp <pod-name>:<container-path> <local-path> - Run a pod interactively (e.g., for troubleshooting):
kubectl run -i --tty <pod-name> --image=<image-name> -- sh - Debug a container within a pod:
kubectl debug <pod-name> --image=<debugger-image>
15. Miscellaneous Commands
- Explain a resource and its fields:
kubectl explain <resource> - Apply changes to a resource from a YAML/JSON file:
kubectl apply -f <resource.yaml> - Delete resources by type and name:
kubectl delete <resource-type> <resource-name> - Get the resource’s status:
kubectl get <resource> -o wide - Get resource usage (CPU/memory) metrics:
kubectl top nodes kubectl top pods
This list provides a comprehensive set of kubectl commands that you can use to manage a Kubernetes cluster.