Using Kubernetes kubectl CLI (command-line tool)

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What is kubectl?

kubectl is the Kubernetes command-line tool, and it lets you run commands against Kubernetes clusters.

Basic Structure of kubectl Commands

kubectl [command] [TYPE] [NAME] [flags]
  • command: command to run against a resource (object), such as create, get, delete, or edit
  • TYPE: resource type, such as node, pod, or service
  • NAME: resource name
  • flags: additional options to configure, such as –help or -o options

Example command:

kubectl get pod webserver -o wide

kubectl Command Autocompletion

bash

To use bash autocompletion for kubectl commands on Linux, run the command below.

source <(kubectl completion bash)

To apply it every time, add it to .bashrc as follows.

echo 'source <(kubectl completion bash)' >>~/.bashrc

kubectl commands

kubectl --help
kubectl command --help

kubectl run <resource name> <options>
kubectl create -f obj.yaml
kubectl apply -f obj.yaml

kubectl get <resource name> <object name>
kubectl edit <resource name> <object name>
kubectl describe <resource name> <object name>

kubectl delete <resource name> <options>

kubectl api-resources
kubectl --help
kubectl logs --help

Execute pod

kubectl exec -it [Pod name] -- [path]

For example:

kubectl exec -it prism-69b8c846c-gc9zj -- /bin/sh
  • In some cases, the container may have been created with /bin/bash instead of /bin/sh.

References