kops

Kops, short for Kubernetes Operations, is an open-source command-line tool that automates the creation, destruction, upgrading, and ongoing maintenance of Kubernetes clusters. It is designed to simplify deploying production-grade clusters across multiple cloud environments and on-premises infrastructure. Kops is not a managed Kubernetes service; it provisions the underlying resources and configures a functional cluster that operators manage and monitor.

Operation and architecture: Kops uses a declarative cluster specification stored in a state repository, such as an object store in the cloud. A cluster is created by provisioning cloud infrastructure (compute instances, networking, DNS) and bootstrapping Kubernetes components on the control plane and worker nodes. The tool handles certificate management, networking, and add-ons, and can perform rolling upgrades and maintenance with minimal manual scripting. Administrators customize the cluster through a YAML configuration and apply changes with a few commands.

Provider support and state storage: Kops is designed to work with multiple cloud providers via cloud APIs and provider tooling. Cluster configurations reference a state store that preserves cluster metadata, enabling reproducibility and recoverability. DNS integration is commonly used to expose the cluster API, and TLS configuration can be integrated during setup.

Usage and limitations: Typical workflows involve defining a cluster specification, generating the cluster, applying updates, and performing rolling upgrades. As a self-managed provisioning tool, kOps requires operators to maintain the Kubernetes control plane and nodes after provisioning, in contrast to fully managed Kubernetes services. The project is maintained by the open-source community and released under an open-source license.