kubectl

kubernetes command-line tool

TLDR

Get resources

$ kubectl get [pods|deployments|services|nodes]

Describe resource

$ kubectl describe [pod] [name]

Apply manifest

$ kubectl apply -f [manifest.yaml]

Delete resource

$ kubectl delete [pod] [name]

View logs

$ kubectl logs [pod-name]

Execute in pod

$ kubectl exec -it [pod-name] -- [/bin/bash]

Port forward

$ kubectl port-forward [pod-name] [8080:80]

SYNOPSIS

kubectl [options] command [type] [name] [flags]

kubectl is the official command-line interface for Kubernetes, used to communicate with the cluster's API server to manage and inspect resources. It supports the full lifecycle of Kubernetes objects, including creating, reading, updating, and deleting resources such as pods, deployments, services, configmaps, and more through declarative manifests or imperative commands.The tool reads connection details from a kubeconfig file, which defines clusters, users, and contexts that determine which cluster and namespace kubectl targets. Beyond basic resource management, kubectl provides capabilities for debugging with log retrieval and exec sessions, scaling workloads, rolling out updates, port-forwarding to pods, and applying configuration changes from YAML or JSON manifests. Role-based access control (RBAC) on the cluster side governs what operations each authenticated user may perform.

PARAMETERS

get TYPE [NAME]

List resources of specified type.

describe TYPE NAME

Show detailed information about a resource.

apply -f FILE

Apply configuration from file or directory.

delete TYPE NAME

Delete a resource.

logs POD [-c container]

Show pod logs, optionally for a specific container.

exec [-it] POD -- COMMAND

Execute command in a container.

port-forward POD LOCAL:REMOTE

Forward local port to pod port.

scale TYPE/NAME --replicas=N

Scale a resource to N replicas.

create TYPE NAME

Create a resource imperatively.

edit TYPE NAME

Edit a resource in your default editor.

-n, --namespace NAMESPACE

Target namespace.

-o, --output FORMAT

Output format: json, yaml, wide, name.

-l, --selector LABEL

Filter by label selector.

--context CONTEXT

Kubeconfig context to use.

-A, --all-namespaces

List resources across all namespaces.

INSTALL

sudo apt install kubectl

sudo pacman -S kubectl

sudo apk add kubectl

brew install kubectl

nix profile install nixpkgs#kubectl

CAVEATS

Requires kubeconfig. Context determines cluster. RBAC affects access.

HISTORY

kubectl is the official CLI for Kubernetes, developed as the primary cluster management interface.