$devvkit resources --cheatsheet kubernetes-cheatsheet

Kubernetes Cheatsheet

[containers]

Essential kubectl commands for managing pods, deployments, services, configs, and cluster resources.

Kubernetes is the industry standard for container orchestration. This cheatsheet covers the most common kubectl commands for managing pods, deployments, services, configmaps, secrets, networking, storage, and debugging — grouped by workflow stage.

All commands use kubectl syntax. Replace namespace, pod name, and other identifiers with your own values.

Cluster Info & Context

$kubectl cluster-info

Display cluster information — API server, DNS, and core services endpoints.Example: kubectl cluster-info

$kubectl config current-context

Show the currently active cluster context.Example: kubectl config current-context

$kubectl config get-contexts

List all available cluster contexts.Example: kubectl config get-contexts

$kubectl config use-context <name>

Switch to a different cluster context.Example: kubectl config use-context prod-cluster

$kubectl get nodes

List all nodes in the cluster with their status.Example: kubectl get nodes -o wide

$kubectl api-resources

List all available API resource types and their short names.Example: kubectl api-resources | grep pod

$kubectl explain <resource>

Get documentation for a resource type and its fields.Example: kubectl explain deployment.spec.template.spec.containers

Pod Management

$kubectl get pods

List all pods in the current namespace.Example: kubectl get pods --all-namespaces

$kubectl get pods -o wide

List pods with detailed info: node, IP, and status.Example: kubectl get pods -o wide

$kubectl describe pod <name>

Show detailed pod metadata, events, and container status.Example: kubectl describe pod my-pod-5d4f8c7b9-x8v3k

$kubectl logs <pod>

View logs from a pod's primary container.Example: kubectl logs -f my-pod

$kubectl logs <pod> -c <container>

View logs from a specific container in a multi-container pod.Example: kubectl logs my-pod -c sidecar

$kubectl logs --tail 100 -f <pod>

Tail the last 100 log lines and follow new output.Example: kubectl logs --tail 100 -f my-pod

$kubectl exec -it <pod> -- <cmd>

Run a command in a pod interactively (e.g. sh).Example: kubectl exec -it my-pod -- sh

$kubectl port-forward <pod> <local>:<remote>

Forward a local port to a port on a pod.Example: kubectl port-forward my-pod 8080:80

Deployments & Scaling

$kubectl get deployments

List all deployments in the current namespace.Example: kubectl get deployments

$kubectl describe deployment <name>

Show detailed deployment status, strategy, and rollout history.Example: kubectl describe deployment my-app

$kubectl scale deployment <name> --replicas=n

Scale a deployment to a specific number of replicas.Example: kubectl scale deployment my-app --replicas=5

$kubectl rollout status deployment/<name>

Watch the status of a rolling update until it completes.Example: kubectl rollout status deployment/my-app

$kubectl rollout history deployment/<name>

Show the rollout history for a deployment.Example: kubectl rollout history deployment/my-app

$kubectl rollout undo deployment/<name>

Roll back to the previous deployment revision.Example: kubectl rollout undo deployment/my-app

$kubectl set image deployment/<name> <container>=<image>

Update the container image of a deployment to trigger a rollout.Example: kubectl set image deployment/my-app app=my-app:v2

$kubectl apply -f <file>

Apply a configuration from a file (create or update resources).Example: kubectl apply -f deployment.yaml

$kubectl delete -f <file>

Delete resources defined in a file.Example: kubectl delete -f deployment.yaml

Services & Networking

$kubectl get services

List all services in the current namespace.Example: kubectl get services

$kubectl describe service <name>

Show service details: type, cluster IP, endpoints, ports.Example: kubectl describe service my-app

$kubectl get ingress

List all ingress resources with host and routing rules.Example: kubectl get ingress

ConfigMaps & Secrets

$kubectl get configmaps

List all ConfigMaps in the current namespace.Example: kubectl get configmaps

$kubectl get secrets

List all Secrets in the current namespace.Example: kubectl get secrets

$kubectl create configmap <name> --from-literal=<key>=<val>

Create a ConfigMap from literal key-value pairs.Example: kubectl create configmap app-config --from-literal=LOG_LEVEL=debug

$kubectl create configmap <name> --from-file=<path>

Create a ConfigMap from a file (key = filename, value = content).Example: kubectl create configmap nginx-config --from-file=./nginx.conf

$kubectl create secret generic <name> --from-literal=<key>=<val>

Create a generic Secret from literal values.Example: kubectl create secret generic db-secret --from-literal=password=s3cret

Storage & Volumes

$kubectl get pv

List all PersistentVolumes across the cluster.Example: kubectl get pv

$kubectl get pvc

List all PersistentVolumeClaims in the current namespace.Example: kubectl get pvc

$kubectl describe pvc <name>

Show PVC details: requested storage, access mode, bound volume.Example: kubectl describe pvc my-claim

Debugging & Logs

$kubectl get events --sort-by=.lastTimestamp

Show recent cluster events sorted by time — useful for diagnosing failures.Example: kubectl get events --sort-by=.lastTimestamp

$kubectl top pod

Show CPU and memory usage for pods (requires metrics server).Example: kubectl top pod

$kubectl top node

Show CPU and memory usage for nodes.Example: kubectl top node

Kubernetes Cheatsheet

Essential kubectl commands for managing pods, deployments, services, configs, and cluster resources.

All commands use kubectl syntax. Replace namespace, pod name, and other identifiers with your own values.

Cluster Info & Context

kubectl cluster-info — Display cluster information — API server, DNS, and core services endpoints.

Example: kubectl cluster-info

kubectl config current-context — Show the currently active cluster context.

Example: kubectl config current-context

kubectl config get-contexts — List all available cluster contexts.

Example: kubectl config get-contexts

kubectl config use-context <name> — Switch to a different cluster context.

Example: kubectl config use-context prod-cluster

kubectl get nodes — List all nodes in the cluster with their status.

Example: kubectl get nodes -o wide

kubectl api-resources — List all available API resource types and their short names.

Example: kubectl api-resources | grep pod

kubectl explain <resource> — Get documentation for a resource type and its fields.

Example: kubectl explain deployment.spec.template.spec.containers

Pod Management

kubectl get pods — List all pods in the current namespace.

Example: kubectl get pods --all-namespaces

kubectl get pods -o wide — List pods with detailed info: node, IP, and status.

Example: kubectl get pods -o wide

kubectl describe pod <name> — Show detailed pod metadata, events, and container status.

Example: kubectl describe pod my-pod-5d4f8c7b9-x8v3k

kubectl logs <pod> — View logs from a pod's primary container.

Example: kubectl logs -f my-pod

kubectl logs <pod> -c <container> — View logs from a specific container in a multi-container pod.

Example: kubectl logs my-pod -c sidecar

kubectl logs --tail 100 -f <pod> — Tail the last 100 log lines and follow new output.

Example: kubectl logs --tail 100 -f my-pod

kubectl exec -it <pod> -- <cmd> — Run a command in a pod interactively (e.g. sh).

Example: kubectl exec -it my-pod -- sh

kubectl port-forward <pod> <local>:<remote> — Forward a local port to a port on a pod.

Example: kubectl port-forward my-pod 8080:80

Deployments & Scaling

kubectl get deployments — List all deployments in the current namespace.

Example: kubectl get deployments

kubectl describe deployment <name> — Show detailed deployment status, strategy, and rollout history.

Example: kubectl describe deployment my-app

kubectl scale deployment <name> --replicas=n — Scale a deployment to a specific number of replicas.

Example: kubectl scale deployment my-app --replicas=5

kubectl rollout status deployment/<name> — Watch the status of a rolling update until it completes.

Example: kubectl rollout status deployment/my-app

kubectl rollout history deployment/<name> — Show the rollout history for a deployment.

Example: kubectl rollout history deployment/my-app

kubectl rollout undo deployment/<name> — Roll back to the previous deployment revision.

Example: kubectl rollout undo deployment/my-app

kubectl set image deployment/<name> <container>=<image> — Update the container image of a deployment to trigger a rollout.

Example: kubectl set image deployment/my-app app=my-app:v2

kubectl apply -f <file> — Apply a configuration from a file (create or update resources).

Example: kubectl apply -f deployment.yaml

kubectl delete -f <file> — Delete resources defined in a file.

Example: kubectl delete -f deployment.yaml

Services & Networking

kubectl get services — List all services in the current namespace.

Example: kubectl get services

kubectl describe service <name> — Show service details: type, cluster IP, endpoints, ports.

Example: kubectl describe service my-app

kubectl get ingress — List all ingress resources with host and routing rules.

Example: kubectl get ingress

ConfigMaps & Secrets

kubectl get configmaps — List all ConfigMaps in the current namespace.

Example: kubectl get configmaps

kubectl get secrets — List all Secrets in the current namespace.

Example: kubectl get secrets

kubectl create configmap <name> --from-literal=<key>=<val> — Create a ConfigMap from literal key-value pairs.

Example: kubectl create configmap app-config --from-literal=LOG_LEVEL=debug

kubectl create configmap <name> --from-file=<path> — Create a ConfigMap from a file (key = filename, value = content).

Example: kubectl create configmap nginx-config --from-file=./nginx.conf

kubectl create secret generic <name> --from-literal=<key>=<val> — Create a generic Secret from literal values.

Example: kubectl create secret generic db-secret --from-literal=password=s3cret

Storage & Volumes

kubectl get pv — List all PersistentVolumes across the cluster.

Example: kubectl get pv

kubectl get pvc — List all PersistentVolumeClaims in the current namespace.

Example: kubectl get pvc

kubectl describe pvc <name> — Show PVC details: requested storage, access mode, bound volume.

Example: kubectl describe pvc my-claim

Debugging & Logs

kubectl get events --sort-by=.lastTimestamp — Show recent cluster events sorted by time — useful for diagnosing failures.

Example: kubectl get events --sort-by=.lastTimestamp

kubectl top pod — Show CPU and memory usage for pods (requires metrics server).

Example: kubectl top pod

kubectl top node — Show CPU and memory usage for nodes.

Example: kubectl top node