How Kubernetes Deployments, ReplicaSets, and HPAs coordinate

This is the third post in my Kubernetes Controllers series. In the first post, we explored what controllers are and how they maintain your desired state through continuous reconciliation. In the second post I walk through how to build stable controllers from scratch. Now we’ll examine how three critical controllers interact to manage your applications. We were rolling out a new version of an application. 100 pods, all running about 25% hot on CPU. ...

May 3, 2025 · Tony

Fundamentals for solid kubernetes controllers

This is the second post in my Kubernetes Controllers series. In the first post, we explored what controllers are and how they maintain your desired state through continuous reconciliation. In the last post, I explained the utility and purpose of Kubernetes Controllers. This post will explain how to build them, and how to think about designing them. We’ll go into Controller patterns, anti-patterns, and sharp edges of the model that you’re bound to run into. ...

December 13, 2024 · Tony

Kubernetes controllers explained

This is the first post in my Kubernetes Controllers series. In the second post I walk through how to build stable controllers from scratch. Controllers aren’t just add-ons to Kubernetes - they’re fundamental to how the whole system works. They’re the caretakers of your cluster, overseeing and orchestrating processes to ensure your defined resources stay on track. Whether it’s maintaining pod replicas, managing rolling updates, or handling node lifecycles, controllers are there making sure things run smoothly. ...

December 13, 2024 · Tony

Doing kubernetes on the cheap

Most SRE-aligned engineers will tell you they have a home lab. Depending on how grey the beard is, it may be an old blade they acquired when a company moved data centers, an intricate setup of Raspberry Pi 4s set up in a custom cooling rack, or like me and many others, it may just be an old gaming computer they no longer use but cannot bring themselves to get rid of. Whatever it may be, it’s usually used for learning, tinkering, or to run some of the /r/selfhosted favorites. ...

December 31, 2023 · Tony