Guides

How to get started, and achieve tasks, using Kubernetes

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Web UI (Dashboard)

Kubernetes has a web-based user interface that allows you to deploy containerized applications to a Kubernetes cluster, troubleshoot them, and manage the cluster itself.

By default, the Kubernetes Dashboard is deployed as a cluster addon. It is enabled by default in Kubernetes 1.2 clusters. Click here to learn more about the Dashboard access.

Using the Dashboard

The Dashboard can be used to get an overview of applications running on the cluster, and to provide information on any errors that have occurred. You can also inspect your replication controllers and corresponding services, change the number of replicated Pods, and deploy new applications using a deploy wizard.

When accessing the Dashboard on an empty cluster for the first time, the Welcome page is displayed. This page contains a link to this document as well as a button to deploy your first application. In addition, you can view which system applications are running by default in the kube-system namespace of your cluster, for example monitoring applications such as Heapster.

Kubernetes Dashboard welcome page

Deploying applications

The Dashboard lets you create and deploy a containerized application as a Replication Controller with a simple wizard:

Kubernetes Dashboard deploy form

Specifying application details

The wizard expects that you provide the following information:

If needed, you can expand the Advanced options section where you can specify more settings:

Kubernetes Dashboard deploy form advanced options

Uploading a YAML or JSON file

Kubernetes supports declarative configuration. In this style, all configuration is stored in YAML or JSON configuration files using the Kubernetes’ API resource schemas as the configuration schemas.

As an alternative to specifying application details in the deploy wizard, you can define your Replication Controllers and Services in YAML or JSON files, and upload the files to your Pods:

Kubernetes Dashboard deploy from file upload

Applications view

As soon as applications are running on your cluster, the initial view of the Dashboard defaults to showing an overview of them, for example:

Kubernetes Dashboard applications view

Individual applications are shown as cards - where an application is defined as a Replication Controller and its corresponding Services. Each card shows the current number of running and desired replicas, along with errors reported by Kubernetes, if any.

You can view application details (View details), make quick changes to the number of replicas (Edit pod count) or delete the application directly (Delete) from the menu in each card’s corner:

Kubernetes Dashboard deploy form file upload

View details

Selecting this option from the card menu will take you to the following page where you can view more information about the Pods that make up your application:

Kubernetes Dashboard application detail

The EVENTS tab can be useful for debugging flapping applications.

Clicking the plus sign in the right corner of the screen leads you back to the page for deploying a new application.

Edit pod count

If you choose to change the number of Pods, the respective Replication Controller will be updated to reflect the newly specified number.

Delete

Deleting a Replication Controller also deletes the Pods managed by it. It is currently not supported to leave the Pods running.

You have the option to also delete Services related to the Replication Controller if the label selector targets only the Replication Controller to be deleted.

More Information

For more information, see the Kubernetes Dashboard repository.

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