Kubernetes has revolutionized software development by bringing a simple way to take containers into the production process, eliminating the pain of deployment, and facilitating continuous integration as a practical and efficient option. Containers allow the isolation of the software development from the production environment, no longer does the development team need to be cognizant of the environment on which the end solution will operate. Indeed, the end solution can be deployed onto a range of different environments if necessary, without any need to worry over compatibility issues. These advantages bring with them reductions to both times and costs for development and deployment, a complete end-to-end win-win situation, and Kubernetes brings container orchestration to this party.
Kubernetes allows integrators to take the developed solution and will enable it to manage the deployment with no need to worry about the target infrastructure. Kubernetes as the container management system using the Docker container engine will automatically handle this.
Why Kubernetes?
The main advantage that Kubernetes has over other options is that it is stable, scalable, open-source, and comes out of Google; hence, it has a distinguished pedigree and dependable support. It is environment agnostic, and Kubernetes is available on every public cloud. Once deployed it can be easily moved into a different environment if required, allowing the operations team to react to changes in the performance, costs, or other factors that are relevant to the deployed environment. While best suited for cloud solutions, it supports on-premise and hybrid-cloud infrastructures, making it flexible to any end solution requirements.
Kubernetes promotes the development of scalable and deterministic solutions with the use of containers, and the defined mapping of the relationships between the containers. It does this in a manner that is simple to implement but which imposes strict version control to manage the process, reducing development costs, and promoting quality.
DevOps and Kubernetes
DevOps are the practices that combine the development and deployment operations in software programs, covering the handover of solutions from the software development team to the operations team. These practices have gained prominence with the introduction of the concept of continuous delivery as a consequence of rapid development methodologies such as Agile.
The novelty that DevOps Kubernetes brings to the established processes is a proactive approach, deploying functionality incrementally and using automated testing and monitoring to identify and resolve problems in real-time rather than waiting for errors to be reported and applying an incident response approach.
Adopting container technologies to localize and isolate software functions enables software developers to integrate their activities with the DevOps concept and deliver reliable and agile solutions that the operations team can easily incorporate into the production deployment. Containerization also acts as the enabler for using microservices. Creating solutions from loosely coupled microservices allows the separation of functions into neat packages that can be developed in isolation and then integrated. This feature facilitates the introduction of complex changes to the solution by the simple addition or replacement of microservices.
Kubernetes and Microservices
Microservices receive much attention, but fundamentally, they are just a simple computer program that performs a narrowly-defined task. Microservices are the modules created by the decomposition of services, defined by the functions that they fulfill rather than their implementation. Each can be programmed using the best language available for its particular purpose, optimized for execution speed, reusability, or programming development efficiency.
The decomposition of solutions into component microservices reduces complexity, facilitating rapid development and deployment, and aids efficient verification. Building a solution from properly developed microservices will improve the overall dependency and resilience of the integrated solution.
The advantage of Kubernetes is that it is the perfect platform for developing and scaling complex solutions from multiple integrated microservices.
Kubernetes and Machine Learning
One of the significant advantages of Kubernetes is the simple deployment of complex Machine Learning solutions, allowing the creation of a development environment to manage the building and control of machine learning models from the initial research phase through to its production. It is this simplicity that opens up Kubernetes machine learning deployment to everyone, irrespective of their deployment experience.
Kubernetes and Gitlab
Gitlab is primed and ready for Kubernetes integration. From its Deploy Boards that provide monitoring of the current health and status of each Kubernetes continuous integration environment through to automatic DevOps that detect, build, test, deploy, and monitor the applications. GitLab offers a single integrated application to manage birth to death development and deployment of software solutions using the Kubernetes open-source container orchestration platform.
Kubernetes From Scratch
While a wide array of tools are available for creating Kubernetes clusters, users can build them from scratch without using tools. All that is needed is a thorough understanding of Kubernetes and a little patience. Guides and tutorials are available online to help out, GitHub provides an excellent library of information including the Kubernetes The Hard Way tutorial.
Kubernetes Example
If you are looking for Kubernetes examples, then the best place to start is GitHub, which includes several examples of how to run real applications with Kubernetes.
For anyone looking to learn more about Kubernetes, a recommended resource is the Coursera Kubernetes online modules that include getting started and architecting training modules. The teaching covers the Kubernetes Architecture, how to create clusters, and different installation configurations and their deployment. Coursera is a leading online learning platform that is partnered with some of the world’s top universities and industry educators, delivering courses to millions of users around the world.
Kubernetes Summed Up
Kubernetes offers a simple, adaptable, and scalable deployment mechanism that is ideal for cloud solutions. Its operating environment independence is a significant plus point for the developer looking for maximum flexibility with minimum effort. Of all the many deployment options available, it is one of the best for across the board suitability with few dependencies and balanced compromises.
by Stephen M.