Best Kubernetes Developer Tools for Increasing Productivity in 2023

As Kubernetes becomes the industry standard for container orchestration and more firms adopt it, the need for experienced Kubernetes developers grows. But what makes a good Kubernetes developer? In addition to having a solid grasp of Kubernetes concepts, it's crucial to work efficiently and be productive. That's why we have compiled a list of the best Kubernetes developer tools to help enhance your productivity.

Kubernetes tools to use in 2022

Kubernetes is a platform for managing containerized applications over a cluster of nodes. It can automate container deployment, scaling, and operations, as well as monitor the health of your application to ensure that it does not destroy all of your instances at once.

Here’s a look at several Kubernetes tools. We have categorized them by functionality. The ones we'll be covering today are:

• Kubernetes CLI tools
• Kubernetes monitoring tools
• Kubernetes security tools
• Kubernetes deployment tools

Let's get started!

Kubernetes CLI tools

CLI in Kubernetes stands for Command Line Interface. It is a tool for managing Kubernetes clusters and applications. It has split into two sections:

• The kubectl binary: Used to interact with Kubernetes clusters
• The kubelet binary: Used to manage the individual nodes in Kubernetes clusters.

CLI allows you to:

• Communicate with Kubernetes without using the web UI.
• Automate processes across several Kubernetes clusters.
• Handle storage and networking of clusters.

Here are some must-have Kubernetes CLI tools:

K9

K9 is a Kubernetes tool used for interacting with clusters. It provides a CLI and an application programming interface (API) for managing Kubernetes resources. It also supports more sophisticated functionalities such as port forwarding and inspecting the YAML of Kubernetes objects.

Lesser-known facts about K9:

• K9 is open-source and available on GitHub.
• K9 is developed in Go and licensed under the Apache 2.0 license.

kubectx and kubens

kubectx and kubens are two tools for quickly switching between Kubernetes contexts and namespaces, respectively. You can use them to swiftly transition without knowing about each cluster's specifics.

kubectl

You can perform commands against Kubernetes clusters using the kubectl command-line tool. It can be used to deploy apps, examine and manage cluster resources, and inspect logs.

kubectl krew plugin manager helps discover and manage plugins for Kubernetes customization.

etcd

etcd is a key-value database store where Kubernetes stores its configuration data. It is a crucial component of Kubernetes.

Other popular Kubernetes command line tools include:

• kube-apiserver: The Kubernetes API server exposes the Kubernetes API. The API server is the main point of interaction between Kubernetes and the outside world.

• Kube-controller-manager: The Kubernetes controller manager is a daemon that runs on the master node and manages the Kubernetes controllers.

• Kube-scheduler: The Kubernetes scheduler is a domain controller that runs on the master node and schedules pods on workers.

Kubernetes monitoring tools

Many tools can help you monitor your Kubernetes environment. This suite allows tracking the condition of a cluster and its components like the health of nodes, pods, and services, as well as detecting and diagnosing problems with the Kubernetes system itself.

Here are some must-use Kubernetes tools for advanced observability.

Prometheus

Prometheus is an open-source monitoring platform for capturing and retaining metrics from your applications. This Kubernetes tool can monitor applications and services in any language. Some of its perks include:

• A simple yet powerful data model that allows for easy metric instrumentation.
• Provision of a query language for easy metric data analysis.

Grafana

Grafana's visualization tool can be used to create dashboards to visualize metrics data. It’s one of the finest Kubernetes tools for mapping because:

• It supports multiple data sources, including Prometheus.
• It caters to a wide range of plugins to extend its functionality.
• It is highly customizable and can be used to create custom dashboards.

The Kubernetes Dashboard

Kubernetes also has a built-in monitoring tool. The Kubernetes Dashboard provides a graphical interface for monitoring clusters and nodes. You can view the central processing unit (CPU) and memory usage, container status, and log data.

The dashboard is accessible through the kubectl command-line tool. The Kubernetes API also offers a way to access monitoring data programmatically.

Other open-source Kubernetes monitoring tools include:

• Fluentd: A log collector that can collect and ship log data to a central logging system. It supports multiple data sources, including Prometheus.

• Elasticsearch: A search and analytics engine that can search and analyze metric data. It is highly scalable and can be used to store billions of metrics. It also provides a REST API to access metric data conveniently.

• Kibana: An open-source visualization tool to create dashboards to visualize your log data. It is highly customizable and can create personalized dashboards.

Kubernetes security tools

With Kubernetes security tools, you can prevent unauthorized access to your containers and ensure that only authorized users have access. The tools also help monitor and audit your containers, allowing you to detect any security issues.

There are several tools available to assist with securing your Kubernetes cluster. The most popular ones include kube-hunter, kube-bench, Aqua Security, and Twistlock.

Here’s a look at these must-have Kubernetes security tools in 2022.

kube-hunter

This is a tool for detecting security flaws in Kubernetes. It scans a Kubernetes cluster for potential security issues and provides a report with recommendations for mitigating those issues. It can run automatically as part of a continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipeline.

kube-bench

It helps check whether Kubernetes is deployed securely. It conducts a series of tests against a Kubernetes cluster to certify that it fulfills the Center for Internet Security (CIS) benchmarks. It benefits include:

• Aiding in the safe installation of Kubernetes without additional keys.
• Can be executed automatically via the deployment pipeline.

Twistlock

Twistlock provides comprehensive security for your containers, including vulnerability management, runtime protection, and compliance monitoring. It makes it easy to deploy and manage Docker containers in any environment.

Twistlock is not an open-source security tool. It’s available in two editions:

• Twistlock Enterprise: A comprehensive container security solution that includes vulnerability management, runtime protection, and compliance monitoring.
• Twistlock Standard: A basic container security solution that includes runtime protection and compliance monitoring.

Aqua Security

Aqua Security is a developer-focused security solution designed specifically for containerized settings. It helps secure container-based applications throughout the entire lifecycle, from development to production.

• Aqua Security provides complete visibility into container activity, allowing organizations to enforce security policies and prevent threats in real-time.
• Its unique container security approach assists in securing applications without slowing development or disrupting operations.

Other widely used Kubernetes security tools include:

• Sonobuoy: A tool to gather data about the Kubernetes cluster. It runs a series of tests and collects data about the cluster which can be used to troubleshoot issues or assess the cluster's health.

• Anchore: A tool to evaluate container images for security flaws. It scans images for known vulnerabilities and provides a report with recommendations to prevent the same.

• Clair: It assists in analyzing templates for risks. It generates a summary for solving repetitive threat vectors.

Kubernetes deployment tools

Kubernetes deployments are the core entity of Kubernetes implementation. Deployment tools can be used to build a new ReplicaSet, scale an existing ReplicaSet, or roll back to a previous deployment. Kubernetes deployment tools help manage and automate the deployment of containerized applications on a Kubernetes cluster.

Here are some of the most popular and essential Kubernetes deployment tools:

Helm

Helm is a package manager for Kubernetes that helps simplify the deployment of apps on Kubernetes. It is used for the administration of Kubernetes applications. It can be used to install, upgrade, and delete applications on a Kubernetes cluster.

kubespray

A tool for provisioning and deploying Kubernetes clusters, kubespray is an open-source project that helps deploy Kubernetes on various platforms including AWS, Azure, Google Cloud Platform, and OpenStack or bare-metal servers.

Other popular Kubernetes deployment tools include:

• Kubernetes Operators: A tool for managing Kubernetes applications. Kubernetes Operators can be used to deploy, update, and delete applications on a Kubernetes cluster.
• Ansible: An open-source orchestration tool that can automate the deployment of Kubernetes.
• Puppet and Chef: Configuration management tools for Kubernetes deployment.

Summary

Kubernetes is used by companies of all sizes, including the likes of Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and many more. There is a large - and growing - community for Kubernetes as it is constantly evolving and adds new features. You can use the tools discussed above to increase your productivity and enhance your Kubernetes skills.

Turing is also looking for experienced Kubernetes developers for US-based firms. Make sure you check out the requirements before applying!

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