Introduction
I’m Tani, a software engineer with 6 years of programming experience and 4 years working professionally.
Kubernetes confused me at first, until I started thinking about it like a computer lab.
KUBERNETES WORKLOAD
Overview
Think of Kubernetes as a computer lab filled with multiple laptops (nodes).
Your job is to run applications on these laptops, without manually managing each one.
Pods
Pods are the smallest runnable unit in Kubernetes, usually one or more containers running together.
Imagine images as a laptop placed in the store, and pods as a laptop you have bought and have powered up, and are currently using it in relation to a software application (a standalone runnable piece of software)
Deployements
A Deployment is how you manage stateless applications.
It:
- Defines how your app should run
- Creates and manages ReplicaSets
- Handles updates and rollbacks safely
Flow:
Deployment → ReplicaSet → Pods
Analogy:
Like giving IT a standard laptop configuration, and they ensure the right number of laptops are always running and updated.
Deamon Sets
DaemonSets ensure:
“Every laptop must run this background tool.”
DaemonSets ensure one pod runs on every node.
Example:
- Monitoring agents
- Logging tools
Think: software that must exist on every laptop.
Stateful Sets
StatefulSets are for laptops where:
Data must persist; your laptop always has its data in it even if you restart it 100 times.
Analogy:
These are personal laptops assigned to specific users, not replaceable like generic ones.
If Laptop-1 restarts -> it’s still Laptop-1 with its files intact.
Replica Sets
ReplicaSets are the system that ensures:
“We must always have 3 working laptops.”
If one laptop crashes -> it gets replaced immediately
Analogy:
Like an auto-repair + replacement system in your lab.
Replication Controllers
A replication controller is the older version of the replica set that was used in the early versions of Kubernetes to ensure a specified number of pods were running at any given time
Jobs
A Job runs a task to completion, then stops.
“Turn on a laptop, run this task, then shut it down.”
Example:
- Install software
- Process a file Once done -> it stops.
Cron Jobs
Same as Jobs, but repeated on a schedule.
“Run this task on a laptop every day at 2 AM”.
If you remember nothing else, remember this:
- Pods are your laptops
- Controllers are your IT rules
- Kubernetes is your automated IT department
Found it easier to understand from this perspective and would be glad if you did too.
Tell me if you did in the comments...
