Kubernetes Architecture

Clusters

  • A Kubernetes cluster consists of:
    • Master Node (Control Plane)
    • Worker Nodes

Worker Nodes

  • Run actual application workloads
  • Each worker node runs:
    • kubelet – communicates with control plane
    • Containers inside Pods

Master Node Components

  • API Server
    • Entry point to the cluster
    • Used by kubectl, dashboards, APIs
  • Controller Manager
    • Monitors cluster state
    • Maintains desired cluster state
    • Restarts pods, fixes mismatches
  • Scheduler
    • Decides which node runs which pod
    • Based on resource availability
    • On which worker node next container to be schedule
  • etcd ⚠️
    • Key-value store
    • Stores entire cluster state (config + status)
    • Source of truth for backup & restore
  • Virtual Network
    • Enables pod-to-pod communication
    • Makes multiple nodes behave like one machine