6.9 KiB
Overview
What is k3d?
k3d is a lightweight wrapper to run k3s (Rancher Lab's minimal Kubernetes distribution) in docker.
k3d makes it very easy to create single- and multi-node k3s clusters in docker, e.g. for local development on Kubernetes.
Note: k3d is a community-driven project, that is supported by Rancher (SUSE) and it's not an official Rancher (SUSE) product.
??? Tip "View a quick demo"
Learning
!!! Tip "k3d demo repository: iwilltry42/k3d-demo" Featured use-cases include:
- **hot-reloading** of code when developing on k3d (Python Flask App)
- build-deploy-test cycle using **Tilt**
- full cluster lifecycle for simple and **multi-server** clusters
- Proof of Concept of using k3d as a service in **Drone CI**
Requirements
- docker to be able to use k3d at all
- Note: k3d v5.x.x requires at least Docker v20.10.5 (runc >= v1.0.0-rc93) to work properly (see #807)
- kubectl to interact with the Kubernetes cluster
Releases
| Platform | Stage | Version | Release Date | Downloads so far |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GitHub Releases | stable |  |
 |
 |
| GitHub Releases | latest |  |
 |
 |
| Homebrew | stable |  |
- | - |
| Chocolatey | stable |  |
- | - |
Installation
You have several options there:
:fontawesome-regular-file-code: Install Script
Install current latest release
- wget:
#!bash wget -q -O - https://raw.githubusercontent.com/k3d-io/k3d/main/install.sh | bash - curl:
#!bash curl -s https://raw.githubusercontent.com/k3d-io/k3d/main/install.sh | bash
Install specific release
Use the install script to grab a specific release (via TAG environment variable):
- wget:
#!bash wget -q -O - https://raw.githubusercontent.com/k3d-io/k3d/main/install.sh | TAG=v5.0.0 bash - curl:
#!bash curl -s https://raw.githubusercontent.com/k3d-io/k3d/main/install.sh | TAG=v5.0.0 bash
Other Installers
??? Tip "Other Installation Methods"
- [:fontawesome-solid-beer: Homebrew (MacOS/Linux)](https://brew.sh): `#!bash brew install k3d`
*Note*: The formula can be found in [homebrew/homebrew-core](https://github.com/Homebrew/homebrew-core/blob/master/Formula/k3d.rb) and is mirrored to [homebrew/linuxbrew-core](https://github.com/Homebrew/linuxbrew-core/blob/master/Formula/k3d.rb)
- [:material-arch: AUR (Arch Linux User Repository)](https://aur.archlinux.org/): `#!bash yay -S rancher-k3d-bin`
Package [rancher-k3d-bin](https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/rancher-k3d-bin/)
- [:material-github: Download GitHub Release](https://github.com/k3d-io/k3d/releases)
Grab a release binary from the [release tab](https://github.com/k3d-io/k3d/releases) and install it yourself
- [:material-microsoft-windows: Chocolatey (Windows)](https://chocolatey.org/): `choco install k3d`
*Note*: package source can be found in [erwinkersten/chocolatey-packages](https://github.com/erwinkersten/chocolatey-packages/tree/master/automatic/k3d)
- [arkade](https://github.com/alexellis/arkade): `arkade get k3d`
- [asdf](https://asdf-vm.com): `asdf plugin-add k3d && asdf install k3d latest`
*Note*: `asdf plugin-add k3d`, then `asdf install k3d <tag>` with `<tag> = latest` or `5.x.x` for a specific version (maintained by [spencergilbert/asdf-k3d](https://github.com/spencergilbert/asdf-k3d))
- Others
- install via go: `#!bash go install github.com/k3d-io/k3d@latest` (**Note**: this will give you unreleased/bleeding-edge changes)
Quick Start
Create a cluster named mycluster with just a single server node:
k3d cluster create mycluster
Use the new cluster with kubectl, e.g.:
kubectl get nodes
??? Note "Getting the cluster's kubeconfig (included in k3d cluster create)"
Get the new cluster's connection details merged into your default kubeconfig (usually specified using the KUBECONFIG environment variable or the default path #!bash $HOME/.kube/config) and directly switch to the new context:
```bash
k3d kubeconfig merge mycluster --kubeconfig-switch-context
```
Related Projects
- vscode-k3d: VSCode Extension to handle k3d clusters from within VSCode
- k3x: a graphics interface (for Linux) to k3d.
- AbsaOSS/k3d-action: fully customizable GitHub Action to run lightweight Kubernetes clusters.
- AutoK3s: a lightweight tool to help run K3s everywhere including k3d provider.
- nolar/setup-k3d-k3s: setup K3d/K3s for GitHub Actions.