Kubernetes Introduction

Kubernetes is a container orchestration platform. It answers the question of how to run services reliably and repeatedly, not how to write the business logic itself.

What it solves

• Scheduling: place Pods on the right nodes
• Self-healing: restart failed containers
• Scaling: add or remove replicas by load
• Service discovery: stable access to dynamic Pods

What it does not solve

• Business performance bottlenecks
• Database design
• Code quality issues

Good fit for

• Many services and frequent releases
• Standardized rollout and rollback
• Consistent operations and observability

One-line mental model

Kubernetes is a declarative system with controllers that automate operations.

Practical notes

• Start with a quick inventory: kubectl get nodes, kubectl get pods -A, and kubectl get events -A.
• Compare desired vs. observed state; kubectl describe usually explains drift or failed controllers.
• Keep names, labels, and selectors consistent so Services and controllers can find Pods.

Quick checklist

• The resource matches the intent you described in YAML.
• Namespaces, RBAC, and images are correct for the target environment.
• Health checks and logs are in place before promotion.

References

• What is Kubernetes?
• Kubernetes Overview