kubectl

TLDR

Get resources

$ kubectl get [pods|deployments|services|nodes]

Describe resource

$ kubectl describe [pod] [name]

Apply manifest

$ kubectl apply -f [manifest.yaml]

Delete resource

$ kubectl delete [pod] [name]

View logs

$ kubectl logs [pod-name]

Execute in pod

$ kubectl exec -it [pod-name] -- [/bin/bash]

Port forward

$ kubectl port-forward [pod-name] [8080:80]

SYNOPSIS

kubectl [options] command [type] [name] [flags]

kubectl is the Kubernetes command-line tool. It communicates with the Kubernetes API to manage cluster resources.
The tool creates, inspects, updates, and deletes workloads. It's the primary interface for cluster administration.
kubectl manages Kubernetes clusters.

PARAMETERS

get TYPE

List resources.

describe TYPE NAME

Show resource details.

apply -f FILE

Apply configuration.

delete TYPE NAME

Delete resource.

logs POD

Show pod logs.

exec POD

Execute in container.

-n NAMESPACE

Target namespace.

--help

Display help information.

CAVEATS

Requires kubeconfig. Context determines cluster. RBAC affects access.

HISTORY

kubectl is the official CLI for Kubernetes, developed as the primary cluster management interface.