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The modern business world is like a fierce battlefield where only the strongest thrive. In 2023, it’s as competitive as it gets! So, no business can afford to be complacent, and Kubernetes can help you create the perfect digital solution to achieve better and amplified results with minimal effort.
Did you know that Kubernetes took the tech world by storm in under a decade? An astounding 96% of organizations are either using or exploring this game-changing technology, as revealed by the 2021 survey of the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF).
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In this article, we’ll dive into the five incredible benefits of harnessing the power of Kubernetes for your business. Let us help you prepare to prioritize integrating this tech in 2023!
What is Kubernetes?
First things first, what is Kubernetes?
Kubernetes, also known as “k8s” or “kube,” is an open-source platform for automating deployment, scaling, and management of containerized applications. Kubernetes is the most commonly used container orchestration service available in the market right now. It can be used to run billions of containers for your services or even for an entire production platform.
The platform offers a bunch of helpful features and functionalities to optimize and automate DevOps processes. This means you can save time and resources by avoiding manual tasks and increasing efficiency.
With Kubernetes services, you’ll get access to features that help you balance loads and make container management easier across different hosts. These capabilities will help you create an awesome platform that’s scalable and productive!
5 Benefits of Kubernetes
Now that you know a bit about this popular technology, let’s take a look at why Kubernetes benefits businesses in 2023:
1. Portability and flexibility in multi-cloud environments
Kubernetes works with different infrastructures, be it on-premises service, public cloud, or private cloud. Companies can take advantage of multiple cloud providers if needed and can grow rapidly without having to re-architect their infrastructure.
This is possible with containerization. It grants the promises of the new hybrid and multi-cloud environments, ensuring the seamless operation of applications in public or private clouds (or both) without compromising functionality or performance.
Furthermore, these technologies mitigate the risk of a vendor lock-in, eliminating the lack of interoperability commonly associated with certain IT solutions. Organizations are no longer bound to a single supplier, empowering them with the freedom to choose.
2. Achieving scalability
This 2023, scalability challenges are no longer an issue with Kubernetes. The teams can easily scale storage resources up and down depending on the demand of their projects.
Autoscaling, a highly acclaimed and vital feature of Kubernetes, has captured the attention of many. With Kubernetes, companies can seamlessly adjust their scale in response to real-time demand. It has three remarkable autoscaling capabilities:
- Horizontal Pod Autoscaler (HPA), also known as scaling out, automatically adjusts the number of pods based on resource usage.
- Vertical Pod Autoscaler (VPA), also known as scaling up, automatically adjusts CPU and memory for existing machines.
- Cluster Autoscaler can automatically scale up node count when pods cannot scale further, up to the node pool’s maximum size.
Autoscaling is crucial for both end-user performance and the accounting department. It’s a smart way to handle workloads and can save you some serious bucks!
3. High availability
Business applications require resiliency, maintaining reliable operation regardless of technical glitches, updates, or disasters. Another key benefit of Kubernetes is it can address high availability at both the application on-demand and scalability challenges at the infrastructure level.
By incorporating a dependable storage layer into Kubernetes, you can guarantee the high availability of stateful workloads. With continuous monitoring and customizable health checks, Kubernetes ensures your clusters are always operating at their peak.
Should any pods or containers falter, become inactive, or fail to serve traffic, Kubernetes springs into action to restore your desired state. Say goodbye to worries and let Kubernetes handle it all!
4. Open-source with solid communities
Kubernetes is free and open-source software that operates with the support of an extensive community. You can take advantage of the vast ecosystem of other open-source tools designed specifically to work with Kubernetes without the lock-in of a closed/proprietary operating system either.
With a large community, many have encountered and solved numerous problems. That’s why you can easily find documented solutions online. Can’t find an answer? Post your question online. Someone will definitely help you out!
Every year, CNCF hosts Kubecon, the top conference for the Kubernetes community. Attendees enjoy expert sessions, networking, and numerous sponsors. This vibrant community defines Kubernetes, driving innovation and enhancing the core platform.
5. Market Leader
Kubernetes is leading the revolution of containerized environments and has rapidly increased in popularity. Plus, the number of engineers with experience in Kubernetes has grown!
According to the latest CNCF survey in 2022, containers have become the new normal, embraced by a whopping 44% of respondents for most or all production applications! And guess what? Half of these container enthusiasts are deploying their applications using Kubernetes, with 64% being end users and 49% non-end users.
As IT teams strategize for the future, those embracing Kubernetes have the opportunity to not only attract top talent but also demonstrate their commitment to cutting-edge technologies and organizational efficiencies. By staying ahead of the curve, they pave the way for innovation and success.
Kubernetes vs. Docker
Docker is a container technology platform thatis used to manage containers in a cloud computing environment. This helps automate the creation, deployment, and management of container applications, while Kubernetes is a container orchestrator for platforms like Docker.
Kubernetes and Docker have different roles in the architecture of container applications that are compatible with each other and often used together. In combination, Kubernetes and Docker can form a particularly effective solution for creating, managing, scaling, and deploying (cloud) container applications.
Popular Cloud Providers
There are major cloud vendors that offer fully managed Kubernetes services. They provide a convenient way to manage Kubernetes clusters and deploy applications on them.
Below are the most popular cloud providers that offer managed Kubernetes services:
Amazon Web Services (AWS)
AWS provides an enterprise-grade Kubernetes service called Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS). It is designed for customers to run production workloads.
Google Cloud Platform (GCP)
GCP offers a fully managed Kubernetes service called Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE). It provides access to the latest open-source technologies, allowing customers to deploy and scale containerized applications quickly.
IBM Cloud
IBM Cloud offers a Kubernetes-based container service called IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service (IKS). It is designed to simplify the deployment, management, and scaling of cloud applications.
Microsoft Azure
Azure offers a fully managed Kubernetes service called Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS). It is designed for customers to quickly deploy, scale, and manage production-ready applications on Kubernetes.
Deploying Application to Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) on Google Cloud Platform (GCP)
Google Cloud Platform offers a managed Kubernetes service called Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE). Using GKE simplifies the process of running Kubernetes on the Google Cloud Platform without needing to install or maintain your own Kubernetes control plane. It provides a hosted Kubernetes cluster so you can deploy your microservices. You will use GKE with a Google Container Registry (GCR). GCR is a private registry that is used to store and distribute your container images.
Deploy Application on GKE Cluster in GCP
Note: You may refer to the official documentation
1. Ensure you have the following requirements:
Google Cloud project.
Shell environment with gcloud, git, and kubectl
2. Microservice to Containers
build the container image
> docker build -t gcr.io/[project-id]/[app]:v1 .
authenticate to the registry
> gcloud auth configure-docker
push image
> docker push gcr.io/${DEVSHELL_PROJECT_ID}/[app]:[tag]
3. Set the Google Cloud project and region
Make sure that the Google Kubernetes Engine API is enabled.
4. Create a GKE cluster
> gcloud container clusters create [cluster-name]
5. Deploy an application to GKE cluster
create deployment
> kubectl create deployment [app-server] –image=gcr.io/[project-id]/[app]:1.0
expose deployment
> kubectl expose deployment [app-server] –type=LoadBalancer –port [port-number]
inspect the server
> kubectl get pods
> kubectl get service
view the application from the browser
> https://[EXTERNAL-IP]:[port-number]
Need Kubernetes Services?
Choosing Kubernetes can be a difficult decision. There are many questions to consider, such as: which cloud provider should you use? Is the cost going to be reasonable? Do you need additional services or IT support?
If you want help in navigating the Kubernetes world this 2023, consider reaching out to StarTechUP!
We specialize in helping companies design, implement, and scale their Kubernetes architecture. You can also trust us with your digital transformation journey, ensuring the success of your projects!
Send us a message, and let us help you with your Kubernetes needs!
