Day 31 : Launching your First Kubernetes Cluster with Nginx running

Welcome to the world of Kubernetes! In this blog post, we'll guide you through the process of launching your first Kubernetes cluster using Minikube and deploying an Nginx web server on it. Whether you're new to containers or looking to explore edge computing and IoT projects, Minikube provides a streamlined way to get started with Kubernetes.

What is Minikube?

Minikube is a tool that swiftly sets up a local Kubernetes cluster on macOS, Linux, and Windows. It simplifies the process of deploying Kubernetes by offering a lightweight version that retains all the benefits of Kubernetes without the complexity. Here are some key features of Minikube:

Latest Kubernetes Support: Works with the latest Kubernetes releases and supports several previous minor versions.
Cross-Platform: Compatible with Linux, macOS, and Windows operating systems.
Deployment Flexibility: Can be deployed as a virtual machine (VM), a container, or on bare-metal infrastructure.
Container Runtimes: Supports multiple container runtimes such as CRI-O, containerd, and Docker.
Direct API Endpoint: Offers a direct API endpoint for rapid image loading and building.
Advanced Features: Includes features like LoadBalancer, filesystem mounts, FeatureGates, and network policies.
Addons: Provides addons for easy installation of Kubernetes applications.
CI Support: Compatible with common CI (Continuous Integration) environments.

Now that we understand what Minikube is, let's dive into the step-by-step process of setting it up and launching your first Kubernetes cluster with Nginx running.

Task-01:

Install minikube on your local

Launch an instance Kubernetes-minikube with t2.medium instance-type, Ubuntu OS.

Then Connect to the terminal.
Update your package lists to make sure you are getting the latest version and dependencies.
```
 sudo apt update
```
Install some basic required packages.
```
 sudo apt install -y curl wget apt-transport-https
```
Minikube can run a Kubernetes cluster either in a VM or locally via Docker. This guide demonstrates the Docker method.
```
 sudo apt install -y docker.io
```
Start and enable Docker.
```
 sudo systemctl enable --now docker
```
Add current user to docker group (To use docker without root)
```
 sudo usermod -aG docker $USER && newgrp docker
```
Now, logout (use exit command) and connect again.

Install Minikube

First, download the Minikube binary using curl:

 curl -Lo minikube https://storage.googleapis.com/minikube/releases/latest/minikube-linux-amd64

Make it executable and move it into your path:

 chmod +x minikube
 sudo mv minikube /usr/local/bin/

Add sudo permission and start kubernetes cluster
```
 sudo usermod -aG docker $USER && newgrp docker
 minikube start --driver=docker
```
This command will start a single-node Kubernetes cluster inside a Docker container.
Check status of cluster using minikube status
```
 minikube status
```

Understanding Pods in Kubernetes

Before we proceed to launch Nginx, let's understand the concept of Pods in Kubernetes.

Pods: Pods are the smallest deployable units in Kubernetes. A Pod can contain one or more containers that share storage and network resources and are scheduled together on the same node. Pods represent an application-specific "logical host" and are tightly coupled.

Task-02:

Create your first pod on Kubernetes through minikube.

Download kubectl, which is a Kubernetes command-line tool.

 curl -LO "https://dl.k8s.io/release/$(curl -L -s https://dl.k8s.io/release/stable.txt)/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl"

Check above image ⬆️ Make it executable and move it into your path:

 chmod +x kubectl
 sudo mv kubectl /usr/local/bin/

Create a Pod Manifest: Create a YAML manifest file (nginx-pod.yaml) for your Nginx Pod. Here's an example:

 apiVersion: v1
 kind: Pod
 metadata:
   name: nginx-pod
 spec:
   containers:
   - name: nginx-container
     image: nginx:latest
     ports:
     - containerPort: 80

Apply the Manifest: Use kubectl apply -f nginx-pod.yaml to create the Pod based on your manifest.
```
 kubectl apply -f nginx-pod.yaml
```
Verify Pod Creation: Check the status of your Pod using kubectl get pods. You should see the nginx-pod in the Running state.
```
 kubectl get pods
```

Congratulations! You've successfully launched your first Kubernetes cluster using Minikube and deployed an Nginx Pod. This is just the beginning of your Kubernetes journey, and there's a lot more to explore and learn in the vast ecosystem of container orchestration. Happy clustering!

I'm confident that this article will prove to be valuable, helping you discover new insights and learn something enriching

thank you : )