Basic syntax

<verb> <objecttype> [<subtype>] <instancename> [flags]

Where the <verb> is an action such as: create, run, expose, autoscale, and so on.

<objecttype> is the object type, such as a service. Some objects have subtypes that you can specify with the create command. For example, a service has subtypes of ClusterIP, LoadBalancer, NodePort, and so on. Use the -h flag to find the arguments and flags that are supported by a specific subtype. Types and subtypes are case-sensitive.

<instancename> specifies the name of the object. Names are also case-sensitive. If you omit the name, details for all resources of the specified type are displayed.

Optionally, you can specify flags that do various functions. For example, you can use the -s flag to specify the address and port of the Kubernetes API server. Flags that you specify from the command line override default values and any corresponding environment variables.

To answer quiz questions about kubectl commands in this course, you only need to enter the verb, object type, and subtype, if applicable. You do not need to specify an instance name or any optional flags with the command.

For a complete list of kubectl commands, see the Kubernetes documentation.

Some useful commands

Get help with kubectl commands:

$ kubectl help

Get the state of your cluster:

$ kubectl cluster-info

Get all the Nodes of your cluster:

$ kubectl get nodes -o wide

Get information about the Pods of your cluster:

$ kubectl get pods -o wide

Get information about the Replication Controllers of your cluster:

$ kubectl get rc -o wide

Get information about the Services of your cluster:

$ kubectl get services

Get full configuration information about a Service:

$ kubectl get service <instancename> -o json

Get the IP address of a Pod:

$ kubectl get pod <instancename> -template={{.status.podIP}}

Delete a Pod:

$ kubectl delete pod NAME

Delete a Service:

$ kubectl delete service <instancename>

Useful links

kubectl reference - https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/

kubectl cheat sheet - https://kubernetes.io/docs/user-guide/kubectl-cheatsheet/