---
name: k8s-kind
description: Manage kind (Kubernetes IN Docker) local clusters. Use when creating, testing, or developing with local Kubernetes clusters in Docker containers.
license: Apache-2.0
metadata:
author: rohitg00
version: "1.0.0"
tools: 32
category: development
---
# kind (Kubernetes IN Docker) Management
Manage local Kubernetes clusters using kubectl-mcp-server's kind tools (32 tools).
kind enables running local Kubernetes clusters using Docker container "nodes". It's ideal for local development, CI/CD testing, and testing across Kubernetes versions.
## When to Apply
Use this skill when:
- User mentions: "kind", "local cluster", "Kubernetes in Docker", "dev cluster"
- Operations: creating local clusters, loading images, CI/CD testing
- Keywords: "local development", "test cluster", "load image", "multi-node"
## Priority Rules
| Priority | Rule | Impact | Tools |
|----------|------|--------|-------|
| 1 | Detect kind CLI first | CRITICAL | `kind_detect_tool` |
| 2 | Generate config for complex setups | HIGH | `kind_config_generate_tool` |
| 3 | Load images after cluster creation | HIGH | `kind_load_image_tool` |
| 4 | Export logs for debugging | MEDIUM | `kind_export_logs_tool` |
## Quick Reference
| Task | Tool | Example |
|------|------|---------|
| Detect kind | `kind_detect_tool` | `kind_detect_tool()` |
| Create cluster | `kind_create_cluster_tool` | `kind_create_cluster_tool(name)` |
| Load image | `kind_load_image_tool` | `kind_load_image_tool(images, name)` |
| Get kubeconfig | `kind_get_kubeconfig_tool` | `kind_get_kubeconfig_tool(name)` |
## Prerequisites
- **kind CLI**: Required for all kind tools
```bash
# macOS
brew install kind
# or download binary
curl -Lo ./kind https://kind.sigs.k8s.io/dl/latest/kind-$(uname)-amd64
chmod +x ./kind && sudo mv ./kind /usr/local/bin/kind
```
- **Docker**: Required (kind runs clusters in Docker containers)
## Check Installation
```python
kind_detect_tool()
kind_version_tool()
kind_provider_info_tool()
```
## List Clusters
```python
kind_list_clusters_tool()
```
## Get Cluster Information
```python
kind_cluster_info_tool(name="my-cluster")
kind_cluster_status_tool(name="my-cluster")
kind_get_nodes_tool(name="my-cluster")
kind_node_labels_tool(name="my-cluster")
```
## Configuration Management
### Generate Config
```python
kind_config_generate_tool()
kind_config_generate_tool(workers=2, control_planes=1)
kind_config_generate_tool(workers=2, ingress=True, registry=True)
kind_config_generate_tool(control_planes=3, workers=3)
```
### Validate Config
```python
kind_config_validate_tool(config_path="/path/to/kind.yaml")
```
### Show Running Config
```python
kind_config_show_tool(name="my-cluster")
```
### Available Images
```python
kind_available_images_tool()
```
## Get Kubeconfig
```python
kind_get_kubeconfig_tool(name="my-cluster")
kind_get_kubeconfig_tool(name="my-cluster", internal=True)
```
## Export Logs
```python
kind_export_logs_tool(name="my-cluster")
kind_export_logs_tool(name="my-cluster", output_dir="/tmp/kind-logs")
```
## Cluster Lifecycle
### Create Cluster
```python
kind_create_cluster_tool()
kind_create_cluster_tool(name="dev-cluster")
kind_create_cluster_tool(
name="v129-cluster",
image="kindest/node:v1.29.0"
)
kind_create_cluster_tool(
name="multi-node",
config="kind-config.yaml"
)
```
### Multi-Node Config Example
Create a file `kind-config.yaml`:
```yaml
kind: Cluster
apiVersion: kind.x-k8s.io/v1alpha4
nodes:
- role: control-plane
extraPortMappings:
- containerPort: 30000
hostPort: 30000
protocol: TCP
- role: worker
- role: worker
```
### Delete Cluster
```python
kind_delete_cluster_tool(name="dev-cluster")
kind_delete_all_clusters_tool()
```
## Local Registry Integration
### Create Registry
```python
kind_registry_create_tool()
kind_registry_create_tool(name="my-registry", port=5001)
```
### Connect Cluster to Registry
```python
kind_registry_connect_tool(cluster_name="my-cluster")
```
### Check Registry Status
```python
kind_registry_status_tool()
```
### Registry Workflow
```python
kind_registry_create_tool()
config = kind_config_generate_tool(registry=True)
kind_create_cluster_tool(name="dev", config="/tmp/kind.yaml")
kind_registry_connect_tool(cluster_name="dev")
```
## Image Loading (Key Feature!)
The ability to load local Docker images directly into kind clusters is one of its most powerful features for local development.
### Load Docker Images
```python
kind_load_image_tool(images="myapp:latest", name="my-cluster")
kind_load_image_tool(
images="myapp:latest,mydb:latest,myweb:v1",
name="my-cluster"
)
```
### Load from Archive
```python
kind_load_image_archive_tool(
archive="/path/to/images.tar",
name="my-cluster"
)
```
### List Images on Cluster
```python
kind_images_list_tool(cluster="my-cluster")
kind_images_list_tool(cluster="my-cluster", node="my-cluster-worker")
```
## Node Management
### Inspect Node
```python
kind_node_inspect_tool(node="kind-control-plane")
```
### Get Node Logs
```python
kind_node_logs_tool(node="kind-control-plane")
kind_node_logs_tool(node="kind-control-plane", tail=200)
```
### Execute Command on Node
```python
kind_node_exec_tool(
node="kind-control-plane",
command="crictl images"
)
kind_node_exec_tool(
node="kind-control-plane",
command="journalctl -u kubelet --no-pager -n 50"
)
```
### Restart Node
```python
kind_node_restart_tool(node="kind-worker")
```
## Networking
### Inspect Network
```python
kind_network_inspect_tool()
```
### List Port Mappings
```python
kind_port_mappings_tool(cluster="my-cluster")
```
### Setup Ingress
```python
kind_ingress_setup_tool(cluster="my-cluster")
kind_ingress_setup_tool(cluster="my-cluster", ingress_type="contour")
```
## Advanced: Build Node Image
Build custom node images from Kubernetes source:
```python
kind_build_node_image_tool()
kind_build_node_image_tool(
image="my-custom-node:v1.30.0",
kube_root="/path/to/kubernetes"
)
```
## Update Kubeconfig
```python
kind_set_kubeconfig_tool(name="my-cluster")
```
## Development Workflow
### Quick Local Development
```python
kind_create_cluster_tool(name="dev")
kind_load_image_tool(images="myapp:dev", name="dev")
kubectl_apply(manifest="""
apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
name: myapp
spec:
replicas: 1
selector:
matchLabels:
app: myapp
template:
metadata:
labels:
app: myapp
spec:
containers:
- name: myapp
image: myapp:dev
imagePullPolicy: Never
""")
```
### Development with Local Registry
```python
kind_registry_create_tool()
config = kind_config_generate_tool(workers=1, ingress=True, registry=True)
kind_create_cluster_tool(name="dev", config="/tmp/kind-config.yaml")
kind_registry_connect_tool(cluster_name="dev")
kind_ingress_setup_tool(cluster="dev")
```
### CI/CD Testing
```python
kind_create_cluster_tool(
name="ci-test",
image="kindest/node:v1.29.0",
wait="3m"
)
kind_load_image_tool(images="test-image:ci", name="ci-test")
kind_delete_cluster_tool(name="ci-test")
```
### Version Testing
```python
kind_create_cluster_tool(name="v128", image="kindest/node:v1.28.0")
kind_create_cluster_tool(name="v129", image="kindest/node:v1.29.0")
kind_create_cluster_tool(name="v130", image="kindest/node:v1.30.0")
kind_list_clusters_tool()
```
## Troubleshooting
### Cluster Creation Issues
```python
kind_create_cluster_tool(name="debug", retain=True)
kind_export_logs_tool(name="debug")
kind_get_nodes_tool(name="debug")
```
### Cluster Health Check
```python
kind_cluster_status_tool(name="my-cluster")
```
### Node Issues
```python
kind_node_inspect_tool(node="kind-control-plane")
kind_node_logs_tool(node="kind-control-plane")
kind_node_exec_tool(
node="kind-control-plane",
command="crictl ps"
)
kind_node_restart_tool(node="kind-worker")
```
### Network Issues
```python
kind_network_inspect_tool()
kind_port_mappings_tool()
```
### Cleanup
```python
kind_delete_cluster_tool(name="broken-cluster")
kind_delete_all_clusters_tool()
```
## CLI Installation
Install kind CLI:
```bash
# macOS (Apple Silicon)
curl -Lo ./kind https://kind.sigs.k8s.io/dl/latest/kind-darwin-arm64
chmod +x ./kind
sudo mv ./kind /usr/local/bin/kind
# macOS (Intel)
curl -Lo ./kind https://kind.sigs.k8s.io/dl/latest/kind-darwin-amd64
chmod +x ./kind
sudo mv ./kind /usr/local/bin/kind
# Linux
curl -Lo ./kind https://kind.sigs.k8s.io/dl/latest/kind-linux-amd64
chmod +x ./kind
sudo mv ./kind /usr/local/bin/kind
# Verify
kind version
```
## Tool Reference
### Read-Only Tools (20)
| Tool | Description |
|------|-------------|
| `kind_detect_tool` | Detect CLI installation |
| `kind_version_tool` | Get CLI version |
| `kind_list_clusters_tool` | List all clusters |
| `kind_get_nodes_tool` | List nodes in cluster |
| `kind_get_kubeconfig_tool` | Get kubeconfig |
| `kind_export_logs_tool` | Export cluster logs |
| `kind_cluster_info_tool` | Get cluster info |
| `kind_node_labels_tool` | Get node labels |
| `kind_config_validate_tool` | Validate config file |
| `kind_config_generate_tool` | Generate config YAML |
| `kind_config_show_tool` | Show running config |
| `kind_available_images_tool` | List K8s versions |
| `kind_registry_status_tool` | Check registry status |
| `kind_node_logs_tool` | Get node logs |
| `kind_node_inspect_tool` | Inspect node details |
| `kind_network_inspect_tool` | Inspect Docker network |
| `kind_port_mappings_tool` | List port mappings |
| `kind_cluster_status_tool` | Get cluster health |
| `kind_images_list_tool` | List images on nodes |
| `kind_provider_info_tool` | Get provider info |
### Write Tools (12)
| Tool | Description |
|------|-------------|
| `kind_create_cluster_tool` | Create cluster |
| `kind_delete_cluster_tool` | Delete cluster |
| `kind_delete_all_clusters_tool` | Delete all clusters |
| `kind_load_image_tool` | Load Docker images |
| `kind_load_image_archive_tool` | Load from archive |
| `kind_build_node_image_tool` | Build node image |
| `kind_set_kubeconfig_tool` | Set kubeconfig context |
| `kind_registry_create_tool` | Create local registry |
| `kind_registry_connect_tool` | Connect to registry |
| `kind_node_exec_tool` | Execute on node |
| `kind_node_restart_tool` | Restart node |
| `kind_ingress_setup_tool` | Setup ingress |
## kind vs vind (vCluster)
| Feature | kind | vind (vCluster) |
|---------|------|-----------------|
| Purpose | Local dev/CI clusters | Virtual clusters in existing K8s |
| Isolation | Full clusters in Docker | Virtual namespaces with isolation |
| Resource Usage | Higher (full cluster) | Lower (shares host cluster) |
| Best For | Local testing, CI/CD | Multi-tenancy, dev environments |
| Requires | Docker | Existing K8s cluster |
## Related Skills
- [k8s-vind](../k8s-vind/SKILL.md) - vCluster management
- [k8s-multicluster](../k8s-multicluster/SKILL.md) - Multi-cluster management
- [k8s-helm](../k8s-helm/SKILL.md) - Helm chart operations
- [k8s-operations](../k8s-operations/SKILL.md) - kubectl operations
