How to use the command `kube-fzf` (with examples)

Kube-fzf is a command-line tool used for fuzzy searching of Kubernetes pods. It provides a convenient way to quickly find pod details, describe pods, tail pod logs, exec into pods’ containers, and port-forward pods. This article will illustrate each of these use cases with examples.

Use case 1: Get pod details (from current namespace)

Code:

findpod

Motivation:

You may want to get the details of a specific pod in your current namespace. Using the findpod command, you can easily search for and retrieve information about the desired pod.

Explanation:

The findpod command without any arguments will search for pods in the current namespace and display their details. It performs a fuzzy-search based on the input provided after executing the command.

Example output:

POD NAME          READY    STATUS     RESTARTS   AGE       IP             NODE
nginx-78c5b8ffd   1/1      Running    0          2m        192.168.1.10   worker-node-1
redis-5df468925   1/1      Running    0          5m        192.168.1.20   worker-node-2

Use case 2: Get pod details (from all namespaces)

Code:

findpod -a

Motivation:

You may need to get details about pods from all namespaces in your Kubernetes cluster. The -a flag allows you to search for pods across all namespaces.

Explanation:

By using the -a flag with the findpod command, it will search for pods in all namespaces and display their details.

Example output:

NAMESPACE    POD NAME          READY    STATUS     RESTARTS   AGE       IP             NODE
default      nginx-78c5b8ffd   1/1      Running    0          2m        192.168.1.10   worker-node-1
redis        redis-5df468925   1/1      Running    0          5m        192.168.1.20   worker-node-2
kube-system  kube-proxy-dsf    1/1      Running    0          5m        192.168.1.30   worker-node-3

Use case 3: Describe a pod

Code:

describepod

Motivation:

You may want to get a detailed description of a specific pod. The describepod command provides you with a convenient way to fetch and display the pod’s description.

Explanation:

By executing the describepod command, it will prompt you to enter the name of the pod. After providing the name, the command will describe the pod in detail, including information such as its status, events, containers, and conditions.

Example output:

Name:           nginx-78c5b8ffd
Namespace:      default
...

Use case 4: Tail pod logs

Code:

tailpod

Motivation:

You may need to monitor real-time logs of a specific pod. The tailpod command allows you to tail the logs of a pod and continuously display new log entries as they are generated.

Explanation:

Executing the tailpod command will prompt you to enter the name of the pod for which you want to tail the logs. After providing the pod name, the command will continuously display the new log entries as they appear.

Example output:

2022-01-01 12:34:00 [INFO] Log entry 1
2022-01-01 12:34:01 [INFO] Log entry 2
2022-01-01 12:34:02 [INFO] Log entry 3
...

Use case 5: Exec into a pod’s container

Code:

execpod shell_command

Motivation:

You may want to execute a shell command inside a specific container within a pod. The execpod command allows you to run arbitrary shell commands inside a pod’s container.

Explanation:

The execpod command is used to execute a shell command inside a pod’s container. After the command, you need to provide the name of the pod and the shell command you want to execute.

Example output:

$ execpod my-pod echo "Hello, Kubernetes!"
Hello, Kubernetes!

Use case 6: Port-forward a pod

Code:

pfpod port_number

Motivation:

You may need to access a specific port of a pod directly from your local machine. The pfpod command allows you to easily set up port forwarding to a pod, enabling you to access the pod’s services.

Explanation:

Executing the pfpod command followed by the desired port number will establish a port-forwarding configuration to the pod. With the port-forwarding set up, you can access the pod’s services by browsing to localhost:port_number in your web browser or using other tools that require direct access to the pod.

Example output:

Port-forwarding pod my-pod on port 8080...

Conclusion:

Using the kube-fzf command-line tool, you can perform various actions related to Kubernetes pods with ease. Whether it’s searching for pod details, describing pods, tailing logs, executing commands inside containers, or port-forwarding, the kube-fzf tool provides a convenient and efficient way to interact with your Kubernetes cluster.