K9S Onboarding: From Installation to Operational Mastery

The K9S onboarding process is fast if you understand its flow. K9S is a terminal-based UI for managing Kubernetes clusters. It gives you speed, precision, and visibility without switching contexts. Done right, onboarding sets you up to navigate and manage workloads without friction.

Install K9S
Start by downloading the latest K9S binary from the official GitHub releases. Place it in your PATH. Confirm the install by running:

k9s version

If the CLI responds with the version and commit, you’re ready for configuration.

Configure Access
K9S reads your kubeconfig file. Ensure the KUBECONFIG environment variable is set or your config is in the default location (~/.kube/config). Use:

export KUBECONFIG=/path/to/your/config 
k9s

The UI launches with your current context. Switch contexts with :ctx.

Navigate Resources
From the K9S dashboard, filter by resource type with :deploy, :pods, :svc, or any Kubernetes object short name. Select a resource and hit Enter to see details. Delete with Ctrl+d, edit with e, describe with d. Learn these keys—speed depends on muscle memory.

Customize Views
K9S supports skinning and plugin scripts. Create or edit the ~/.k9s/skin.yml file to tune colors. For advanced workflows, use the ~/.k9s/plugin.yml to add custom commands for CI/CD or debugging.

Monitor and Debug
View logs in real time by selecting a pod and pressing l. Switch containers with the 0-9 keys. To view resource metrics, ensure metrics-server is installed in your cluster, then monitor CPU and memory usage directly in K9S without leaving the terminal.

The K9S onboarding process is not learning the tool; it is making the tool part of your operational reflexes. Invest an hour in setup and muscle memory, and you reduce response time under pressure.

See a fully configured K9S environment in action—live in minutes—at hoop.dev.