Kubernetes add-ons
29 May 2025 (Updated 29 May 2025)
What is a K8s add-on?
An add-on is a component that extends the functionality of a K8s cluster. They’re not part of the K8s core but they provide important features that are commonly used in real-world clusters such as networking, monitoring, logging, security and storage.
Example add-ons
| Category | Examples | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Networking | CoreDNS, Calico, Cilium | Service discovery, network policy |
| Monitoring | Prometheus, Grafana | Metrics collection and visualization |
| Logging | Fluentd, Loki, Elasticsearch | Centralized log aggregation |
| Security | OPA/Gatekeeper, Kyverno | Policy enforcement, admission control |
| Autoscaling | Cluster Autoscaler, HPA | Automatically scale pods or nodes |
| Storage | CSI drivers | Persistent volume support |
| Dashboard | Kubernetes Dashboard | Web UI to manage cluster |
How are add-ons deployed / installed?
An add-on is typically deployed as a K8s pod in its own namespace.
Tagged:
Kubernetes