Kubernetes is an open-source platform for automating deployment, scaling, and operations of application containers across clusters of hosts, providing container-centric infrastructure.

With Kubernetes, you are able to quickly and efficiently respond to customer demand:

• Deploy your applications quickly and predictably.
• Scale your applications on the fly.
• Seamlessly roll out new features.
• Optimize use of your hardware by using only the resources you need.

Why do I need Kubernetes and what can it do?

Kubernetes can schedule and run application containers on clusters of physical or virtual machines. However, Kubernetes also allows developers to ‘cut the cord’ to physical and virtual machines, moving from a host-centric infrastructure to a container-centric infrastructure, which provides the full advantages and benefits inherent to containers. Kubernetes provides the infrastructure to build a truly container-centric development environment.

Kubernetes satisfies a number of common needs of applications running in production, such as:

• co-locating helper processes, facilitating composite applications and preserving the one-application-per-container model,
• mounting storage systems,
• distributing secrets,
• application health checking,
• replicating application instances,
• horizontal auto-scaling,
• naming and discovery,
• load balancing,
• rolling updates,
• resource monitoring,
• log access and ingestion,
• support for introspection and debugging, and
• identity and authorization.

This provides the simplicity of Platform as a Service (PaaS) with the flexibility of Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), and facilitates portability across infrastructure providers.