Introduction

Kubernetes is a powerful container orchestration tool that enables efficient deployment, scaling, and management of applications. After learning Docker and containerizing applications, I wanted to take the next step by deploying a real-world project using Kubernetes. In this blog, I’ll walk through the process of deploying the Expenses Tracker WebApp on Kubernetes.

Setting Up the Kubernetes Environment

Before deploying the application, we need to set up a Kubernetes cluster. You can use Minikube, Kind, or a cloud provider like AWS (EKS), GCP (GKE), or Azure (AKS). I used Kind for my local setup.

Prerequisites:

Install kubectl: The command-line tool to interact with Kubernetes.

Set up Kubernetes Cluster:

  kind create cluster --name expenses-cluster

Verify the cluster is running:
```
  kubectl get nodes
```

Deploying the App Using Kubernetes Manifests

To deploy the Expenses Tracker WebApp, I created Kubernetes manifests for the Namespace, Deployment, and Service.

1. Creating a Namespace

The namespace helps isolate the application from other workloads in the cluster.

namespace.yml:

apiVersion: v1
kind: Namespace
metadata:
  name: notes-app
  labels:
    name: notes-app

Apply the namespace:

kubectl apply -f namespace.yml

2. Creating a Deployment

The Deployment ensures the application runs inside a pod and restarts automatically if needed.

deployment.yml:

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: notes-app-deployment
  labels:
    app: notes-app
  namespace: notes-app
spec:
  replicas: 1
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: notes-app
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: notes-app
    spec:
      containers:
      - name: notes-app
        image: parijain18/notes-app
        ports:
        - containerPort: 8000

Apply the deployment:

kubectl apply -f document.yml

3. Exposing the App with a Service

A Service exposes the application to other components inside or outside the cluster.

service.yml:

apiVersion: v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: notes-app
  namespace: notes-app
spec:
  selector:
    app: notes-app
  ports:
    - protocol: TCP
      port: 8000
      targetPort: 8000
  type: ClusterIP

Apply the service:

kubectl apply -f service.yml

Verifying the Deployment

Once the manifests are applied, check if everything is running correctly.

kubectl get pods -n notes-app
kubectl get svc -n notes-app

To view application logs:

kubectl logs -f deployment/notes-app-deployment -n notes-app

Helm: Packaging and Deploying the App

Since I am also learning Helm, I wanted to explore how Helm charts simplify Kubernetes deployments.

1. Creating a Helm Chart

helm create expenses-tracker-chart

Modify values.yaml to define image, service, and other configurations.

2. Deploying with Helm

helm install expenses-tracker ./expenses-tracker-chart

Verify the Helm deployment:

helm list
kubectl get all -n notes-app

Conclusion & Next Steps

Deploying the Expenses Tracker WebApp on Kubernetes helped me understand real-world cluster management. Next, I plan to explore scaling, monitoring with Prometheus/Grafana, and setting up CI/CD pipelines.

If you are learning Kubernetes, I highly recommend trying out a project like this. Let’s connect and share our learning experiences! 🚀

Deploying the Expenses Tracker WebApp on Kubernetes