Deleting a Cluster
Deleting a Kubernetes cluster is a common task that may be necessary when the cluster is no longer needed or has become outdated. Before proceeding with the deletion process, it's important to ensure that any important data or resources within the cluster have been properly backed up or transferred to a new location.
In this tutorial, you will be guided through a systematic process for deleting a cluster, utilizing the Kubeark platform. Kubeark is an powerful tool that simplifies cluster management, making it an ideal solution in the DevOps landscape. With the Kubeark platform, deleting a cluster is a straightforward process that can be completed in just a few steps.
- Go to the Kubeark platform and select Cluster Management from the menu on the left-hand side of the screen. Then, click on Clusters to view a list of all available clusters.
- Kubeark offers three possible ways to disable a cluster: you can disable, soft delete or hard delete a cluster. You may choose the option that best fits your needs as follows.
To disable a cluster, simply locate the Active column on the clusters page described above and change its status from Active to Disabled.
By disabling a cluster, you will prevent the creation of new deployments on this cluster. Existing configurations remain unchanged while the associated deployments are disabled.
To perform a soft delete, click on the Delete cluster button (trash bin icon), which can be found in the right side of the screen for each individual cluster line. This button opens a pop-up window with three options: "No", "Delete", and "Hard Delete".
Clicking on Delete will erase the configuration for the respective cluster, without removing it from the list. This is what we call a “soft delete”.
This option will delete the configuration and disable the associated resources.
Select the Delete cluster button (trash can icon), which can be found in the right side of the screen for each individual cluster line. This button opens a pop-up window with three options: "No", "Delete", and "Hard Delete". To permanently delete the cluster and all its configuration files, choose the Hard Delete button.
This will remove the cluster from the list of available clusters, and all associated deployments will be also removed. Be advised that this action cannot be undone, and all data and configurations associated with the cluster will be permanently deleted
Below you will find a summary of all available options and their respective dependencies that should be considered when disabling a cluster.
The table below outlines the impact of each selected option on the cluster configuration, deployments, and resources. It is important to carefully evaluate the specific requirements of your cluster before deciding on the most appropriate option for disabling it.
Selected option | Cluster configuration | Deployment | Resources |
Disable | No impact | Deployment status is also moved to DisabledThis can easily be reversed once the cluster status is set back to Active and the deployment will be up and running. | The resources are up and running |
(Soft) Delete | Erases the cluster configurationCluster still shows on the list of available clusters | Deployment is moved in Soft_Delete status.Once the cluster configuration is updated, the deployment will be up and running again | The resources are Disabled |
Hard Delete | Permanently deletes the cluster from the list of clusters | All deployments associated with the respective cluster are deleted | The resources are Deleted |
