Kubectl logs how to#

No matter which logging option you choose, there are several log data types that you can collect in Kubernetes. However, the vendor-supported approach is usually simpler to implement. In most cases, it’s possible to use an alternative logging method, even on a Kubernetes distribution that has a preferred or natively integrated logging solution. For example, as we’ll see below, IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service (IKS) integrates with IBM Log Analysis with LogDNA to collect Kubernetes log data, and enable real-time analysis and log management using LogDNA. That said, certain Kubernetes distributions do come with built-in logging extensions based on third-party tooling, or at least a preferred logging method that they support. Instead, it expects you to use external tools to collect and interpret log data. Unlike, say, Amazon Web Services, which has a built-in logging solution in the form of CloudWatch or OpenStack, which has its own comprehensive logging solution stock Kubernetes doesn’t have a complete native logging service, or even a preferred third-party logging method. On the other hand, Kubernetes offers no full-fledged, native logging solution. It also creates logs for certain types of data, and it exposes other types of data in ways that make it available for collection through third-party logging tools. On the one hand, Kubernetes offers some very basic functions through kubectl for checking on the status of objects in a cluster, which we’ll discuss below. That’s not because Kubernetes doesn’t offer any kind of logging and monitoring functionality. You’ll notice that logging and monitoring aren’t on the list of core Kubernetes features. Kubernetes does other things too, but these are the core areas of functionality it offers. It doesn’t always succeed, however, which is one reason why Kubernetes logging is so important.

Self-healing: When something goes wrong, such as an application failure, Kubernetes attempts to fix it automatically.Storage management: Kubernetes can manage access to storage pools that applications use to store stateful data.Load balancing: Kubernetes automatically distributes traffic between different application instances to optimize performance and availability.Typically, those applications are hosted in containers, although it’s possible to run other types of workloads (such as virtual machines) with Kubernetes. Application hosting: Kubernetes’s first and foremost feature is hosting applications.Kubernetes offers several key types of functionality: However, it’s worth briefly spelling out what it does, because understanding what Kubernetes can and can’t do is the first step in extending your logging strategy to support it. If you’re reading this article about Kubernetes logging, you probably already know what Kubernetes is. However, to ground the discussion, we’ll reference IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service (IKS) where relevant - to explain how the tools and practices we discuss can apply to a real-world production Kubernetes service. Most of the information below applies to any type of Kubernetes environment.

Kubectl logs how to#

This article explains how to assess your logging needs and devise a logging strategy suited to them. As we’ll see, there are multiple access methods available for most types of Kubernetes log data. It covers which types of log data are available in Kubernetes and how to access that data.

This article provides an overview of logging for Kubernetes. Indeed, Kubernetes logging and monitoring require working with multiple sources of data and multiple tools, because Kubernetes generates logs in multiple ways. Given that Kubernetes consists of so many different parts, knowing where to look for that data and how to interpret it can be tricky. Whether you have a single-node cluster running locally on your PC, a small collection of nodes that hosts a development environment, or a large-scale, multimaster cluster hosting production applications, it’s critical to be able to access monitoring data and logs in order to troubleshoot problems and optimize performance. No matter what your Kubernetes environment looks like, logging and monitoring are among the first major challenges you’ll need to address as you begin your Kubernetes journey. He previously served as a Technical Support Engineer for the company, where he developed a deep understanding of modern logging practice and challenges in developer workflows.

Franciss is a Partnerships Program Manager at LogDNA, where he focuses on technical enablement for observability offerings on IBM Cloud.