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❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

This FAQ addresses common questions about k8s-analyzer and k8s-reporter, providing quick answers to help users get started and resolve common issues.

General Questions

What are k8s-analyzer and k8s-reporter?

k8s-analyzer is a command-line tool for analyzing Kubernetes cluster configurations and resources. It provides insights into resource health, relationships, security compliance, and operational metrics.

k8s-reporter is a web-based dashboard that provides real-time visualization and reporting capabilities for Kubernetes clusters, built on top of analysis data from k8s-analyzer.

What are the system requirements?

  • Operating System: Linux, macOS, or Windows
  • Kubernetes: Compatible with Kubernetes 1.19+
  • Resources: Minimum 512MB RAM, 1GB disk space
  • Network: Access to Kubernetes API server

How do I install k8s-tools?

# Download latest releases
curl -LO https://github.com/your-org/k8s-analyzer/releases/latest/download/k8s-analyzer-linux
curl -LO https://github.com/your-org/k8s-reporter/releases/latest/download/k8s-reporter-linux

# Make executable and install
chmod +x k8s-analyzer-linux k8s-reporter-linux
sudo mv k8s-analyzer-linux /usr/local/bin/k8s-analyzer
sudo mv k8s-reporter-linux /usr/local/bin/k8s-reporter

k8s-analyzer Questions

How do I analyze my cluster?

# Analyze current cluster
k8s-analyzer analyze

# Analyze specific namespace
k8s-analyzer analyze --namespace production

# Parse local YAML files
k8s-analyzer parse ./manifests/ --output cluster-state.json

What output formats are supported?

k8s-analyzer supports multiple output formats: - JSON: Machine-readable structured data - HTML: Interactive web reports - CSV: Spreadsheet-compatible format - SQLite: Database format for complex queries

Can I analyze multiple clusters?

Yes! Switch between clusters using kubectl contexts:

kubectl config use-context cluster-1
k8s-analyzer analyze --output cluster-1-analysis.json

kubectl config use-context cluster-2
k8s-analyzer analyze --output cluster-2-analysis.json

How do I filter analysis results?

Use filtering options to focus on specific resources:

# Filter by namespace
k8s-analyzer analyze --namespace-filter "production,staging"

# Filter by resource type
k8s-analyzer analyze --resource-types "pods,services"

# Filter by health status
k8s-analyzer report analysis.json --filter "health_status=error"

k8s-reporter Questions

How do I start the dashboard?

# Start with default configuration
k8s-reporter start

# Start with custom configuration
k8s-reporter start --config ./config.yaml

What is the default login?

Default credentials are: - Username: admin - Password: admin123

⚠️ Important: Change these credentials before deploying to production!

How do I configure alerts?

Edit your configuration file:

alerts:
  enabled: true
  rules:
    - name: "pod_failures"
      condition: "pod_status == 'Failed'"
      severity: "critical"
      channels:
        - email: "alerts@company.com"
        - slack: "#alerts"

Can I customize the dashboard?

Yes! You can customize: - Themes: Light/dark mode - Widgets: Add custom charts and metrics - Layout: Rearrange dashboard components - Branding: Add company logos and colors

Integration Questions

How do I integrate with CI/CD?

GitHub Actions Example: 

- name: Analyze Kubernetes manifests
  run: |
    k8s-analyzer parse ./k8s/ --output analysis.json
    k8s-analyzer validate analysis.json --strict

Jenkins Pipeline: 

stage('K8s Analysis') {
    steps {
        sh 'k8s-analyzer analyze --output analysis.json'
        sh 'k8s-analyzer report analysis.json --format html --output report.html'
        publishHTML([allowMissing: false, alwaysLinkToLastBuild: true, keepAll: true, reportDir: '.', reportFiles: 'report.html', reportName: 'K8s Analysis Report'])
    }
}

How do I integrate with monitoring systems?

k8s-tools can integrate with: - Prometheus: Export metrics for monitoring - Grafana: Create custom dashboards - ELK Stack: Log analysis and visualization - Slack/PagerDuty: Alert notifications

Can I use custom metrics?

Yes! Define custom metrics in your configuration:

custom_metrics:
  - name: "app_response_time"
    query: "avg(response_time_seconds) by (app)"
    threshold: 2.0

Performance Questions

How much data can k8s-analyzer handle?

k8s-analyzer is optimized for large clusters: - Resources: 10,000+ resources per cluster - Memory: Efficient streaming processing - Performance: Parallel analysis for speed

How often should I run analysis?

Recommended frequencies: - Development: Every commit or daily - Staging: Daily or before deployments - Production: Daily for health checks, weekly for comprehensive analysis

Can I schedule automatic reports?

Yes! Use cron jobs or CI/CD schedulers:

# Daily analysis at 6 AM
0 6 * * * /usr/local/bin/k8s-analyzer analyze --output /reports/daily-$(date +\%Y\%m\%d).json

Security Questions

Is my cluster data secure?

k8s-tools follow security best practices: - Local Processing: Analysis runs locally, no data sent externally - RBAC: Respects Kubernetes RBAC permissions - TLS: Dashboard supports TLS encryption - Authentication: Configurable user authentication

What permissions are required?

Minimum RBAC permissions: 

rules:
- apiGroups: [""]
  resources: ["pods", "services", "configmaps", "secrets"]
  verbs: ["get", "list"]
- apiGroups: ["apps"]
  resources: ["deployments", "replicasets"]
  verbs: ["get", "list"]

Troubleshooting Questions

Why is analysis failing?

Common causes: 1. Permissions: Check RBAC permissions 2. Connectivity: Verify cluster access 3. Resources: Ensure sufficient memory/disk 4. Configuration: Validate YAML syntax

Dashboard not loading?

Check these items: 1. Service Status: Is k8s-reporter running? 2. Port Access: Is port 8080 accessible? 3. Firewall: Are there blocking rules? 4. Logs: Check error messages in logs

How do I get support?

  • Documentation: Check the official docs
  • Issues: Report bugs on GitHub
  • Community: Join discussions in forums
  • Commercial: Contact support for enterprise versions

Performance Optimization

How can I improve analysis speed?

  1. Filter Resources: Analyze only needed resources
  2. Parallel Processing: Use multiple workers
  3. Incremental Analysis: Only analyze changes
  4. Caching: Enable result caching
# Optimized analysis
k8s-analyzer analyze \
  --workers 4 \
  --cache-enabled \
  --incremental \
  --namespace-filter "production"

How do I reduce memory usage?

  1. Batch Processing: Process resources in batches
  2. Streaming: Use streaming for large datasets
  3. Compression: Enable output compression
  4. Cleanup: Regular cleanup of old data

Advanced Usage

Can I extend k8s-tools?

Yes! k8s-tools support: - Custom Plugins: Add custom analysis logic - API Extensions: Build on top of the API - Custom Reports: Create custom report templates - Webhooks: Integrate with external systems

How do I backup analysis data?

# Backup SQLite database
cp analysis.db backup-$(date +%Y%m%d).db

# Export to multiple formats
k8s-analyzer export analysis.json --format json,csv,html

This FAQ covers the most common questions about k8s-tools. For more specific questions, please refer to the detailed documentation or contact support.