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Prerequisites

Before setting up the Kubernetes cluster, ensure you have the following prerequisites in place.

Hardware Requirements​

Minimum Requirements​

  • 5x Raspberry Pi 5: 8GB RAM minimum (16GB recommended)
  • PoE Switch: 8+ port PoE+ switch with sufficient power budget
  • Storage: MicroSD cards (32GB minimum) + NVMe SSDs (256GB recommended)
  • Network: Stable internet connection and local network

See the Hardware Setup guide for detailed specifications of the recommended configuration.

Network Requirements​

IP Address Planning​

Plan your network topology:

  • Management Network: For cluster nodes and infrastructure
  • Service Network: For Kubernetes services and ingress
  • Storage Network: For NAS and storage communication

DNS Configuration​

  • Access to public DNS for package downloads
  • Ability to configure local DNS records (optional but recommended)
  • Consider using Pi-hole for network-level DNS management

Firewall Rules​

Ensure the following ports are available:

  • 6443: Kubernetes API server
  • 2379-2380: etcd server communication
  • 10250: Kubelet API
  • 10259: kube-scheduler
  • 10257: kube-controller-manager
  • 30000-32767: NodePort services range

Software Requirements​

Operating System​

  • Raspberry Pi OS Lite: 64-bit version recommended
  • Alternative: Ubuntu Server 22.04 LTS for ARM64

Required Tools​

Install these tools on your workstation:

# kubectl - Kubernetes command-line tool
curl -LO "https://dl.k8s.io/release/$(curl -L -s https://dl.k8s.io/release/stable.txt)/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl"
chmod +x kubectl
sudo mv kubectl /usr/local/bin/

# helm - Kubernetes package manager
curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/helm/helm/main/scripts/get-helm-3 | bash

# git - Version control
sudo apt update && sudo apt install git -y

Development Environment (Optional)​

  • VS Code: For editing configurations
  • Docker: For building custom images
  • Lens: Kubernetes IDE for cluster management

Storage Requirements​

Local Storage​

  • Boot Storage: MicroSD cards for initial setup
  • Application Storage: NVMe SSDs for performance
  • Container Images: Sufficient space for image cache

Network Storage​

  • NAS Device: Synology or compatible NAS for persistent storage
  • iSCSI Support: For block storage integration
  • Backup Storage: Separate storage for backups

Knowledge Prerequisites​

Required Knowledge​

  • Linux Administration: Basic command line skills
  • Networking: Understanding of TCP/IP, DNS, and routing
  • Git: Version control basics
  • YAML: Configuration file syntax
  • Docker/Containers: Understanding containerization
  • Kubernetes Basics: Pods, Services, Deployments
  • Infrastructure as Code: GitOps principles
  • Monitoring: Metrics and observability concepts

Account Requirements​

GitHub Account​

Required for:

  • Storing configuration repositories
  • ArgoCD GitOps workflow
  • Accessing community charts and tools

Container Registries​

Access to:

  • Docker Hub: For public container images
  • Quay.io: For operator and tool images
  • GitHub Container Registry: For custom images (optional)

Security Considerations​

SSH Access​

  • Configure SSH key-based authentication
  • Disable password authentication
  • Use strong SSH keys (RSA 4096-bit or Ed25519)

Network Security​

  • Enable firewall on all nodes
  • Implement network segmentation where possible
  • Regular security updates for base OS

Secrets Management​

  • Plan for secure storage of sensitive data
  • Consider external secrets management
  • Regular rotation of credentials

Time and Effort Planning​

Initial Setup Time​

  • Pi Preparation: 2-4 hours for 5 nodes
  • Network Configuration: 1-2 hours
  • Kubernetes Installation: 3-5 hours
  • Basic Applications: 2-3 hours

Ongoing Maintenance​

  • Weekly: Monitor cluster health and updates
  • Monthly: Security patches and dependency updates
  • Quarterly: Major version updates and reviews

Next Steps​

Once you have all prerequisites in place:

  1. Hardware Setup - Physical assembly and configuration
  2. Kubernetes Installation - Cluster setup
  3. Storage Configuration - Persistent storage setup (coming soon)
  4. Monitoring Setup - Observability stack (coming soon)

Note: This setup assumes familiarity with Linux and networking concepts. If you're new to these technologies, consider starting with a single-node setup to gain experience before expanding to a full cluster.