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Google GKE

Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) is Google Cloud’s managed Kubernetes service that makes it easy to deploy, manage, and scale containerized applications. GKE provides a fully managed Kubernetes control plane, integrates deeply with Google Cloud services, and offers both Standard (you manage nodes) and Autopilot (fully managed) cluster modes.

What Is GKE?

GKE is a managed Kubernetes service where Google Cloud operates the Kubernetes control plane (API server, etcd, scheduler, controller manager) for you. In Standard mode, you manage worker nodes and deploy applications. In Autopilot mode, Google Cloud also manages the nodes, allowing you to focus entirely on your applications.

graph TB subgraph gcp_managed[GCP Managed Control Plane] A[GKE Control Plane] --> B[API Server<br/>Multi-Zone] A --> C[etcd<br/>Multi-Zone] A --> D[Scheduler<br/>Multi-Zone] A --> E[Controller Manager<br/>Multi-Zone] end subgraph your_cluster[Your GKE Cluster] F[VPC Network] --> G[Worker Nodes<br/>or Autopilot] G --> H[Your Applications] G --> I[GKE Add-ons] end A -.->|Manages| G F -->|Networking| A style A fill:#e1f5ff style G fill:#fff4e1 style H fill:#e8f5e9

Google Cloud Responsibilities:

  • Control plane availability and health
  • Kubernetes version management and upgrades
  • Security patches and updates
  • High availability across zones
  • API server endpoint management
  • etcd backups and recovery

Your Responsibilities (Standard Mode):

  • Worker node provisioning and management
  • Application deployment and configuration
  • Networking and firewall configuration
  • Storage and persistent volumes
  • Monitoring and logging setup
  • Cost optimization

Your Responsibilities (Autopilot Mode):

  • Application deployment and configuration
  • Service and workload configuration
  • Cost optimization (node management automated)

Key Differentiators

GKE stands out with Google Cloud integration and innovative features:

Standard vs Autopilot Modes

GKE offers two deployment modes:

Standard Mode:

  • You manage node pools and nodes
  • Full control over node configuration
  • Choose machine types and sizes
  • Manage node lifecycle
  • Lower cost for large, predictable workloads

Autopilot Mode:

  • Google Cloud manages nodes automatically
  • Pay only for requested resources
  • Automatic scaling and optimization
  • Enhanced security defaults
  • Simplified operations

Native Google Cloud Integration

GKE integrates seamlessly with Google Cloud services:

  • VPC Networking - Native VPC integration with alias IP ranges
  • Cloud IAM - Use Google Cloud IAM for Kubernetes authentication
  • Workload Identity - Pods can assume Google Cloud service accounts
  • Persistent Disk - Native block storage integration
  • Cloud Load Balancing - Integrated load balancers
  • Cloud Operations - Native monitoring and logging
  • Secret Manager - Secure secrets management
  • Binary Authorization - Container image verification

Advanced Features

Multi-Cluster Management:

  • GKE Hub for managing multiple clusters
  • Multi-cluster services
  • Config sync for GitOps
  • Policy controller

High Availability:

  • Regional clusters across multiple zones
  • Automatic node replacement
  • Control plane redundancy
  • 99.95% SLA for Standard, 99.9% for Autopilot

Security Features:

  • Workload Identity for pod authentication
  • Binary Authorization for image verification
  • Private clusters with private endpoints
  • Shielded GKE nodes
  • Confidential GKE nodes (confidential computing)

GKE Architecture

Understanding how GKE components work together:

graph LR subgraph user[User/Application] U[kubectl/API Client] end subgraph gke_control[GKE Control Plane] API[API Server] ETCD[etcd] SCHED[Scheduler] CM[Controller Manager] end subgraph vpc[Your VPC Network] subgraph node_pool[Node Pool] N1[Worker Node 1] N2[Worker Node 2] N3[Worker Node N] end PODS[Your Pods] end subgraph gcp_services[Google Cloud Services] IAM[Cloud IAM] PD[Persistent Disk] LB[Cloud Load Balancing] MON[Cloud Monitoring] end U -->|kubectl apply| API API --> ETCD API --> SCHED SCHED -->|Schedule Pods| N1 SCHED -->|Schedule Pods| N2 CM -->|Manage State| API N1 --> PODS N2 --> PODS N3 --> PODS PODS -->|Assume Identity| IAM PODS -->|Mount| PD PODS -->|Expose| LB PODS -->|Metrics| MON style API fill:#e1f5ff style PODS fill:#e8f5e9 style IAM fill:#fff4e1

When to Use GKE

GKE is ideal when:

✅ Already on Google Cloud - You’re using GCP services and want native integration

✅ Multi-Cluster Needs - Need advanced multi-cluster management features

✅ Autopilot Simplicity - Want fully managed nodes with minimal operations

✅ Google Kubernetes Expertise - Benefit from Google’s Kubernetes expertise (original creators)

✅ Security Requirements - Need Binary Authorization, Workload Identity, and confidential computing

✅ Cost Optimization - Want to use preemptible VMs and sustained use discounts

✅ Advanced Features - Need features like multi-cluster services, Config Sync, or Policy Controller

Topics

Getting Started

  • Overview - Deep dive into GKE architecture, features, and use cases
  • Cluster Setup - Creating and configuring GKE clusters (Standard and Autopilot)

Core Infrastructure

  • Networking - VPC-native networking, service networking, and Ingress
  • Storage - Persistent Disk, Filestore, and persistent volume management
  • Security - Workload Identity, Cloud IAM, and security best practices

Operations

  • Node Management - Node pools, machine types, and lifecycle management
  • Autoscaling - Cluster Autoscaler, HPA, and scaling strategies
  • Observability - Cloud Operations, Monitoring, Logging, and tracing
  • Add-ons - GKE add-ons and popular extensions

Support

See Also