2 Node Kubernetes Setup via Multipass

Overview

This project documents the creation of a fully functional 2-node Kubernetes cluster using `kubeadm` and Multipass on Ubuntu Desktop. It was designed to simulate real-world infrastructure challenges and prepare for the Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) exam.

Challenges & Lessons Learned

❌ **WSL2 Limitations**: Initial attempts using WSL2 failed due to networking isolation and lack of systemd support.

❌ **Raspberry Pi 400 Architecture**: ARM-based setup introduced compatibility issues with Kubernetes binaries and container runtimes.

❌ **Hyper-V Conflicts**: Multipass defaulted to Hyper-V, which was unsupported on Windows Home, requiring a switch to VirtualBox.

❌ **Firewall Restrictions**: The Kubernetes API server was unreachable until Windows firewall rules were manually adjusted to allow port 6443. (Initial tries with WSL port and traffic forwarding on Win11)

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Each obstacle was met with research, experimentation, and adaptation, ultimately leading to a stable, scalable cluster.

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Step-by-Step Setup Guide

1. **Create Instances**
- `multipass launch --name master --mem 2G --disk 20G`
- `multipass launch --name worker --mem 1G --disk 10G`

2. **Install Dependencies**
- containerd, kubeadm, kubectl, kubelet

3. **Configure Kernel & Disable Swap**

4. **Initialize Control Plane**
- `kubeadm init --pod-network-cidr=10.244.0.0/16`

5. **Apply Flannel Network**
- `kubectl apply -f https://github.com/flannel-io/flannel/releases/latest/download/kube-flannel.yml`

6. **Join Worker Node**
- Use `kubeadm join` with token and hash

7. **Verify Cluster**
- `kubectl get nodes`