Amazon Web Services (AWS) has unveiled version 1.0 of Karpenter, an open-source tool designed for auto-scaling Kubernetes clusters. With the introduction of stable APIs and a host of new features, this version signifies the transition of Karpenter from beta to stable release.

Since its initial introduction in November 2021, Karpenter has developed into an effective Kubernetes-native node lifecycle manager. Acknowledged by industry vanguards such as Slack earlier this year, it has risen to be amongst the top ten most popular AWS open-source projects hosted on GitHub.

As detailed by Himanshu Verma in a blog post for Infracloud, Karpenter simplifies operations by removing the need for pre-configured Node Groups and resource sizing, managing instances directly through Launch Templates. It proactively provisions new nodes as necessary, immediately addressing unschedulable pods. This dynamic adjustment of computing resources within the cluster enhances both efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

The significant updates in Karpenter’s version 1.0 release include numerous fixes and enhancements that are essential for users.

There are also some planned deprecations, including removing certain annotations and ConfigMap-based configuration.

For users looking to upgrade from beta versions, AWS provides a migration path using Kubernetes webhook conversion, provided they already use a version with the latest APIs. This process allows for in-place API upgrades without requiring node replacement. However, users are advised to review the complete migration documentation and test the upgrade process in a non-production environment before proceeding.

In a video walkthrough on X (formerly Twitter), Olalekan Taofeek explained in detail how he upgraded Karpenter from 0.37 to 1.0 – a version jump bigger than that provided for by the migration path. He highlighted that there were several breaking changes that required careful attention:

The news of Karpenter 1.0 has been well received, with Vatsal Bajpai, for example writing on X (formerly Twitter):

“Karpenter has become so essential for k8s on cloud, happy to see this!”

Writing in a thread on Reddit, users generally appreciated the release, with some pointing out that a port is also available for Azure, though some also lamented the lack of GCP support. Others pondered whether the Karpenter functionality could be fully integrated into the EKS control plane.

For more information or to provide feedback, users can reach out through the Kubernetes Slack #karpenter channel or on GitHub.

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