K3s
App in the BluixApps catalog
What it is
K3s is a lightweight Kubernetes distribution — single binary (<70MB), runs Kubernetes workloads on edge devices, IoT, small clusters, or single-node setups. CNCF Sandbox project, originally by Rancher (now SUSE).
The "Kubernetes for the rest of us" — same kubectl, same manifests, fraction of the resource footprint vs full upstream K8s.
What it's for
- Edge Kubernetes — K8s on Raspberry Pi, edge gateways
- Dev / staging clusters — full K8s locally without minikube friction
- Small production clusters — single-server or 3-node SMB workloads
- IoT orchestration — manage container fleets on remote devices
- Learning Kubernetes — full K8s API without operational complexity
Who it's for
- Edge / IoT operators running container workloads on low-resource devices
- Small businesses needing K8s without the full operational team
- Developers running K8s locally for testing
- SMB DevOps teams with modest production workloads
- Educational orgs teaching Kubernetes hands-on
Why teams pick K3s over alternatives
- Apache 2.0 — fully open
- CNCF Sandbox — vendor-neutral governance
- Single binary — install via
curl | sh, no dependencies - Embedded etcd or SQLite — no external DB required
- Standard Kubernetes API — kubectl, Helm, all standard tooling
- Active development — backed by SUSE / Rancher
Integrations
- Helm — package manager for K8s apps
- kubectl — standard CLI
- Lens / Headlamp / K9s — UI / TUI for cluster mgmt
- Bundled add-ons — Traefik ingress, ServiceLB, local-path storage, CoreDNS, Helm controller
- Storage — local-path default, longhorn / NFS / cloud volumes via CSI
- CNI plugins — Flannel default, swap to Calico / Cilium
- Multi-node — agent nodes via
K3S_URL+K3S_TOKEN
Notable users & community
- 28k+ GitHub stars
- Used by Hexagon, Rolls-Royce, edge IoT deployments
- CNCF Sandbox project
- Backed by SUSE / Rancher with commercial enterprise tier
- Active Slack + community calls
Tips & operations
- Production K3s ≠ Docker K3s — production should run as systemd service via
curl -sfL https://get.k3s.io | sh - Privileged container required for Docker-mode K3s
- Persistent state —
/var/lib/rancher/k3sis the cluster state - Multi-node — agents join via API server URL + token
- Backup snapshot — built-in etcd snapshot for disaster recovery
- Network ports — 6443 (API), 80/443 (ingress) needed open
What we ship in BluixApps
- Docker image:
rancher/k3s:latest(privileged container) - Persistent volumes:
/opt/k3s/data+/opt/k3s/config - Kubeconfig auto-generated at
/opt/k3s/config/kubeconfig.yaml - Auto-patched kubeconfig with public IP for external kubectl access
- Ports 6443 / 80 / 443 exposed
- Bundled add-ons enabled (Traefik, ServiceLB, local-path, CoreDNS)
- Pairs naturally with Headlamp (web UI) on same VPS
- Backup hook covers
/opt/k3s/data(cluster state)
Get this app — pick a BluixApps plan
Same catalog. Scaling tenant isolation, white-label and support tier.
| Tier | Tenants | Catalog | Support | White-label | Monthly | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stacks | 1 | 19 curated stacks | Standard | — | $19/mo | DetailDeploy |
| Starter | 10 | Full catalog | Standard | +$15–25/mo | $49/mo | DetailDeploy |
| Pro | 25 | Full catalog | Priority bugfix | +$15–25/mo | $149/mo | DetailDeploy |
| Growth | 100 | Full catalog | Priority bugfix | +$15–25/mo | $349/mo | DetailDeploy |
| Scale | 500 | Full catalog | 7-day window | +$15–25/mo | $799/mo | DetailDeploy |
| Enterprise | Unlimited | Full catalog | Priority 7-day | Bundled | $1,499/mo | DetailDeploy |