I Built an Open-Source Kubernetes Dashboard - Here's What I Learned

Why Another K8s Dashboard?

I know what you're thinking - "There's already Lens, K9s, Rancher..."

Here's the thing: I wanted something that:

1. Runs in a browser (no local installation)
2. Has built-in safety guards (block dangerous commands)
3. Deploys easily to the cluster itself
4. Is completely open-source

So I built NexOps.

The 30-Second Demo

git clone https://github.com/gauravtayade11/nexops.git
docker-compose up -d

Open http://localhost:3000

That's it. You're in.

What Makes It Different

1. Browser-Based kubectl with Safety Guards

Run kubectl commands in your browser, but dangerous ones are blocked:

dangerous_patterns = [
    'delete --all',
    'delete namespace',
    '--force --grace-period=0',
    'rm -rf /',
]

No more accidental cluster wipes.

2. Real-Time Everything

• Live cluster health
• Streaming pod logs
• Container exec sessions
• Event monitoring

3. Team-Friendly

Give developers cluster visibility without:

• Installing kubectl locally
• Sharing kubeconfig files
• Full admin access

Technical Challenges

The hardest part? Making it work with Docker Desktop's Kubernetes.

When your app runs in a container, localhost:6443 refers to the container, not your Mac. The fix: use kubernetes.docker.internal.

Tech Stack

Layer	Technology
Backend	FastAPI (Python 3.11)
Frontend	React 18 + TypeScript
Styling	Tailwind CSS
Container	Docker + nginx

What's Next

• [ ] WebSocket for real-time logs
• [ ] Multi-cluster support
• [ ] RBAC integration
• [ ] Helm chart UI

Try It Out

GitHub: https://github.com/gauravtayade11/nexops

Star ⭐ if you find it useful!

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What K8s tools do you use? I'd love to hear in the comments!