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kamlesh merugu
kamlesh merugu

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🚀 Part1: Installing MicroK8s on Ubuntu 24.04+: A Lightweight Kubernetes Setup Guide

#kubernetes #container

📋 What We'll Cover

✨ Create a non-root user

🛡️ Add the user to the sudo group

🔐 Optionally copy SSH keys for secure access

✔️ Improve security and verify configuration

These are foundational tasks for a safe, stable, and hacker-resistant server environment 🏰🔒

❓ Why These Steps Matter

Using the root account all the time is like driving a Ferrari with no seatbelt at full speed — fun, but dangerous 😅

Creating a dedicated user with sudo privilege improves:

🔐 Security — Limits damage from accidental commands

🧾 Accountability — Track who did what

🕵️ Auditability — Better logging and compliance

⚙️ Access control — Fine-grained permissions

SSH keys also give you passwordless login, making your workflow smoother and more secure.

🖥️ Initial Server Access

Connect to your VPS using the credentials provided by your hosting provider:

ssh root@your-server-ip
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Once logged in, proceed with the setup below.

👤 Create a New User

Run this to create a new user:

sudo adduser username
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You'll be asked for:

  • 🔑 Password
  • 📝 Optional user info (totally skippable)

To skip all prompts except password:

sudo adduser --gecos "" username
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🛠️ Add the User to the Sudo Group

Grant administrative privileges:

sudo usermod -aG sudo username
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Confirm:

groups username
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You should see:

username sudo
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Boom! Your user now has superpowers ⚡

🔑 (Optional) Copy Your SSH Key to the Server

🕵️ Check if you already have an SSH key

On your local machine, run:

ls ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub
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If not, generate one like a pro:

ssh-keygen -t ed25519
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📤 Copy your key to the server

Simplest method:

ssh-copy-id username@your-server-ip
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Manual method (ninja mode 🥷):

cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub | ssh username@your-server-ip "mkdir -p ~/.ssh && chmod 700 ~/.ssh && cat >> ~/.ssh/authorized_keys && chmod 600 ~/.ssh/authorized_keys"
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🧪 Test SSH Login

Test access:

ssh username@your-server-ip
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If it logs in without asking for a password → 🥳🎉

Your SSH keys are working perfectly.

🔒 (Optional) Disable Password Authentication

⚠️ Warning: Only do this if key authentication works — or you might lock yourself out like losing your house keys outside 🔑🚪

Edit SSH config:

sudo nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config
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Set:

PasswordAuthentication no
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Reload SSH service:

sudo systemctl reload ssh
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💾 Verify Storage & System Resources

Check available disk space:

df -h
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Expected output showing your 120GB storage:

Filesystem      Size  Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/vda1       118G  2.1G  110G   2% /
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Check RAM:

free -h
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Expected output showing ~8GB RAM:

              total        used        free
Mem:           7.8G        500M        7.0G
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Check CPU cores:

nproc
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Should return: 4

📋 Summary Checklist

Step Purpose
👤 Create user Avoid root login
🛡️ Add sudo group Admin privileges
🔑 Copy SSH keys Secure access
🧪 Test login Prevent lockouts
🔒 Disable password auth Extra hardening
💾 Verify resources Confirm server specs

🎯 Final Thoughts

Once this setup is complete, your 4-core, 8GB RAM, 120GB Ubuntu server is ready for:

🐳 Docker / Podman — Container runtime

🔧 Automation scripts — Ansible, Terraform

⚡ CI/CD pipelines — Jenkins, GitLab CI

☸️ Kubernetes / K3s / MicroK8s clusters — Perfect specs for lightweight K8s

🛠️ DevOps experimentation — n8n, ArgoCD, monitoring stacks

Your VPS has enough resources to comfortably run a MicroK8s cluster with multiple services while maintaining good performance.

🔜 What's Next?

Ready to install Kubernetes? 🚀

👉 Continue to Part 2: Installing MicroK8s on Ubuntu 24.04+

In Part 2, you'll learn how to:

  • ✨ Install MicroK8s via Snap
  • 🔒 Configure user permissions
  • 🧰 Enable essential add-ons (DNS, storage, ingress)
  • 🧪 Verify the cluster is running
  • 🐳 Deploy a test NGINX application
  • 🔄 Ensure MicroK8s auto-starts on boot

Let's turn your server into a Kubernetes powerhouse! ☸️

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