What Is A Namespace in Kubernetes?

Software Engineers who are new to Kubernetes (k8s) often ask “What Is A Namespace In Kubernetes?” and we attempt to answer this question in this article.

A Kubernetes namespace is a virtual cluster that allows users to group resources together based on their purpose or environment. K8s namespaces provide a means to organize and partition resources within a k8s cluster and are often used to separate workloads or applications.

Each namespace has its own set of resources, including pods, services, and replication controllers, which are isolated from other namespaces in the same cluster. This allows multiple teams or applications to run on the same cluster without risk of interference with each other.

How To Create A Namespace In Kubernetes?

Namespaces are created using the kubectl create namespace command or through a YAML file that defines the namespace configuration. Once created, namespaces can be used to deploy and manage resources using kubectl commands or Kubernetes API calls.

Assume that the file below is named hello-namespace.yaml:

				
					apiVersion: v1
kind: Namespace
metadata:
  name: hello-namespace

We can create the namespace by applying the file as follows:

				
					kubectl apply -f hello-namespace.yaml

In the next section, we’ll cover how to rename a namespace in Kubernetes.

How To Rename A Namespace In Kubernetes?

The following instructions detail how to rename a namespace in Kubernetes.

Step One: Edit the namespace YAML file

Edit the namespace hello-namespace.yaml file below.

				
					apiVersion: v1
kind: Namespace
metadata:
  name: hello-namespace

Use the kubectl edit namespace <old-namespace-name> command to edit the YAML file of the hello-namespace.yaml file and then change the metadata.name field to goodbye-namespace.

				
					kubectl edit namespace hello-namespace

Step Two: Apply The Changes

Next, apply the changes by saving the modification to the YAML file and then exit the editor. While in the editor, change the metadata.name field to goodbye-namespace and then save the changes. Next, apply the changes as follows:

				
					kubectl apply -f hello-namespace.yaml

Step Three: Confirm The Changes

We can verify the changes via the kubectl get namespace command which will show that the namespace has been renamed successfully. In this example we should see the new namespace name (goodbye-namespace) instead of the old one (hello-namespace).

				
					kubectl get namespace

What Is Namespace in Kubernetes? Article Conclusion

I hope this article has helped to answer the question “What is namespace in Kubernetes”. If you like this article please let me know and also let me know if you have any comments or questions.

What Is A Namespace in Kubernetes? Article References

  1. Kubernetes documentation on Namespaces
  2. Kubernetes API reference
  3. Kubernetes documentation on renaming namespaces
  4. Kubernetes kubectl Cheat Sheet
  5. Kubernetes documentation on applying configuration changes with kubectl
  6. Kubernetes documentation on viewing namespaces with kubectl
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