Running a Local Kubernetes Cluster

You can install the ngrok Kubernetes Operator in a locally running Kubernetes cluster rather than paying for one from a cloud provider. This is useful for:

Quickly getting started trying out the ngrok Operator
Local development & testing
Connecting containerized workloads on your local machine to your ngrok infrastructure
Faster iteration cycles without cloud latency

Running Kubernetes inside containers has the benefits of being quick and simple to setup compared to a bare-metal installation and keeps the Kubernetes environment more isolated from the dependencies and other applications on your computer. This is not a recommendation for how you should productionize your Kubernetes setup, but rather a guide on getting an easy to use local environment setup for development and testing. The following sections outline various options for running Kubernetes inside Docker containers on your local machine, but you can run the ngrok Kubernetes Operator in any Kubernetes cluster you like.

Choosing a container runtime

Before setting up a local Kubernetes cluster, you need a container runtime. The container runtime is responsible for running containers, managing their lifecycle, and handling networking. If you don’t already have a container runtime such as Docker installed, choose one from the options below.

Runtime	OS Support	Architecture Support	Description
Docker Engine	Linux, ⚠️ Windows (WSL2 required)	x86_64, ARM64	Standard CLI-based runtime. Great for users who need a lightweight container runtime without a GUI.
Docker Desktop	Linux, macOS, Windows	x86_64, ARM64 (Apple Silicon)	GUI-based runtime. Great for developers who want an easy-to-use experience with a dashboard.
Containerd	Linux, Windows	x86_64, ARM64, s390x, ppc64le	Minimalist, Kubernetes-native runtime. Great for Kubernetes users who need a lightweight runtime without Docker dependencies.
Colima	Linux, macOS	x86_64, ARM64 (Apple Silicon)	macOS-native alternative to Docker Desktop. Great for Mac users looking for a lightweight and fast Docker-compatible runtime.

Choosing a cluster provider

Select one of the following options for running Kubernetes inside containers on your local machine.

Provider	Benefits	Things to consider
k3d	Lightweight (runs on K3s), fast cluster creation, low memory/CPU usage	Heavily focused on local development, making it more feature-limited
Minikube	Official Kubernetes project, easy to use, supports multiple drivers	Compared to others may be slower and consume more CPU/memory
kind	Multi-node clusters in Docker, great for testing, CI/CD	Focused on testing, other options may be better for local development
Microk8s	Lightweight, full Kubernetes experience, easy to install	Config not automatically added to Kubeconfig, requires manual addition
Docker Desktop	Simple interface, Kubernetes support	GUI-based, may be slower than other options

Basic commands

k3d
Minikube
Kind
Microk8s
Docker Desktop

Create a k3d cluster

k3d cluster create my-cluster

When creating a k3d cluster, the config is automatically added to your Kubeconfig file so you are ready to go immediately.

List running clusters

k3d cluster list

Delete a k3d cluster

k3d cluster delete my-cluster

Create a Minikube cluster

minikube start

When creating a Minikube cluster, the config is automatically added to your Kubeconfig file so you are ready to go immediately.

List running clusters

minikube profile list

Delete a Minikube cluster

minikube delete

Create a kind cluster

kind create cluster --name my-cluster

When creating a kind cluster, the config is automatically added to your Kubeconfig file so you are ready to go immediately.

List running clusters

kind get clusters

Delete a kind cluster

kind delete cluster --name my-cluster

Create a Microk8s cluster

microk8s start

When creating a Microk8s cluster, the config is NOT automatically added to your Kubeconfig file, so you can use the following command to add it.

microk8s config > $KUBECONFIG

List running clusters

microk8s stop

Delete a Microk8s cluster

microk8s reset

Managing Kubernetes contexts

When working with multiple Kubernetes clusters (for example, Minikube, k3d, kind, MicroK8s, cloud clusters), it is important to manage kubeconfig contexts efficiently. A context in Kubernetes determines:

Which cluster kubectl is communicating with.
Which user credentials to use for authentication.
Which namespace is the default for commands.

Kubernetes stores this information in the kubeconfig file (default location: ~/.kube/config). The $KUBECONFIG environment variable is used by kubectl to know where your configuration file is. If you would like to store it somewhere else, or use different files for different clusters, you can modify the $KUBECONFIG variable.

Viewing the current context

To check which Kubernetes cluster you are currently using:

kubectl config current-context

This returns the active context, which tells kubectl which cluster and credentials are being used.

Listing all contexts

To see all available Kubernetes contexts in your kubeconfig:

kubectl config get-contexts

This will display a list of available contexts, including:

Cluster Name (for example, minikube, kind-my-cluster, k3d-my-cluster).
User Credentials.
Current Context (marked with *).

Switching between contexts

To switch from one Kubernetes cluster to another:

kubectl config use-context my-cluster

Setting a default namespace for a context

By default, kubectl uses the default namespace. You can change the default namespace for a specific context:

kubectl config set-context --current --namespace=my-namespace

Or, specify a namespace when switching to a different context:

kubectl config set-context my-cluster --namespace=custom-namespace

Deleting a context

If you no longer need a specific context, you can remove it from your kubeconfig:

kubectl config delete-context <context-name>

This does not delete the cluster itself, only its entry from your kubeconfig.

Merging multiple kubeconfig files

If you have multiple kubeconfig files (for example, from cloud providers and local clusters), you can merge them:

export KUBECONFIG=~/.kube/config:~/.kube/k3d-config:~/.kube/microk8s-config
kubectl config view --merge --flatten > ~/.kube/config-merged
mv ~/.kube/config-merged ~/.kube/config

This consolidates multiple different cluster credentials into a single kubeconfig file.

Quickstarts

Manage

Load Balancing

Usage Guides

Custom Resources

Integrations & Platforms

Running a Local Kubernetes Cluster

Choosing a container runtime

Choosing a cluster provider

Basic commands

Create a k3d cluster

List running clusters

Delete a k3d cluster

Create a Minikube cluster

List running clusters

Delete a Minikube cluster

Create a kind cluster

List running clusters

Delete a kind cluster

Create a Microk8s cluster

List running clusters

Delete a Microk8s cluster

Managing Kubernetes contexts

Viewing the current context

Listing all contexts

Switching between contexts

Setting a default namespace for a context

Deleting a context

Merging multiple kubeconfig files

​Choosing a container runtime

​Choosing a cluster provider

​Basic commands

​Create a k3d cluster

​List running clusters

​Delete a k3d cluster

​Create a Minikube cluster

​List running clusters

​Delete a Minikube cluster

​Create a kind cluster

​List running clusters

​Delete a kind cluster

​Create a Microk8s cluster

​List running clusters

​Delete a Microk8s cluster

​Managing Kubernetes contexts

​Viewing the current context

​Listing all contexts

​Switching between contexts

​Setting a default namespace for a context

​Deleting a context

​Merging multiple kubeconfig files

Choosing a container runtime

Choosing a cluster provider

Basic commands

Create a k3d cluster

List running clusters

Delete a k3d cluster

Create a Minikube cluster

List running clusters

Delete a Minikube cluster

Create a kind cluster

List running clusters

Delete a kind cluster

Create a Microk8s cluster

List running clusters

Delete a Microk8s cluster

Managing Kubernetes contexts

Viewing the current context

Listing all contexts

Switching between contexts

Setting a default namespace for a context

Deleting a context

Merging multiple kubeconfig files