All-in-one Kubernetes SDK: create, manage, and operate clusters across distributions (Kind, K3d, Talos, VCluster) with built-in GitOps, secrets, AI assistant, and MCP server. Only requires Docker.
# Add to your Claude Code skills
git clone https://github.com/devantler-tech/ksail
KSail is a tool that bundles common Kubernetes tooling into a single binary. It provides a VSCode Extension, CLI, AI-Enabled Chat TUI or MCP interface to create clusters, deploy workloads, and operate cloud-native stacks across different distributions and providers.
# macOS / Linux (Homebrew)
brew install --cask devantler-tech/tap/ksail
# Go (1.26.1+)
go install github.com/devantler-tech/ksail/v6@latest
See the Installation Guide for binary downloads and more options.
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# 1. Create a project and spin up a cluster (only requires Docker)
ksail cluster init --name my-app
ksail cluster create
# 2. Connect to your cluster with K9s
ksail cluster connect
That's it β zero to a running cluster in under a minute.
Most Kubernetes workflows require juggling multiple tools:
kind + k3d + kubectl + helm + kustomize + flux + argocd + sops + k9s + kubeconform + ...
KSail bundles these into one binary:
| Category | Built-in Capabilities | |--------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------| | Cluster Provisioning | Kind, K3d, Talos, VCluster (Vind) | | Container Orchestration | kubectl, Helm, Kustomize | | GitOps Engines | Flux, ArgoCD | | Secrets Management | SOPS with Age encryption | | Manifest Validation | Kubeconform | | Cluster Operations | K9s, backup & restore | | AI Integration | Chat assistant (Copilot SDK), MCP server, VSCode extension | | Infrastructure Providers | Docker (local), Hetzner Cloud, Sidero Omni |
Only Docker is required β no other tools to install, configure, or keep in sync.
Setting up and operating Kubernetes clusters often requires juggling multiple CLI tools, writing bespoke scripts, and dealing with inconsistent workflows. KSail removes the tooling overhead so you can focus on your workloads.
kind.yaml, k3d.yaml, Talos patches, vcluster.yaml). Run clusters with or without KSail.ksail tenant create and ksail tenant delete.KSail works on all major operating systems and CPU architectures:
| OS | Architecture | |-----------------------------------------------|--------------| | π§ Linux | amd64, arm64 | | ο£Ώ macOS | arm64 | | β Windows (native untested; WSL2 recommended) | amd64, arm64 |
Supported distributions run on different infrastructure providers:
| Provider | Vanilla | K3s | Talos | VCluster | |----------|----------|---------|-------|----------| | Docker | β (Kind) | β (K3d) | β | β (Vind) | | Hetzner | β | β | β | β | | Omni | β | β | β | β |
See the Installation Guide for detailed installation instructions including binary downloads and platform-specific options.
flowchart TD
Dev["π§βπ» Developer"]
Dev -->|"edits"| Project
Dev -->|"runs"| KSail
subgraph Project ["π Project Repository"]
Config["ksail.yaml"] ~~~ DistConfig["kind.yaml Β· k3d.yaml<br/>vcluster.yaml"] ~~~ Manifests["k8s/ manifests"]
end
KSail -->|"scaffolds & reads"| Project
KSail -->|"provisions & operates"| Cluster
subgraph KSail ["π₯οΈ KSail β One Binary"]
CLI["CLI Commands"] ~~~ Tools["Kind Β· K3d Β· Talos Β· vCluster<br/>Flux Β· ArgoCD Β· SOPS<br/>Helm Β· Kustomize"]
end
subgraph Cluster ["βΈοΈ Kubernetes Cluster"]
Infra["CNI Β· CSI Β· Metrics<br/>Cert-Manager Β· Policy Engine"] ~~~ Workloads["Your Workloads β
"]
end
Manifests -.->|"GitOps sync"| Workloads
style Dev fill:#f59e0b,stroke:#d97706,color:#000
style Project fill:#7c3aed22,stroke:#7c3aed
style KSail fill:#10b98122,stroke:#10b981
style Cluster fill:#3b82f622,stroke:#3b82f6
style CLI fill:#10b981,stroke:#059669,color:#000
style Tools fill:#065f46,stroke:#10b981,color:#fff
style Infra fill:#1e40af,stroke:#3b82f6,color:#fff
style Workloads fill:#166534,stroke:#22c55e,color:#fff
style Config fill:#5b21b6,stroke:#7c3aed,color:#fff
style DistConfig fill:#5b21b6,stroke:#7c3aed,color:#fff
style Manifests fill:#5b21b6,stroke:#7c3aed,color:#fff
# 1. Initialize a new project with your preferred stack
ksail cluster init \
--name <cluster-name> \
--distribution <Vanilla|K3s|Talos|VCluster> \
--cni <Default|Cilium|Calico> \
--csi <Default|Enabled|Disabled> \
--metrics-server <Default|Enabled|Disabled> \
--cert-manager <Enabled|Disabled> \
--policy-engine <None|Kyverno|Gatekeeper> \
--gitops-engine <None|Flux|ArgoCD> \
--mirror-registry <host>=<upstream>
# 2. Create and start the cluster
ksail cluster create
# 3. Add your manifests to the k8s/ directory
# 4. Deploy your workloads
ksail workload apply -k ./k8s # kubectl workflow
ksail workload reconcile # gitops workflow
# 5. Update cluster configuration (modify ksail.yaml, then run)
ksail cluster update # Apply configuration changes
# 6. Connect to the cluster with K9s
ksail cluster connect
KSail generates standard distribution configuration files that you can use directly with the underlying tools:
# After ksail cluster init, you'll find native configs:
# - kind.yaml (for Vanilla/Kind clusters)
# - k3d.yaml (for K3s clusters)
# - talos/ (for Talos clusters)
# - vcluster.yaml (for VCluster clusters)
# You can use these configs directly without KSail:
kind create cluster --config kind.yaml
k3d cluster create --config k3d.yaml
talosctl cluster create --config-patch @talos/cluster/patches.yaml
vcluster create my-cluster --values vcluster.yaml
# Or let KSail manage the lifecycle:
ksail cluster create
Browse the documentation at https://ksail.devantler.tech (GitHub Pages)
Contributions are welcome! Please read CONTRIBUTING.md for details on our development process, coding standards, and how to submit pull requests.
Looking for a place to start? Check out issues labeled good first issue.
KSail is a powerful tool that can be used in many different ways. Here are some projects that use KSail in their setup:
| Project | De