Kubernetes Resource Map

Kubernetes builds a cluster and runs applications by combining many kinds of resource objects.

1. Resource Hierarchy

The resources inside a cluster form the following logical hierarchy.

    graph TD
    Cluster[Kubernetes Cluster] --> NS[Namespace]

    subgraph Resources["Resources in a Namespace"]
        NS --> Workload[Workload Controllers]
        Workload --> D[Deployment]
        Workload --> S[StatefulSet]
        Workload --> DS[DaemonSet]

        NS --> Pod[Pod]
        Pod --> C[Container]

        NS --> Net[Networking]
        Net --> SVC[Service]
        Net --> ING[Ingress]

        NS --> Config[Configuration]
        Config --> CM[ConfigMap]
        Config --> SEC[Secret]
    end

2. Resource Relationships

Resources do not exist in isolation; they reference or contain one another.

Relationship Type	Structure	Description
Deployment structure	`Deployment` → `ReplicaSet` → `Pod`	Declarative updates and replica management
Network connectivity	`Service` → `Endpoints` → `Pod`	Provides a stable address and load balancing
Configuration injection	`ConfigMap/Secret` → `Pod`	Delivers configuration as environment variables or files (Volumes)
Storage binding	`Pod` → `PVC` → `PV`	Allocates persistent storage to the application

3. Core Resource Summary

Resource	Main Role
Pod	The smallest unit that runs in a cluster (a group of containers)
Deployment	Defines the desired state of an app and maintains it automatically (recommended for stateless apps)
StatefulSet	Manages apps where identity and order matter (stateful apps such as databases)
Service	Provides a stable IP and DNS name for accessing a set of Pods
Namespace	Divides a single cluster into isolated scopes so that multiple teams or projects can share it

4. Tips for Exploring Resources

To see every kind of resource available in the cluster, use the following commands.

# List all resources and their short names
kubectl api-resources

# Show the detailed spec structure of a specific resource
kubectl explain deployment.spec.template

Understanding how these resources connect and work together is the key to operating Kubernetes.

5. Common Resource Short Names

kubectl accepts short names for resources. (e.g., kubectl get po = kubectl get pods)

5.1 Core Resources

Short Name	Resource	Description
`no`	`nodes`	Node
`po`	`pods`	Pod
`svc`	`services`	Service
`ns`	`namespaces`	Namespace
`sa`	`serviceaccounts`	ServiceAccount
`ep`	`endpoints`	Endpoints

5.2 Workloads and Scheduling

Short Name	Resource	Description
`deploy`	`deployments`	Deployment
`rs`	`replicasets`	ReplicaSet
`rc`	`replicationcontrollers`	ReplicationController
`ds`	`daemonsets`	DaemonSet
`sts`	`statefulsets`	StatefulSet
`cj`	`cronjobs`	CronJob
(`job`)	`jobs`	Job (no separate short name; use `job` as is)

5.3 Configuration and Storage

Short Name	Resource	Description
`cm`	`configmaps`	ConfigMap
`pv`	`persistentvolumes`	PersistentVolume
`pvc`	`persistentvolumeclaims`	PersistentVolumeClaim
`sc`	`storageclasses`	StorageClass
(`secret`)	`secrets`	Secret (no separate short name; use `secret` as is)

5.4 Networking and Security

Short Name	Resource	Description
`netpol`	`networkpolicies`	NetworkPolicy
`ing`	`ingresses`	Ingress
(`role`)	`roles`	Role
(`rolebinding`)	`rolebindings`	RoleBinding
(`clusterrole`)	`clusterroles`	ClusterRole
(`clusterrolebinding`)	`clusterrolebindings`	ClusterRoleBinding

⚠️ Note: RBAC resources (roles, rolebindings, clusterroles, clusterrolebindings) have no official short names. Abbreviations such as rb, crb, and crole are not recognized by kubectl, so use the singular names (role, rolebinding, etc.) as shown above.

5.5 Usage Examples

kubectl get po,svc,deploy -n kube-system
kubectl get no -o wide
kubectl describe ds <name> -n <ns>
kubectl get sts,pvc

💡 Tip: You can find the exact short names for your cluster in the SHORTNAMES column of kubectl api-resources. Short names for resources added through CRDs are shown there as well.

What Is kubectl?K8s Cluster Components