After seven years running clusters I finally built my first Kubernetes Operator—a Redis PoC in Go with Operator-SDK. This post demystifies CRDs, reconcile loops, defaults, secrets, and status conditions, sharing hard-won lessons and next steps for anyone Operator-curious.
Early in 2023, challenged by rising Kubernetes issues in production environments, I crafted an audit methodology to diagnose clusters, identify misconfigurations, and establish best practices. Delivered by summer, it enabled clients to transform reliability and performance.
Managing updates isn't trivial; it's a complex, rewarding challenge. Upgrade management at scale involves orchestrating updates across Kubernetes clusters and workloads. While automation aids efficiency, the true art lies in understanding client needs and ensuring seamless, invisible upgrades.
Sometimes technical challenges just come out of nowhere—and ruin your day (or months). Let me tell you the epic tale of how a sudden DockerHub limitation threw my team into a mad scramble, some detective work and Bash scripting sessions.
When our CTO declared it "impossible" to know how WiFi users connected across our messy network, I took it as a personal challenge. However, looking back now, I ponder over how much better my decisions could have been with proper mentorship.
