06 · KubernetesLab 39 / 59
Challengekubernetes
Kubernetes RBAC & Service Accounts — Challenge
Grant a namespace read-only access, give a workload its own identity, and verify with the cluster rather than by hoping.
- Time
- 25 min
- Level
- Intermediate
- Objectives
- 4 objectives
- Cost
- Free
Where this fits in the platform
Already built
This lab adds
- Workload identities that can do only what they need
Which lets you
Before you start
You will need
- kind or minikube
- kubectl 1.28+
You do not need these already — the lab environment below provides them.
You will be able to
- Assemble Role, RoleBinding, ClusterRole and ClusterRoleBinding correctly
- Give a Pod an identity that is not the default ServiceAccount
- Verify permissions with `auth can-i` instead of by trial
The goal#
Achieve the same outcome as Kubernetes RBAC & Service Accounts, from an empty starting point, without the steps.
Every workload in the cluster runs as the default ServiceAccount, and its token is mounted into every Pod. Anything that reaches a container reaches the Kubernetes API with it.
NetworkPolicies control what a Pod can talk to. RBAC controls what it can do, and you need both.
Hands-on environment
Run this lab in a real terminal, free and in your browser. The environment is temporary and yours alone — break it as much as you like.
Start the challengeOpens in Killercoda, in a new tab — keep this page open for the steps.
This is the guided lab's environment — the same machine, with its walkthrough on the left. Work from the task above and leave those steps alone until you are done, or you are reading the answers.
Run it on your own machine
Run this lab on your own machine. One command starts the environment, with everything the lab needs already installed:
You will need:
- docker
- kubectl
- kind
git clone https://github.com/EgyKode/EgyKode-lab.git
cd EgyKode-lab
./egykode start k8s
./egykode shellYou need Docker and Git installed. Everything else runs inside the environment. The first start downloads it and takes a few minutes; later starts are seconds.
Not sure what you already have? Run: npm run doctor — it checks and changes nothing.
Anything you tick here is your own record. EgyKode cannot see inside that terminal, so the success criteria stay self-assessed even when the environment checks your work for you.
What must be true when you are done
Step 1 of 3
What must be true when you are done#
- A subject can list Pods in one namespace and is refused in another.
- A workload runs as a dedicated ServiceAccount, not
default. kubectl auth can-i --listoutput matches what you intended.- You can explain why RBAC has no deny rule.
Rules#
- Do not open the guided lab until you are finished, or until the same problem has held you up for 20 minutes.
- Documentation is allowed and encouraged.
- Verify every criterion with a command whose output you can read.
If you get stuck#
- What did you expect, exactly?
- What happened instead — the error text, not a paraphrase?
- Which layer is that error from?
- What is the smallest command that proves the layer below is fine?
You are done when
0 of 4
The concept behind it
Next up
Lab 39 of 59 on the project path