common-operations

name	common-operations
description	Implement idiomatic Kubernetes operations with label selectors, strategic merge patches, and proper error handling for production-grade CLI tooling.

Common Operations

When to Use This Skill

A well-designed Kubernetes CLI provides idiomatic operations that work consistently across resource types. This section covers:

• List Resources - Query resources with label selectors
• Rollout Restart - Trigger rolling restarts without downtime
• ConfigMap Operations - Store and retrieve configuration data
• Watch Resources - React to real-time resource changes

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Implementation

See the full implementation guide in the source documentation.

Key Principles

Practice	Description
Use label selectors	Filter resources server-side, not client-side
Prefer patches over updates	Patches are safer for concurrent modifications
Use strategic merge patches	Kubernetes-native patch format for resources
Handle not found errors	Check apierrors.IsNotFound(err) before creating
Respect resource versions	Use optimistic concurrency for updates

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Use the Kubernetes API idiomatically: label selectors, patches, and proper error handling.

Techniques

Operation Patterns

graph TB
    CLI[CLI Command] --> List[List Resources]
    CLI --> Mutate[Mutate Resources]
    CLI --> Watch[Watch Changes]

    List --> Filter[Label Selectors]
    Mutate --> Patch[Strategic Merge Patch]
    Mutate --> Create[Get-or-Create]
    Watch --> Events[Event Stream]

    %% Ghostty Hardcore Theme
    style CLI fill:#65d9ef,color:#1b1d1e
    style List fill:#a7e22e,color:#1b1d1e
    style Mutate fill:#fd971e,color:#1b1d1e
    style Watch fill:#9e6ffe,color:#1b1d1e
    style Filter fill:#5e7175,color:#f8f8f3
    style Patch fill:#5e7175,color:#f8f8f3
    style Create fill:#5e7175,color:#f8f8f3
    style Events fill:#5e7175,color:#f8f8f3

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References

• Source Documentation
• AEL Build