kyverno-basics

name	kyverno-basics
description	Install Kyverno, create validation policies, and understand audit vs enforce modes for Kubernetes admission control.

Kyverno Basics

When to Use This Skill

Kyverno runs as a dynamic admission controller in Kubernetes. It validates, mutates, and generates resources based on policies written in YAML.

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Implementation

Install Kyverno using Helm:

See examples.md for detailed code examples.

Kyverno creates webhook configurations that intercept resource creation/updates before they reach etcd.

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Comparison

Roll out policies in audit mode first:

spec:
  validationFailureAction: Audit  # Log violations, don't block

Check logs for violations:

kubectl get policyreport -A

NAMESPACE   NAME                          PASS   FAIL   WARN   ERROR   SKIP
default     polr-ns-default              12     3      0      0       0
production  polr-ns-production           45     1      0      0       0

Fix violations. Then switch to Enforce:

spec:
  validationFailureAction: Enforce  # Block violations

Gradual Rollout Strategy

1. Deploy policy in Audit mode
2. Monitor PolicyReports for 1 week
3. Remediate failures
4. Switch to Enforce mode
5. Handle exceptions with exclusions

Don't deploy straight to Enforce. Discover violations first.

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Examples

See examples.md for code examples.

Related Patterns

• Policy Patterns
• Testing and Exceptions
• CI/CD Integration

References

• Source Documentation
• AEL Enforce