Kubeflow on MicroK8s

Introduction

This guide describes how to deploy and run Kubeflow locally with MicroK8s - a small enterprise Kubernetes cluster.

Kubeflow is already built into MicroK8s as an add-on. This means once you install MicroK8s, you can enable Kubeflow straight away.

MicroK8s is available on Windows, macOS and any Linux distribution that supports Snaps. You can download and install MicroK8s by following the installation steps on the official website.

Alternatively, you can install MicroK8s on a Linux appliance with Multipass, which gives you a disposable Ubuntu command line on Windows, macOS or Linux. Refer to the official documentation for more details.

Installing and enabling Kubeflow using MicroK8s

To get Kubeflow running using MicroK8s, you’ll need to install MicroK8s, enable basic services, and then enable Kubeflow.

Note: You need MicroK8s version 1.18, 1.19, 1.20 or 1.21 to enable and run Kubeflow. The latest version (1.22) is not currently supported by Kubeflow itself.

1. Install MicroK8s by running the following command:

   sudo snap install microk8s --classic --channel=1.21/stable
   

2. Add yourself (current user) to admin group:

   sudo usermod -a -G microk8s $USER
   sudo chown -f -R $USER ~/.kube
   

   You will have to exit the current session and log in again for this change to take effect.

3. Verify that MicroK8s is running:

   microk8s status --wait-ready
   

4. Deploy Kubeflow by running this command:

   microk8s enable kubeflow
   

   The deployment process may take a few minutes. Once it is complete, the script will print out the port number and credentials to access the Kubeflow dashboard.

5. Optional: To enable NVIDIA GPU hardware support, also run microk8s enable gpu.

Accessing the Kubeflow dashboard

On your Linux machine

If you installed MicroK8s directly on your Linux machine, you can view the Kubeflow dashboard as follows:

1. Open a web browser window.
2. Access the link provided after you have enabled Kubeflow (for example, 10.64.140.43.nip.io).

On Windows, macOS, Multipass or a virtual machine

When running MicroK8s on Windows, macOS, Multipass or a virtual machine, you need to create a SOCKS proxy to access the Kubeflow dashboard:

1. Log out from the current session in your terminal using the exit command.

2. Re-establish connection to the machine using SSH, enabling SOCKS proxy with the -D9999 parameter.

   In the VM case, run the following command, where <machine_public_ip> is your machine’s public IP:

   ssh -D9999 ubuntu@<machine_public_ip>
   

   On Windows, macOS or Multipass, you can check for the IP first with:

   multipass list
   

   and then, run this command, replacing <multipass_public_ip> with that IP:

   ssh -D9999 multipass@<multipass_public_ip>
   

3. In your host operating system or browser, go to Settings > Network > Network Proxy, and enable SOCKS proxy pointing to: 127.0.0.1:9999.

4. Finally, access the Kubeflow dashboard by:

   1. Opening a new web browser window.
   2. Accessing the link provided after you have enabled Kubeflow (for example, 10.64.140.43.nip.io).

Troubleshooting

If you are having issues with the MicroK8s Kubeflow add-on, you can try a few alternatives:

1. Install the Kubeflow Charmed Operators directly following the respective documentation using MicroK8s as a Kubernetes.
2. Refresh your MicroK8s installation to the tip version via sudo snap refresh microk8s --classic --channel=edge. This might be useful if a fix has been released in the edge channel of the MicroK8s snap and not yet in the default stable channel.
3. Re-install the tip version of MicroK8s with sudo snap install microk8s --classic --channel=edge, and re-enable the Kubeflow add-on.

If none of the above fixes your issue, please:

• Start a new issue
• Reach out via Slack

Additional guides

• MicroK8s troubleshooting docs
• MicroK8s getting started docs
• MicroK8s Kubeflow add-on docs
• Addittional docs in Charmed Kubeflow