From Zero to Hero: K3s, Traefik & Cloudflare Your Home Lab Powerhouse

NOTE: Hey everyone, I just wanted to quickly address an issue with the audio in this video. Unfortunately, the limiter settings weren’t configured properly, which caused some overdrive in the sound. I sincerely apologize for this—it's completely my mistake, and I’ll make sure it doesn’t happen again in future videos. Thanks so much for your understanding and support! VIDEO: In this video, we explore how to build a lightweight Kubernetes cluster using **K3s** on a single node, perfect for homelab enthusiasts! We’ll also configure a **CloudflareD tunnel** to expose services securely to the internet and set up **Traefik Ingress Controller** for efficient internal traffic routing. 🔎 **Why K3s?** K3s is a streamlined Kubernetes distribution designed for resource-constrained environments, making it ideal for homelabs. Whether you want to run containerized apps, manage workloads, or learn industry-standard tools, this video will show you why K3s is the perfect choice. 📋 **What You'll Learn:** - Installing K3s on a Linux host - Configuring Cloudflare Zero Trust and DNS for external access - Deploying containerized applications using Kubernetes manifests - Setting up **Ingress Controllers** and routing traffic - Understanding the flow of traffic through K3s, Traefik, and ClusterIP Services - Exposing applications to the internet using CloudflareD 🛠️ **What You’ll Need:** - A Linux machine (e.g., an old PC, thin client, or SBC like the NanoPi T6) - A domain name (e.g., configured with Cloudflare DNS) - Basic knowledge of Linux commands 📂 **Why Homelab?** Homelabs are the perfect playground to learn and practice skills like: - **Linux administration** - **Networking** - **Containerization** (Docker, Kubernetes) - Hosting personal services like websites, NAS, or game servers - IoT automation with Home Assistant ⚡ **Sample Deployment:** We’ll deploy the **whoami app**, showcasing: - Pod-to-service communication - Internal traffic routing via ClusterIP Services - External traffic routing with Traefik and Cloudflare 🔧 **Tools and Specs:** We’re using an 8-core ARM CPU, 8 GB RAM, and 250 GB NVMe storage for our cluster. K3s keeps resource usage low while offering robust Kubernetes functionality. 💡 **Future Content:** Stay tuned for upcoming videos on: - Advanced load balancing with **MetalLB** - Using alternative CNIs like **Calico** - Customizing ingress with **NGINX** or other controllers 00:00 Introduction 01:37 Why K3S? 02:37 What you'll need 04:23 K3S installation 07:38 Load Balancer and Ingress Controller 08:37 Sample Deployment 10:57 Diagram 13:12 Exposing Ingress Controller 17:04 CloudflareD 18:05 Creating Tunnel 20:42 Outro / Demo 📈 **Why Wait?** Start your homelab journey today! Combine learning with solving real-life needs—it’s rewarding, fun, and highly educational. 💬 **Have questions?** Drop them in the comments below, and don’t forget to **subscribe** for more content on Linux, Kubernetes, and homelab setups! #K3s #Kubernetes #Homelab #Cloudflare #LinuxNetworking https://docs.k3s.io/quick-start https://github.com/filip-lebiecki/k3s-install