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Running K3s on Raspberry Pi

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Introduction
Preparing Your Raspberry Pi Cluster
Installing K3s
Using Your K3s Cluster
Real-World Deployments
Advanced Topics
Final Project
Summary

Installing K3s

Install K3s on your Raspberry Pi cluster, configure your master node, and prepare for adding workers.

By Kevin McAleer,    2 Minutes

Page last updated May 24, 2025

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In this lesson, you’ll install K3s on your Raspberry Pi master node, set up the cluster, and prepare for adding worker nodes.

K3s makes Kubernetes installation fast and easy — especially on resource-limited devices like Raspberry Pi.

🚀 Step 1: SSH into the Master Node

From your main computer, SSH into the Pi that will act as the control plane (master):

ssh [email protected]

Replace pi and pi-master.local with your username and hostname or IP if needed.

🧰 Step 2: Install K3s (Master Node)

Run this one-liner:

curl -sfL https://get.k3s.io | sh -

K3s will:

  • Download and install Kubernetes
  • Start systemd service: k3s.service
  • Set up networking with Flannel
  • Create a default service account and kubeconfig

📁 Step 3: Check Cluster Status

After installation:

sudo k3s kubectl get nodes

You should see your master node listed as Ready.

To make kubectl easier to use, copy the K3s kubeconfig to your user’s home directory:

mkdir -p ~/.kube
sudo cp /etc/rancher/k3s/k3s.yaml ~/.kube/config
sudo chown $(id -u):$(id -g) ~/.kube/config

Now you can run:

kubectl get nodes

🔑 Step 4: Get the Join Token

You’ll need a token to join worker nodes to the cluster:

sudo cat /var/lib/rancher/k3s/server/node-token

Copy the token — you’ll use it on the worker nodes in the next lesson.

🧪 Troubleshooting

Problem Solution
k3s.service fails to start Check logs: journalctl -u k3s -e
kubectl not found Use sudo k3s kubectl or set up kubeconfig
Token file missing Confirm you’re on the master node
Network errors Check for cgroup settings and firewalls

📝 Notes

  • K3s uses a built-in SQLite database by default (great for small clusters).
  • For multi-master HA setups, use an external datastore (e.g. MySQL, Postgres, etcd).
  • The default CNI is Flannel, which works well for most local setups.

🎉 Your Kubernetes control plane is now running!

Next up: Adding Nodes

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