Managing Kubernetes Versions on Amazon EKS

Overview

The Kubernetes platform undergoes continuous development and receives regular updates comprising new features, design enhancements, and bug fixes. These updates, represented by minor versions such as 1.29, are typically released by the community approximately every four months. Amazon EKS aligns with this release and deprecation cycle for Kubernetes minor versions. It’s advisable to stay proactive and update your clusters to leverage the latest Kubernetes version available on Amazon EKS.

Each minor version remains under standard support within Amazon EKS for the initial 14 months following its release. Subsequently, it transitions into extended support for an additional 12 months. Extended support permits the continued use of a specific Kubernetes version for longer, albeit incurring an extra cost per cluster hour. Failure to update your cluster before the extended support period concludes results in automatic upgrading to the oldest currently supported extended version.

Establishing your cluster using the latest Kubernetes version supported by Amazon EKS is recommended. However, if your application necessitates a specific Kubernetes version, you can select older versions accordingly. New Amazon EKS clusters can be created utilizing standard or extended support versions.

Introduction

Prerequisites to Upgrade

Certain crucial tasks need completion before upgrading to Kubernetes v1.29 in Amazon EKS. Here are the key changes to address beforehand:

• Update API Version: Ensure the API version of FlowSchema and PriorityLevelConfiguration is updated. The deprecated v1beta2 API version of these components is no longer served in Kubernetes v1.29. Refer to the deprecated API migration guide for more details.

Highlights of Kubernetes 1.29

This section covers notable removals, deprecations, and enhancements in Kubernetes version 1.29:

1. Advanced Pod Management Features

Kubernetes v1.29 introduces a range of advanced pod management features. Notable among them is the graduation of #753 to beta, enabling the SidecarContainers feature gate by default. This feature facilitates the continuation of init containers until pod termination, effectively transforming them into sidecar containers.

2. Security Enhancements

Enhancements such as the graduation of #2799 to beta, enabling the LegacyServiceAccountTokenCleanUp feature gate by default, ensure automatic cleanup of unused legacy service account tokens. Moreover, #3299 graduating to stable enables KMSv2 and KMSv2KDF feature gates by default, though KMSv2 is not currently supported in Amazon EKS.

3. Removed API Versions and Features

Certain API versions and features are deprecated or removed with each Kubernetes release. In v1.29, the status.nodeInfo.kubeProxyVersion field for Node objects is deprecated. It’s essential to update all manifests and controllers accordingly.

Kubernetes Version Support in Amazon EKS

Amazon EKS offers support for seven Kubernetes versions (v1.23 through v1.29). While v1.24 through v1.29 are in standard support, v1.23 is currently in extended support. Kubernetes version 1.24 will transition to extended support on February 1, 2024.

Conclusion

In this post, we’ve explored the significant changes and enhancements in Kubernetes version v1.29, highlighting some of the most exciting features introduced. For further details, refer to the Kubernetes v1.29 release notes.

Drop a query if you have any questions regarding Amazon EKS and we will get back to you quickly.

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