Ksail
All-in-one Kubernetes SDK: create, manage, and operate clusters across distributions (Kind, K3d, Talos, VCluster) with built-in GitOps, secrets, AI assistant, and MCP server. Only requires Docker or a Cloud Provider.
KSail bundles common Kubernetes tooling into a single binary. Spin up local clusters, deploy workloads, and operate cloud-native stacks across distributions and providers through a CLI, VS Code extension, AI chat TUI, or MCP server — with **only Docker or access to a Cloud Provider required**. The project is written primarily in Go, distributed under the Other license, first published in 2023. Key topics include: argocd, chat, cli, cloud-native, developer-tool.
🛥️🐳 KSail

KSail bundles common Kubernetes tooling into a single binary. Spin up local clusters, deploy workloads, and operate cloud-native stacks across distributions and providers through a CLI, VS Code extension, AI chat TUI, or MCP server — with only Docker or access to a Cloud Provider required.
📖 Full documentation: https://ksail.devantler.tech
Quick Install
bash# macOS / Linux (Homebrew) brew install --cask devantler-tech/tap/ksail # Go (1.26.1+) go install github.com/devantler-tech/ksail/v7@latest
See the Installation Guide for binary downloads and more options.
AI Assistant Plugins
Install the ksail plugin for GitHub Copilot CLI or Claude Code to auto-register ksail's MCP server and a ksail expertise skill.
Copilot CLI:
bashcopilot plugin marketplace add devantler-tech/ksail copilot plugin install ksail
Claude Code:
text/plugin marketplace add devantler-tech/ksail /plugin install ksail@ksail
Requires ksail on PATH.
Quick Start
bashksail cluster init --name my-app # scaffold project + native configs ksail cluster create # spin up the cluster (Docker only) ksail cluster connect # open K9s
Continue with the Getting Started guide for GitOps, workloads, and multi-tenancy.
What KSail Bundles
| Category | Built-in Capabilities |
|---|---|
| Cluster Provisioning | Kind, K3d, Talos, VCluster (Vind), KWOK (kwokctl), EKS |
| Container Orchestration | kubectl, Helm, Kustomize |
| GitOps Engines | Flux, ArgoCD |
| Secrets Management | SOPS with Age encryption |
| Manifest Validation | Kubeconform |
| Cluster Operations | K9s, backup & restore, multi-tenancy (ksail tenant) |
| AI Integration | Chat assistant (Copilot SDK), MCP server, VS Code extension |
| Infrastructure Providers | Docker (local), Kubernetes (nested), Hetzner Cloud, Sidero Omni, AWS |
See the feature overview and architecture guide for details.
Supported Platforms
| OS | Architecture |
|---|---|
| 🐧 Linux | amd64, arm64 |
| 🍎 macOS | arm64 |
| ⊞ Windows (native untested; WSL2 recommended) | amd64, arm64 |
| Provider | Vanilla | K3s | Talos | VCluster | KWOK | EKS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Docker | ✅ (Kind) | ✅ (K3d) | ✅ | ✅ (Vind) | ✅ (kwokctl) | — |
| Kubernetes | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | — |
| Hetzner | — | — | ✅ | — | — | — |
| Omni | — | — | ✅ | — | — | — |
| AWS | — | — | — | — | — | 🚧 |
Community & Support
- 💬 GitHub Discussions — questions, ideas, and community
- 🐛 Issue Tracker — bugs and feature requests
- 📖 Documentation — guides, CLI reference, architecture
- 🎓 Resources — presentations, blog posts, tutorials
- ⭐ Star the repo — help others discover KSail
Contributing
Contributions are welcome! See CONTRIBUTING.md for the development process, coding standards, and PR guidelines. Start with issues labeled good first issue.
Related Projects
| Project | Description | Type |
|---|---|---|
| devantler-tech/platform | The maintainer's personal kubernetes platform | Platform |
Using KSail in your project? Open a PR to add it here.
License
KSail is licensed under the PolyForm Shield License 1.0.0. You may use, modify, and distribute KSail for any purpose — except providing a product that competes with KSail. When redistributing, you must include the license terms and the required copyright notice.
What this means in practice:
- ✅ Use KSail as a CLI tool in any project (open-source or proprietary)
- ✅ Embed or link KSail as a library in your own software
- ✅ Fork and modify KSail for internal or non-competing use
- ✅ Use any license for your own project — no copyleft requirement
- ❌ Build and distribute a product that competes with KSail
For the full license text including notice and non-compete details, see LICENSE. For common questions, see the Licensing FAQ.
Star History
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