Updating the cluster from hetzner-apalla-1-36-v6 to hetzner-apalla-1-36-v9
A Cluster Stack release bundles the Kubernetes patch version, the in-cluster components, and the node image under one version number, tested together before any node boots. Updating within a Kubernetes minor moves your cluster from one release to the next on that same minor, here from hetzner-apalla-1-36-v6 to hetzner-apalla-1-36-v9. The Kubernetes minor itself does not change.
Before you update
- See what your current release ships and where it stands on security. The Cluster Stack Release for
hetzner-apalla-1-36-v6lists every component in it, with its CVEs and how each one is assessed, so you can tell what the newer release changes before you move. - Check that your cluster is healthy. See Maintain a cluster .
Editing the cluster object
In this case, you only need to update one version. Change your cluster's spec.topology.classRef.name to hetzner-apalla-1-36-v9, as shown below.
Note
The manifest below uses cluster.x-k8s.io/v1beta2, the current API version for cluster manifests. v1beta1 keeps working for now, but Syself recommends migrating: see Migrate a manifest to v1beta2 .
apiVersion: cluster.x-k8s.io/v1beta2
kind: Cluster
metadata:
name: mycluster
spec:
topology:
classRef:
name: hetzner-apalla-1-36-v9
controlPlane:
replicas: 3
workers:
machineDeployments:
- class: workeramd64hcloud
name: md-0
replicas: 1
failureDomain: nbg1
variables:
overrides:
- name: workerMachineTypeHcloud
value: cpx42
variables:
- name: region
value: nbg1
- name: controlPlaneMachineTypeHcloud
value: cpx42
This can be achieved either by editing the resource inside the management cluster, or by updating it in your GitOps repository.
Note
Managing your cluster with GitOps: Syself Autopilot sets spec.topology.version from the release that spec.topology.classRef.name points at. A version stored in Git therefore goes stale at every update and shows up as drift. Either configure your GitOps tool to ignore the field or change it to v1.36.6 together with the class. See Fields Syself Autopilot sets for you .
Once you apply it, the cluster rolls to the ClusterStack release you specified: new nodes come up and the old ones are removed, one at a time. This is the same node replacement that happens during routine self-healing, so a workload set up to tolerate it — replicas spread across nodes with a PodDisruptionBudget — rides through the roll without downtime. If your workloads are not set up that way yet, see Keep workloads available ; it applies to any node replacement, not just updates.
If you need to update to another version, wait for the current update to finish. You can check if it's done by checking the nodes in your cluster:
$ kubectl get nodes
If you still have old nodes, this means the update is in progress. In this case, wait until the output shows only new nodes.
Moving to a new Kubernetes minor instead of a new release on your current one?
See Upgrading the cluster to a new Kubernetes version .
Not sure which release your cluster is on?
Run this against the Syself Autopilot management cluster, not the workload cluster:
$ kubectl get clusters -A
The CLUSTERCLASS column shows the Cluster Stack release and VERSION shows the Kubernetes version. Select that version in the picker at the top of this page.
Maintain a cluster
Keep a Syself Autopilot cluster healthy. Check the control plane, the nodes and pending certificate requests manually or with alerts in your observability stack.
Upgrade Kubernetes version
Move a running cluster to a new Kubernetes minor version — edit the cluster object, let the nodes roll, and confirm the upgrade finished.