Kubernetes network policy best practices

Kubernetes NetworkPolicy provides firewall-like control over Pod traffic, addressing Kubernetes’ default behavior in which Pods can communicate freely unless restrictions are configured. The discussion uses a WordPress and database workload to explain how policies select Pods by labels, define ingress and egress rules, permit specific ports and IP ranges, enable required DNS access, and restrict unnecessary internal or external connections, while emphasizing that communication must be permitted in both directions where applicable. Policies are applied through YAML manifests and kubectl, and can be inspected with kubectl describe for validation and troubleshooting. Recommended practices include adopting default-deny rules, limiting communication to explicitly required Pods and namespaces, and periodically reviewing policies as workloads evolve. Because NetworkPolicy enforcement relies on a compatible Container Network Interface implementation, administrators may need to select and install a CNI plugin such as Cilium, Calico, or Antrea to meet their networking and security requirements.

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