---
title: Extend kubectl with plugins
reviewers:
- juanvallejo
- soltysh
description: Extend kubectl by creating and installing kubectl plugins.
content_type: task
---

<!-- overview -->

This guide demonstrates how to install and write extensions for [kubectl](/docs/reference/kubectl/kubectl/).
By thinking of core `kubectl` commands as essential building blocks for interacting with a Kubernetes cluster,
a cluster administrator can think of plugins as a means of utilizing these building blocks to create more complex behavior.
Plugins extend `kubectl` with new sub-commands, allowing for new and custom features not included in the main distribution of `kubectl`.

## {{% heading "prerequisites" %}}

You need to have a working `kubectl` binary installed.

<!-- steps -->

## Installing kubectl plugins

A plugin is a standalone executable file, whose name begins with `kubectl-`. To install a plugin, move its executable file to anywhere on your `PATH`.

You can also discover and install kubectl plugins available in the open source
using [Krew](https://krew.dev/). Krew is a plugin manager maintained by
the Kubernetes SIG CLI community.

{{< caution >}}
Kubectl plugins available via the Krew [plugin index](https://krew.sigs.k8s.io/plugins/)
are not audited for security. You should install and run third-party plugins at your
own risk, since they are arbitrary programs running on your machine.
{{< /caution >}}

### Discovering plugins

`kubectl` provides a command `kubectl plugin list` that searches your `PATH` for valid plugin executables.
Executing this command causes a traversal of all files in your `PATH`. Any files that are executable, and
begin with `kubectl-` will show up *in the order in which they are present in your `PATH`* in this command's output.
A warning will be included for any files beginning with `kubectl-` that are *not* executable.
A warning will also be included for any valid plugin files that overlap each other's name.

You can use [Krew](https://krew.dev/) to discover and install `kubectl`
plugins from a community-curated
[plugin index](https://krew.sigs.k8s.io/plugins/).

#### Create plugins

`kubectl` allows plugins to add custom create commands of the shape `kubectl create something` by providing a `kubectl-create-something` binary in the `PATH`.

#### Limitations

It is currently not possible to create plugins that overwrite existing `kubectl` commands or extend commands other than `create`.
For example, creating a plugin `kubectl-version` will cause that plugin to never be executed, as the existing `kubectl version`
command will always take precedence over it.
Due to this limitation, it is also *not* possible to use plugins to add new subcommands to existing `kubectl` commands.
For example, adding a subcommand `kubectl attach vm` by naming your plugin `kubectl-attach-vm` will cause that plugin to be ignored.

`kubectl plugin list` shows warnings for any valid plugins that attempt to do this.

## Writing kubectl plugins

You can write a plugin in any programming language or script that allows you to write command-line commands.

There is no plugin installation or pre-loading required. Plugin executables receive
the inherited environment from the `kubectl` binary.
A plugin determines which command path it wishes to implement based on its name.
For example, a plugin named `kubectl-foo` provides a command `kubectl foo`. You must
install the plugin executable somewhere in your `PATH`.

### Example plugin

```bash
#!/bin/bash

# optional argument handling
if [[ "$1" == "version" ]]
then
    echo "1.0.0"
    exit 0
fi

# optional argument handling
if [[ "$1" == "config" ]]
then
    echo "$KUBECONFIG"
    exit 0
fi

echo "I am a plugin named kubectl-foo"
```

### Using a plugin

To use a plugin, make the plugin executable:

```shell
sudo chmod +x ./kubectl-foo
```

and place it anywhere in your `PATH`:

```shell
sudo mv ./kubectl-foo /usr/local/bin
```

You may now invoke your plugin as a `kubectl` command:

```shell
kubectl foo
```

```
I am a plugin named kubectl-foo
```

All args and flags are passed as-is to the executable:

```shell
kubectl foo version
```

```
1.0.0
```

All environment variables are also passed as-is to the executable:

```bash
export KUBECONFIG=~/.kube/config
kubectl foo config
```

```
/home/<user>/.kube/config
```

```shell
KUBECONFIG=/etc/kube/config kubectl foo config
```

```
/etc/kube/config
```

Additionally, the first argument that is passed to a plugin will always be the full path to the location where it was invoked (`$0` would equal `/usr/local/bin/kubectl-foo` in the example above).

### Naming a plugin

As seen in the example above, a plugin determines the command path that it will implement based on its filename. Every sub-command in the command path that a plugin targets, is separated by a dash (`-`).
For example, a plugin that wishes to be invoked whenever the command `kubectl foo bar baz` is invoked by the user, would have the filename of `kubectl-foo-bar-baz`.

#### Flags and argument handling

{{< note >}}
The plugin mechanism does _not_ create any custom, plugin-specific values or environment variables for a plugin process.

An older kubectl plugin mechanism provided environment variables such as `KUBECTL_PLUGINS_CURRENT_NAMESPACE`; that no longer happens.
{{< /note >}}

kubectl plugins must parse and validate all of the arguments passed to them.
See [using the command line runtime package](#using-the-command-line-runtime-package) for details of a Go library aimed at plugin authors.

Here are some additional cases where users invoke your plugin while providing additional flags and arguments. This builds upon the `kubectl-foo-bar-baz` plugin from the scenario above.

If you run `kubectl foo bar baz arg1 --flag=value arg2`, kubectl's plugin mechanism will first try to find the plugin with the longest possible name, which in this case
would be `kubectl-foo-bar-baz-arg1`. Upon not finding that plugin, kubectl then treats the last dash-separated value as an argument (`arg1` in this case), and attempts to find the next longest possible name, `kubectl-foo-bar-baz`.
Upon having found a plugin with this name, kubectl then invokes that plugin, passing all args and flags after the plugin's name as arguments to the plugin process.

Example:

```bash
# create a plugin
echo -e '#!/bin/bash\n\necho "My first command-line argument was $1"' > kubectl-foo-bar-baz
sudo chmod +x ./kubectl-foo-bar-baz

# "install" your plugin by moving it to a directory in your $PATH
sudo mv ./kubectl-foo-bar-baz /usr/local/bin

# check that kubectl recognizes your plugin
kubectl plugin list
```

```
The following kubectl-compatible plugins are available:

/usr/local/bin/kubectl-foo-bar-baz
```

```
# test that calling your plugin via a "kubectl" command works
# even when additional arguments and flags are passed to your
# plugin executable by the user.
kubectl foo bar baz arg1 --meaningless-flag=true
```

```
My first command-line argument was arg1
```

As you can see, your plugin was found based on the `kubectl` command specified by a user, and all extra arguments and flags were passed as-is to the plugin executable once it was found.

#### Names with dashes and underscores

Although the `kubectl` plugin mechanism uses the dash (`-`) in plugin filenames to separate the sequence of sub-commands processed by the plugin, it is still possible to create a plugin
command containing dashes in its commandline invocation by using underscores (`_`) in its filename.

Example:

```bash
# create a plugin containing an underscore in its filename
echo -e '#!/bin/bash\n\necho "I am a plugin with a dash in my name"' > ./kubectl-foo_bar
sudo chmod +x ./kubectl-foo_bar

# move the plugin into your $PATH
sudo mv ./kubectl-foo_bar /usr/local/bin

# You can now invoke your plugin via kubectl:
kubectl foo-bar
```

```
I am a plugin with a dash in my name
```

Note that the introduction of underscores to a plugin filename does not prevent you from having commands such as `kubectl foo_bar`.
The command from the above example, can be invoked using either a dash (`-`) or an underscore (`_`):

```bash
# You can invoke your custom command with a dash
kubectl foo-bar
```

```
I am a plugin with a dash in my name
```

```bash
# You can also invoke your custom command with an underscore
kubectl foo_bar
```

```
I am a plugin with a dash in my name
```

#### Name conflicts and overshadowing

It is possible to have multiple plugins with the same filename in different locations throughout your `PATH`.
For example, given a `PATH` with the following value: `PATH=/usr/local/bin/plugins:/usr/local/bin/moreplugins`, a copy of plugin `kubectl-foo` could exist in `/usr/local/bin/plugins` and `/usr/local/bin/moreplugins`,
such that the output of the `kubectl plugin list` command is:

```bash
PATH=/usr/local/bin/plugins:/usr/local/bin/moreplugins kubectl plugin list
```

```
The following kubectl-compatible plugins are available:

/usr/local/bin/plugins/kubectl-foo
/usr/local/bin/moreplugins/kubectl-foo
  - warning: /usr/local/bin/moreplugins/kubectl-foo is overshadowed by a similarly named plugin: /usr/local/bin/plugins/kubectl-foo

error: one plugin warning was found
```

In the above scenario, the warning under `/usr/local/bin/moreplugins/kubectl-foo` tells you that this plugin will never be executed. Instead, the executable that appears first in your `PATH`, `/usr/local/bin/plugins/kubectl-foo`, will always be found and executed first by the `kubectl` plugin mechanism.

A way to resolve this issue is to ensure that the location of the plugin that you wish to use with `kubectl` always comes first in your `PATH`. For example, if you want to always use `/usr/local/bin/moreplugins/kubectl-foo` anytime that the `kubectl` command `kubectl foo` was invoked, change the value of your `PATH` to be `/usr/local/bin/moreplugins:/usr/local/bin/plugins`.

#### Invocation of the longest executable filename

There is another kind of overshadowing that can occur with plugin filenames. Given two plugins present in a user's `PATH`: `kubectl-foo-bar` and `kubectl-foo-bar-baz`, the `kubectl` plugin mechanism will always choose the longest possible plugin name for a given user command. Some examples below, clarify this further:

```bash
# for a given kubectl command, the plugin with the longest possible filename will always be preferred
kubectl foo bar baz
```

```
Plugin kubectl-foo-bar-baz is executed
```

```bash
kubectl foo bar
```

```
Plugin kubectl-foo-bar is executed
```

```bash
kubectl foo bar baz buz
```

```
Plugin kubectl-foo-bar-baz is executed, with "buz" as its first argument
```

```bash
kubectl foo bar buz
```

```
Plugin kubectl-foo-bar is executed, with "buz" as its first argument
```

This design choice ensures that plugin sub-commands can be implemented across multiple files, if needed, and that these sub-commands can be nested under a "parent" plugin command:

```bash
ls ./plugin_command_tree
```

```
kubectl-parent
kubectl-parent-subcommand
kubectl-parent-subcommand-subsubcommand
```

### Checking for plugin warnings

You can use the aforementioned `kubectl plugin list` command to ensure that your plugin is visible by `kubectl`, and verify that there are no warnings preventing it from being called as a `kubectl` command.

```bash
kubectl plugin list
```

```
The following kubectl-compatible plugins are available:

test/fixtures/pkg/kubectl/plugins/kubectl-foo
/usr/local/bin/kubectl-foo
  - warning: /usr/local/bin/kubectl-foo is overshadowed by a similarly named plugin: test/fixtures/pkg/kubectl/plugins/kubectl-foo
plugins/kubectl-invalid
  - warning: plugins/kubectl-invalid identified as a kubectl plugin, but it is not executable

error: 2 plugin warnings were found
```

### Using the command line runtime package

If you're writing a plugin for kubectl and you're using Go, you can make use
of the
[cli-runtime](https://github.com/kubernetes/cli-runtime) utility libraries.

These libraries provide helpers for parsing or updating a user's
[kubeconfig](/docs/concepts/configuration/organize-cluster-access-kubeconfig/)
file, for making REST-style requests to the API server, or to bind flags
associated with configuration and printing.

See the [Sample CLI Plugin](https://github.com/kubernetes/sample-cli-plugin) for
an example usage of the tools provided in the CLI Runtime repo.

## Distributing kubectl plugins

If you have developed a plugin for others to use, you should consider how you
package it, distribute it and deliver updates to your users.

### Krew {#distributing-krew}

[Krew](https://krew.dev/) offers a cross-platform way to package and
distribute your plugins. This way, you use a single packaging format for all
target platforms (Linux, Windows, macOS etc) and deliver updates to your users.
Krew also maintains a [plugin
index](https://krew.sigs.k8s.io/plugins/) so that other people can
discover your plugin and install it.


### Native / platform specific package management {#distributing-native}

Alternatively, you can use traditional package managers such as, `apt` or `yum`
on Linux, Chocolatey on Windows, and Homebrew on macOS. Any package
manager will be suitable if it can place new executables placed somewhere
in the user's `PATH`.
As a plugin author, if you pick this option then you also have the burden
of updating your kubectl plugin's distribution package across multiple
platforms for each release.

### Source code {#distributing-source-code}

You can publish the source code; for example, as a Git repository. If you
choose this option, someone who wants to use that plugin must fetch the code,
set up a build environment (if it needs compiling), and deploy the plugin.
If you also make compiled packages available, or use Krew, that will make
installs easier.

## {{% heading "whatsnext" %}}

* Check the Sample CLI Plugin repository for a
  [detailed example](https://github.com/kubernetes/sample-cli-plugin) of a
  plugin written in Go.
  In case of any questions, feel free to reach out to the
  [SIG CLI team](https://github.com/kubernetes/community/tree/main/sig-cli).
* Read about [Krew](https://krew.dev/), a package manager for kubectl plugins.