karpenter

Infra

Updated on August 1

Karpenter Overview

Secure your stack with a hardened Karpenter image freshly-built by Minimus. Minimus images always include the most up-to-date package version for all packages and dependencies contained in the image.

Karpenter is a node provisioning project that helps manage Kubernetes infrastructure efficiently. It reduces compute costs by automatically adding and removing nodes in real time based on workload demand.

Try It Out

Karpenter runs inside an existing Kubernetes cluster most commonly AWS EKS and automatically provisions nodes for your workloads.
Below is a minimal example of deploying Karpenter on AWS.

Before you begin, Make sure you have:

An active EKS cluster (for example karpenter-demo) in ACTIVE state.
AWS CloudShell or a local terminal with kubectl, aws cli, and helm v3.8+.
Cluster endpoint access set to Public (EKS → Networking → Endpoint access).
Fargate profile targeting the karpenter namespace and using private subnets with egress through a NAT Gateway.

Step 1 - Connect to your EKS Cluster

Open AWS CloudShell and run:

aws eks update-kubeconfig --name karpenter-demo --region us-east-1
kubectl create namespace karpenter --dry-run=client -o yaml | kubectl apply -f -

Step 2 - Deploy Karpenter using Helm

Install Helm (if not already installed):

curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/helm/helm/main/scripts/get-helm-3 | bash

Then deploy Karpenter with the Minimus image:

export CLUSTER_NAME=karpenter-demo
export AWS_REGION=us-east-1
export ACCOUNT_ID=$(aws sts get-caller-identity --query Account --output text)

helm upgrade --install karpenter oci://public.ecr.aws/karpenter/karpenter \
  --namespace karpenter --create-namespace \
  --version 1.8.0 \
  --set settings.clusterName=${CLUSTER_NAME} \
  --set settings.featureGates.staticCapacity=false \
  --set settings.clusterEndpoint="$(aws eks describe-cluster \
        --name ${CLUSTER_NAME} --region ${AWS_REGION} \
        --query 'cluster.endpoint' --output text)" \
  --set serviceAccount.annotations."eks\.amazonaws\.com/role-arn"="arn:aws:iam::${ACCOUNT_ID}:role/KarpenterControllerRole-${CLUSTER_NAME}" \
  --set controller.image.repository=reg.mini.dev/karpenter \
  --set controller.image.tag=latest \
  --set controller.image.digest=''

Step 4 - Verify Deployment

Check that the Karpenter controller is running:

kubectl -n karpenter get pods -o wide

You should see one pod in Running state

kubectl -n karpenter get deploy karpenter -o jsonpath='{.spec.template.spec.containers[*].image}'; echo

reg.mini.dev/karpenter:latest

Technical Considerations

The Karpenter image provided by Minimus is a slim, security-hardened alternative to the public image. The images are largely interchangeable, with a few differences as noted below.

Karpenter built by Minimus:

Runs as non-root by default for a security-first approach that protects against privilege escalation attacks.
Drill down on the version specification tab to see the default user, listening ports, entrypoint, volumes, environment variables, etc.

The Payoff

A hardened, minimal image that will remain more secure for the long run and accrue vulnerabilities at a slower rate.

See the risk reduction dashboard for a detailed CVE comparison over the past 30 days.
Review the compliance report to see the default hardening and security configurations for the image.

Terms & Info

Trademark

This catalog is published by Minimus. All product names, logos, and marks, other than those belonging to Minimus, shown are owned by their respective rights holders and appear here only to identify the open source software each image contains. Minimus claims no ownership of those marks and implies no affiliation with, endorsement by, certification by, or sponsorship by any rights holder.

Disclaimer

Images are provided "as-is" without warranty of any kind. "Hardened" refers to the security configuration applied at the time of build and does not constitute a guarantee of ongoing security or absence of vulnerabilities. The free tier is provided without support, SLA, or guaranteed patching timelines. Security updates may be applied to paid subscriptions before or instead of free tier images. By pulling or using any image you agree to our Terms of Use.