00

What you will build

The Hardware You Already Own is written as a path you can finish in one sitting if the prerequisites are honest. No dashboard tourism — files, commands, and a check at the end.

cloud-architecture-whiteboard
Working set for The Hardware You Already Own.
cloud-architecture-whiteboard
01

Prerequisites

  • A machine you can break without a ticket.
  • CLI tools installed and on PATH.
  • Credentials scoped to the lab, not production.
  • Twenty uninterrupted minutes.
02

Steps

  1. STEP01

    Scaffold the working directory

    Keep manifests and notes beside each other so the next reader inherits context.

    Scaffold the working directoryyaml
    mkdir -p ~/benchlog-lab && cd ~/benchlog-lab
  2. STEP02

    Apply the minimal config

    Start with the smallest file that proves the control plane answers.

    Apply the minimal configyaml
    kubectl apply -f 00-namespace.yaml
  3. STEP03

    Verify before you decorate

    If the pod is not Ready, stop. Charts and ingress come after truth.

    Verify before you decorateyaml
    kubectl get pods -w
Happy path — request to workloadDiagram

Happy path — request to workload

00-namespace.yamlyaml
apiVersion: v1
kind: Namespace
metadata:
  name: benchlog-lab
  labels:
    purpose: guide-specimen
CheckCommandExpect
API upkubectl get --raw=/readyzok
Namespacekubectl get ns benchlog-labActive
Workloadkubectl get pods -n benchlog-lab1/1 Running

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ht22ReBjZw · optional

Done means you can explain every hop without opening a dashboard. If you cannot, rewind to the step that skipped the why.