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Charmed Kubernetes
What Charmed Kubernetes is
Charmed Kubernetes is a Kubernetes distribution for building clusters and delivering containers as a service across an enterprise. Its Juju-powered Charmed Operators automate cluster lifecycle management, reducing manual work from initial setup through ongoing operations. It can run on OpenStack, VMware, AWS, GCP, Azure, bare metal, virtual machines and containers, and supports multiple clusters, autoscaling and rolling updates. Storage, networking, load balancing, logging, monitoring and alerting tools can be integrated, while deployments can be customized with pluggable CNI, CSI, CRI and monitoring components.
The distribution is described as CNCF-certified, conformant and production-grade, with high availability configured by default. Core Kubernetes components receive automatic updates and security fixes. Supported workloads include Docker and containerd, PCI passthrough for GPU, FPGA and SR-IOV, and virtual machines on Kubernetes using Kata containers. Telco features include SR-IOV, DPDK, NUMA, CPU pinning and GPU support. Canonical publishes Ubuntu and leads aspects of its project, including Kubernetes. Charmed Kubernetes is self-hosted on Linux and has a free plan. For use with Charmed OpenStack, the product page describes a single subscription for full-stack support.
Who it suits
Charmed Kubernetes suits enterprise teams building and operating Kubernetes clusters across cloud, virtualized and bare-metal infrastructure. It also fits teams that need customizable components, automated lifecycle management, or the listed GPU, FPGA and telco workload support.
What it does well
- Automates cluster lifecycle management with Juju-powered operators.
- Supports OpenStack, VMware, major clouds, bare metal, VMs and containers.
- High availability is configured by default.
- Core components receive automatic updates and security fixes.
- Supports multiple clusters, autoscaling and rolling updates.
- Includes a free plan for self-hosted Linux deployment.
What to know first
- Deployment is self-hosted on Linux.
- Full-stack support is described for use with Charmed OpenStack.
Plans
| Plan | Billed and limits | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Charmed Kubernetes | Pricing not stated on the Charmed Kubernetes pages opened; Ubuntu Pro lists enterprise support add-ons separately. · Enterprise Kubernetes distribution · Support via Ubuntu Pro add-ons | On request |
As ubuntu.com lists them, read 4 Oct 2026. The maker's own page has the final word.
Getting started
- Visit the Charmed Kubernetes website.
- Choose Linux self-hosted deployment.
- Use the free plan to get started.
- Select infrastructure and customize the deployment components for your environment.
Verdict
Choose Charmed Kubernetes if you need an enterprise Kubernetes distribution with automated lifecycle operations across varied infrastructure and workload types. Teams seeking full-stack support should consider the stated Charmed OpenStack subscription arrangement.
Questions
Is Charmed Kubernetes free?
A free plan is available. Ubuntu can be downloaded and used free of charge; commercial users can engage Canonical for support and related services.
Where can Charmed Kubernetes run?
It supports Linux self-hosted deployment and infrastructure including OpenStack, VMware, AWS, GCP, Azure, bare metal, virtual machines and containers.
Does it support multi-cluster management and autoscaling?
Yes. Multi-cluster management, autoscaling and rolling updates are listed capabilities.
Which container runtimes and workloads does it support?
It supports Docker and containerd, PCI passthrough for GPU, FPGA and SR-IOV workloads, and VMs on Kubernetes with Kata containers.
Who publishes Charmed Kubernetes?
Canonical publishes Ubuntu and its team leads aspects of the Ubuntu project, including Kubernetes.
Is support available?
The product page describes a single subscription for full-stack support when Charmed Kubernetes is used on Charmed OpenStack.
Facts from Charmed Kubernetes's own pages
- Availability
- The distribution is described as CNCF-certified and production-grade, with high availability set up by default. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Customisation
- The documentation describes customizable deployments with pluggable CNI, CSI, CRI and monitoring components. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Founded
- 2004 · ubuntu.com, 28 Sept 2026
- Free use
- Ubuntu's about page says Ubuntu can be downloaded and used free of charge, while commercial users can engage Canonical for support and related services. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Headquarters
- London, United Kingdom · ubuntu.com, 28 Sept 2026
- Infrastructure
- It supports OpenStack, VMware, AWS, GCP, Azure, bare metal, virtual machines and containers. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- The product offers integrations with storage, networking, load balancing, logging, monitoring and alerting tools. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Operations
- Juju-powered Charmed Operators automate cluster lifecycle management and reduce manual work from Day 0 to Day 2. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Publisher
- Canonical is Ubuntu's publisher, and its team leads aspects of the Ubuntu project including Kubernetes. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- Charmed Kubernetes provides tools to build Kubernetes clusters and deliver containers as a service across an enterprise. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Security
- Ubuntu's Kubernetes page describes Charmed Kubernetes as secure by default and CNCF conformant. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Support
- The product page describes a single subscription for full-stack support when used on Charmed OpenStack. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Telco
- The Charmed Kubernetes page lists SR-IOV, DPDK, NUMA, CPU pinning and GPU support among its telco features, and cites ETSI, DISA STIG, NCSC and FIPS. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Updates
- The page says core Kubernetes components receive automatic updates and security fixes. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
- Workloads
- It supports Docker and containerd runtimes, PCI device passthrough for GPU, FPGA and SR-IOV workloads, and VMs on Kubernetes with Kata containers. · ubuntu.com, 4 Oct 2026
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