Azure Kubernetes Service Cost Optimization Guide 2024

Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) provides a managed Kubernetes platform, but optimizing costs requires careful planning and monitoring. This guide explores strategies and best practices for managing AKS costs effectively.

Cost Components

Cost Analysis Tools

Node Pool Optimization

Right-sizing Nodes

// Example node pool configuration with optimized sizes
const nodePool = {
  name: 'nodepool1',
  vmSize: 'Standard_D4s_v3',
  enableAutoScaling: true,
  minCount: 1,
  maxCount: 5,
  nodeLabels: {
    'node.kubernetes.io/purpose': 'application'
  },
  nodeTaints: [
    'workload=production:NoSchedule'
  ]
};

Spot Instances Strategy

Resource Management

Pod Resource Optimization

# Example pod resource configuration
apiVersion: v1
kind: Pod
metadata:
  name: optimized-pod
spec:
  containers:
  - name: app
    image: myapp:latest
    resources:
      requests:
        memory: "256Mi"
        cpu: "250m"
      limits:
        memory: "512Mi"
        cpu: "500m"
    readinessProbe:
      httpGet:
        path: /health
        port: 8080
      initialDelaySeconds: 5
      periodSeconds: 10

Cluster Autoscaler Configuration

# cluster-autoscaler-settings.yaml
apiVersion: autoscaling.k8s.io/v1
kind: VerticalPodAutoscaler
metadata:
  name: my-app-vpa
spec:
  targetRef:
    apiVersion: "apps/v1"
    kind: Deployment
    name: my-app
  updatePolicy:
    updateMode: "Auto"
  resourcePolicy:
    containerPolicies:
    - containerName: '*'
      minAllowed:
        cpu: 50m
        memory: 50Mi
      maxAllowed:
        cpu: 1
        memory: 1Gi

Storage Optimization

Storage Class Selection

Volume Management

# Example PVC with storage optimization
apiVersion: v1
kind: PersistentVolumeClaim
metadata:
  name: optimized-storage
spec:
  accessModes:
    - ReadWriteOnce
  storageClassName: managed-premium-retain
  resources:
    requests:
      storage: 10Gi

Networking Costs

Load Balancer Optimization

Network Policy Implementation

# Example network policy for optimized traffic
apiVersion: networking.k8s.io/v1
kind: NetworkPolicy
metadata:
  name: optimized-network-policy
spec:
  podSelector:
    matchLabels:
      app: web
  policyTypes:
  - Ingress
  - Egress
  ingress:
  - from:
    - podSelector:
        matchLabels:
          app: api
    ports:
    - protocol: TCP
      port: 80
  egress:
  - to:
    - podSelector:
        matchLabels:
          app: db
    ports:
    - protocol: TCP
      port: 5432

Monitoring and Optimization

Cost Monitoring Dashboard

const monitoringConfig = {
  metrics: {
    namespace: 'AKS',
    dimensions: ['ClusterName', 'NodePool'],
    aggregation: 'Total',
    timeGrain: 'PT1H'
  },
  alerts: [
    {
      name: 'HighCostAlert',
      description: 'Alert when daily cost exceeds threshold',
      threshold: 1000,
      evaluationFrequency: 'PT1H',
      windowSize: 'PT24H'
    }
  ]
};

Resource Utilization Metrics

Cost Optimization Best Practices

1. Resource Governance

   • Implement resource quotas
   • Use namespace budgets
   • Set up cost allocation
   • Monitor usage patterns

2. Workload Optimization

   # Example resource quota
   apiVersion: v1
   kind: ResourceQuota
   metadata:
     name: team-quota
   spec:
     hard:
       requests.cpu: "4"
       requests.memory: 8Gi
       limits.cpu: "8"
       limits.memory: 16Gi
   

Troubleshooting Cost Issues

Common Cost Problems

References

1. Azure Kubernetes Service Pricing
2. AKS Cost Optimization Guide
3. Kubernetes Best Practices
4. Azure Cost Management
5. Container Insights
6. AKS Networking

Related Posts

• Azure Container Apps - Alternative container platform
• Azure OpenAI Service - AI workloads on AKS
• Azure DevOps Pipeline - CI/CD for AKS
• Azure Functions v4 - Serverless alternatives