vCluster · virtual Kubernetes clusters on NKE

A cluster for every team. Without a cluster bill for every team.

A vCluster is a virtual Kubernetes cluster that runs on top of Nine Kubernetes Engine (NKE). It has a virtualised control plane, its own dedicated worker nodes and full cluster-admin. No base cluster fee, API ready in under two minutes. Made for non-production workloads: development, testing and CI.

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from CHF 36.70 per month No base cluster fee API ready in under two minutes Full cluster-admin Self-service via Cockpit or nctl
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Use Cases vCluster or NKE Pricing FAQ
Use cases

Sound familiar?

“Every team wants its own cluster, but the budget won’t stretch.”

How vCluster helps

Stronger isolation than sharing namespaces, with full cluster-admin in each vCluster. Each team gets its own project, as there can be one vCluster per project. No base cluster fee, you pay for the worker nodes and a fixed charge for the virtual control plane. Create and delete vClusters yourself in Cockpit or with nctl.

“We want end-to-end tests in our CI/CD pipeline.”

How vCluster helps

The API of a new vCluster is ready in under two minutes, and vClusters cost little. Well suited for end-to-end deployment tests in your pipeline.

“Staging should be cleanly separated from production.”

How vCluster helps

Separate vClusters for development and staging instead of several namespaces on the same cluster. Keep production on a standard NKE cluster.

“We want to test new Kubernetes versions early.”

How vCluster helps

New Kubernetes versions often arrive on vCluster before we roll them out to NKE, so you can test your workloads against them before your production clusters are upgraded.

“An operator upgrade mustn’t break anything.”

How vCluster helps

With full cluster-admin you can install CRDs and operators yourself. Try an upgrade on a temporary vCluster first.

“Our multi-tenant cluster is hitting its limits.”

How vCluster helps

Move dev and test tenants to their own vClusters, each with dedicated worker nodes and its own project, as there can be one vCluster per project. For large clusters with many objects or heavy API traffic, a standard NKE cluster is the better fit. See the feature comparison.

vCluster or NKE

What’s the same, what’s different

A vCluster uses the same compute, storage and networking as a standard NKE cluster, with dedicated worker nodes. It runs a virtualised single-instance control plane instead of dedicated high-availability control plane nodes.

Managed Kubernetes (NKE)vCluster
Service type LoadBalancer, persistent storage (RWO/RWX)YesYes
Ingress, autoscaling, Static EgressYesYes
Service ConnectionsYesNo
Argo CD integrationYesYes
NKE machine types, dedicated worker nodesYesYes
Control planeDedicated, scalable high-availability control planeVirtualised single-instance control plane with fixed resources
Managed cluster add-onsYesNo
Automatic backupsYesNo
SLAAvailable as an optionNo
Base cluster feeYesNo
Creation timeA few minutesAPI in under two minutes
cluster-adminRestrictedFull

Source: feature comparison on docs.nine.ch. Compared with self-hosted Kubernetes: Managed Kubernetes option comparison.

Pricing

What does a vCluster cost?

vCluster with one nine-standard-1 worker node, starting at CHF 36.70
Worker node nine-standard-1 CHF 31.70
Worker node nine-standard-2 CHF 60.20
Worker node nine-standard-4 CHF 117.20

All prices per month. No base cluster fee: you pay for the worker nodes, from one nine-standard-1 node, and a fixed charge for the virtual control plane (estimated CHF 5.– per month). The trade-offs compared with a standard NKE cluster: no SLA, no automatic backups and no managed add-ons. Full price overview in the Price Calculator.

Trust

Customer stories

Case studies: comparis.ch AG View All →
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Is a vCluster suitable for production?
A vCluster is made for non-production workloads such as development, testing and CI. It comes without SLA, automatic backups and managed cluster add-ons, and its control plane runs as a single instance with fixed resources. For production, a standard NKE cluster is the better fit.
How do I create a vCluster?
In Cockpit under Managed Kubernetes with “Add Cluster” and the vcluster option, or with nctl create vcluster. You can set location, Kubernetes version, machine type and the number of nodes. To set up kubectl access, see Cluster Login.
How many vClusters can I create per project?
One vCluster per project. If several teams or tenants each need their own vCluster, create a separate project for each of them.
Do I need my own Ingress controller?
No. A vCluster reuses the Ingress controller of the host cluster, including automatic Let’s Encrypt certificates. If you prefer, you can deploy your own Ingress controller with a distinct IngressClass.
Can I deploy with Argo CD?
Yes. Because a vCluster isn’t a fully managed cluster, you grant the Argo CD ServiceAccount its permissions yourself, for example with a ClusterRoleBinding. Details in the documentation.
Does kubectl top or a Horizontal Pod Autoscaler work?
Not out of the box: metrics-server isn’t installed by default in a vCluster. With full cluster-admin, you can install and configure it yourself.
What does a vCluster cost?
There’s no base cluster fee. You pay for the worker nodes, from one nine-standard-1 node, and a fixed charge for the virtual control plane (estimated CHF 5.– per month).

Technical details in our documentation.

From the docs

Go deeper on docs.nine.ch

All Managed Kubernetes docs
vCluster →What a vCluster is, use cases and how to create one. Feature comparison →NKE and vCluster side by side: SLA, backups, add-ons, cluster-admin. Cluster Login →Set up kubectl access to your vCluster. Ingress →vCluster reuses the Ingress controller of the host cluster. Argo CD →Deploy to a vCluster with Argo CD and grant it permissions. Autoscaling →Node limits and HPA. metrics-server is not installed by default. NKE overview →Locations, machine types and prices.
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Not quite right?

This might fit better

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Need a whole cluster? Managed Kubernetes →A standard NKE cluster for production: dedicated high-availability control plane, SLA option, automatic backups and managed add-ons. Don’t want teams to see Kubernetes at all? Deploio →Deploy apps with a git push, no cluster management.

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