Kube Pod Monitor

A VS Code extension for real-time Kubernetes pod log monitoring, alerting, and health checks — directly inside your editor. Monitor multiple clusters simultaneously, stream logs, and get instant notifications when something goes wrong.

Features

Multi-Cluster Monitoring

• Connect to multiple Kubernetes clusters (DEV / SQA / PROD) at the same time
• Automatic health checks every 30 seconds with status bar indicators
• One-click reconnect when cluster connectivity changes

Real-Time Log Streaming

• Stream pod logs in real time via the Kubernetes API (@kubernetes/client-node)
• Configurable log history depth (since) and buffer size
• Color-coded log levels (info / warn / error / debug)
• Per-pod log viewer in a dedicated Output Channel

Alert Engine

• Regex-based alert rules matched against every log line
• Three severity levels: warn, error, critical
• Per-rule cooldown to prevent alert flooding
• VS Code notifications for triggered alerts (configurable)
• Alert history with acknowledge support

Dashboard Webview

• Full-featured dashboard panel inside VS Code
• Live log tail with filtering by cluster, service, and log level
• Pod list with status, IP, node, and start time
• Alert feed with statistics

Sidebar Tree Views

• Pods view: hierarchical tree grouped by Cluster → Service → Pod
• Alerts view: recent alerts with severity icons
• Inline actions: view logs, refresh pods, open dashboard

Status Bar

• Cluster health indicators (green ✓ / red ✗) always visible
• Unacknowledged alert count with warning badge

Kubeconfig Management

• Import Kubeconfig command: paste kubeconfig YAML directly in VS Code
• Merge or overwrite existing kubeconfig files
• YAML validation before saving
• Custom kubeconfig path support (ideal for Windows or non-standard setups)

Requirements

• VS Code ≥ 1.85.0
• A valid kubeconfig file with configured contexts
• Network access to the Kubernetes API server(s)
• No kubectl CLI installation required

Getting Started

1. Install the Extension

From the Marketplace, the extension id is simonsheng.kube-pod-monitor (publisher + extension name).

# From the .vsix file
code --install-extension kube-pod-monitor-0.1.0.vsix

2. Set Up Kubeconfig

If you already have ~/.kube/config (Linux/macOS) or %USERPROFILE%\.kube\config (Windows), the extension will find it automatically.

If you don't have a kubeconfig file:

1. Open Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P / Cmd+Shift+P)
2. Run Kube Pod Monitor: Import Kubeconfig
3. Paste your kubeconfig YAML content into the editor
4. Save (Ctrl+S) to import

If your kubeconfig is in a custom location:

Open VS Code Settings and set:

{
  "kubePodMonitor.kubeconfigPath": "C:\\path\\to\\your\\kubeconfig"
}

Kubeconfig resolution order:

1. kubePodMonitor.kubeconfigPath setting
2. KUBECONFIG environment variable
3. ~/.kube/config (default path)

3. Configure Clusters

Open VS Code Settings (Ctrl+,) and add your clusters:

{
  "kubePodMonitor.clusters": [
    {
      "name": "sqa",
      "context": "cfbp-priq-sqa-oke-phx-001",
      "namespace": "priq",
      "label": "SQA"
    },
    {
      "name": "dev",
      "context": "cfbp-priq-dev-oke-phx-001",
      "namespace": "priq",
      "label": "DEV"
    }
  ]
}

4. Configure Services (Optional)

Define which pod groups to monitor via label selectors:

{
  "kubePodMonitor.services": [
    { "name": "pricing", "labelSelector": "app=pricing-service" },
    { "name": "validator", "labelSelector": "app=validator-service" },
    { "name": "orchestrator", "labelSelector": "app=priceriq-orch" }
  ]
}

If no services are defined, the extension will auto-discover pods in the namespace.

Commands

All commands are available via the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P):

Settings Reference

Default Alert Rules

[
  {
    "name": "exception",
    "pattern": "(?i)(exception|error|fatal|stacktrace)",
    "severity": "error",
    "cooldown": "60s"
  },
  {
    "name": "oom_kill",
    "pattern": "(?i)(out.?of.?memory|oom|heap.?space)",
    "severity": "critical",
    "cooldown": "300s"
  }
]

Custom Alert Rule Example

{
  "kubePodMonitor.alertRules": [
    {
      "name": "timeout",
      "pattern": "(?i)(timeout|timed.?out|read.?timed)",
      "severity": "warn",
      "cooldown": "120s"
    },
    {
      "name": "db_error",
      "pattern": "(?i)(sql.?exception|connection.?refused|deadlock)",
      "severity": "critical",
      "cooldown": "300s"
    }
  ]
}

Alternative Config: monitor.yaml

Instead of VS Code settings, you can use a monitor.yaml file. Place it in your workspace root or set kubePodMonitor.configPath:

contexts:
  sqa:
    context: cfbp-priq-sqa-oke-phx-001
    namespace: priq
    label: SQA

services:
  - name: pricing
    label_selector: app=pricing-service
  - name: validator
    label_selector: app=validator-service

log:
  tail_lines: 500
  buffer_size: 10000
  since: 1h

alerts:
  rules:
    - name: exception
      pattern: "(?i)(exception|error|fatal|stacktrace)"
      severity: error
      cooldown: 60s

Architecture

src/
├── extension.ts        # Entry point, command registration, lifecycle
├── config.ts           # Configuration loader (settings + YAML)
├── kubeClient.ts       # Kubernetes API client (multi-cluster)
├── logStore.ts         # In-memory log buffer with search
├── alertEngine.ts      # Regex-based alert engine with cooldown
├── podTreeProvider.ts  # Sidebar tree view (pods + alerts)
├── monitorWebview.ts   # Dashboard webview panel
└── statusBar.ts        # Status bar indicators

Development

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Compile
npm run compile

# Watch mode
npm run watch

# Package as .vsix
npm run package

License

MIT — see LICENSE.

Publish to VS Code Marketplace

1. Create a publisher at Visual Studio Marketplace — manage publishers. The publisher ID must match publisher in package.json (currently simonsheng), or change package.json to your publisher ID.
2. Personal Access Token (PAT) from Azure DevOps: User settings → Personal access tokens — scope Marketplace (Manage).
3. Login once: npx @vscode/vsce login simonsheng and paste the PAT.
4. Package locally (optional): npm run package → produces kube-pod-monitor-<version>.vsix.
5. Publish: npm run publish:marketplace (or npx @vscode/vsce publish).

Official guide: Publishing Extensions.