Docs Self-Managed Manage Kubernetes Cluster Maintenance Cluster Maintenance Page options Copy as Markdown Copied! View as plain text Ask AI about this topic Add MCP server to VS Code After your Redpanda cluster is running in Kubernetes, you can manage broker lifecycle operations such as grouping brokers into node pools, safely removing brokers, recovering from failures, and performing rolling restarts for maintenance. Node Pools Use the NodePool custom resource to manage groups of Redpanda brokers independently for flexible scaling, migration, and heterogeneous hardware configurations. Enable the PVCUnbinder The PVCUnbinder is an emergency backstop for Redpanda clusters that use PersistentVolumes (PVs) for the Redpanda data directory. When a node running a Redpanda Pod suddenly goes offline, the PVCUnbinder detects the lost node, retains the associated PV, and removes the corresponding PersistentVolumeClaim (PVC). This workflow allows the Redpanda Pod to be rescheduled on a new node without losing critical data. Decommission Brokers in Kubernetes Remove a Redpanda broker from the cluster without risking data loss or causing instability. Recovery Mode in Kubernetes Recovery mode starts Redpanda with limited functionality and disables partitions so you can repair a failed cluster. Perform a Rolling Restart of Redpanda in Kubernetes Learn how to perform a rolling restart of your Redpanda cluster when it's running in Kubernetes. Back to top × Simple online edits For simple changes, such as fixing a typo, you can edit the content directly on GitHub. Edit on GitHub Or, open an issue to let us know about something that you want us to change. Open an issue Contribution guide For extensive content updates, or if you prefer to work locally, read our contribution guide . Was this helpful? thumb_up thumb_down group Ask in the community mail Share your feedback group_add Make a contribution 🎉 Thanks for your feedback! Scale Node Pools