Understanding How to Use Hybrid Cloud Kubernetes: Challenges, Best Practices and More

Hybrid cloud Kubernetes gives enterprises the flexibility to run workloads across on-premises infrastructure and public cloud platforms without sacrificing consistency, scalability or control. It offers the best of both worlds: the security and performance of private infrastructure combined with the agility and scale of the public cloud. However, managing Kubernetes in hybrid environments also comes with real complexity.

In this article, we’ll explore hybrid cloud Kubernetes, how it works and why so many IT operations teams are embracing it. Discover its benefits, challenges and best practices. We’ll also dive into real-world use cases and answer common questions. Find out whether hybrid cloud Kubernetes is the strategy you need to move faster with greater confidence.

What is hybrid cloud Kubernetes?

Hybrid cloud Kubernetes uses Kubernetes to manage containerized workloads across a combination of on-premises and public cloud environments. With this model, organizations run Kubernetes clusters in both environments, which enables them to balance cost, performance, security and regulatory compliance.

This differs from multi-cloud, where workloads are distributed across multiple public cloud providers. Hybrid cloud architecture always includes an on-premises or private infrastructure component. Kubernetes serves as the orchestration layer that ensures consistent deployment, networking and scaling across all environments.

As a result, teams can modernize infrastructure at their own pace, integrate legacy systems with cloud-native applications and maintain greater control over sensitive data. In enterprise settings, this is particularly valuable as it delivers low-latency processing and edge computing capabilities. Hybrid cloud Kubernetes provides high availability across diverse geographies and regulatory zones.

What is a hybrid cloud environment?

A hybrid cloud environment combines private infrastructure (such as on-premises data centers or private clouds) with public cloud services like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure or Google Cloud Platform (GCP). That way, businesses can keep sensitive workloads on-premises while taking advantage of cloud elasticity for other use cases.

In a hybrid setup, workloads may shift between environments based on resource availability, cost considerations, data locality requirements or compliance needs. 

How does hybrid cloud Kubernetes work?

Kubernetes works well with the hybrid cloud because it abstracts the underlying infrastructure. Kubernetes enables a common approach to managing workloads whether you’re deploying on bare metal, a virtual machine or a managed cloud service.

Here’s how it works in a hybrid environment:

• Separate Kubernetes clusters are deployed on-premises and in the cloud.
• A centralized control plane (or a federated management platform like SUSE Rancher) oversees multiple clusters.
• Applications are deployed using YAML configuration files, Helm charts or GitOps pipelines.
• Policies, access controls and observability tools span both environments.

Hybrid cloud Kubernetes environments often rely on a Kubernetes management solution to provide visibility, security and lifecycle automation across the distributed infrastructure. Without centralized control, managing configurations, updates and workloads across clusters can quickly become unmanageable.

What are the benefits of Kubernetes in hybrid cloud environments?

When deployed in hybrid cloud environments, Kubernetes provides the following benefits:

• Operational consistency: Kubernetes standardizes how applications are deployed and managed (no matter where they run). This reduces environment-specific drift and simplifies CI/CD processes.
• Scalability on demand: Workloads can run on-premises during normal operations and burst into the cloud when extra capacity is needed (without requiring major architectural changes).
• Cost optimization: Organizations can use existing on-premises resources for baseline workloads and reserve cloud usage for high-traffic periods, which reduces unnecessary cloud spend.
• Data sovereignty and compliance: Sensitive data can be kept on-premises to comply with regulations while still leveraging the cloud for less critical operations.
• High availability and resilience: By spreading workloads across different environments, organizations improve fault tolerance and business continuity in case of outages.
• Freedom from vendor lock-in: Kubernetes supports any infrastructure, giving you the freedom to run workloads where it makes the most sense without being tied to a single cloud provider.
• Simplified application modernization: Teams can containerize legacy apps incrementally, test new services in the cloud and migrate at their own pace.

Kubernetes also enables centralized management and observability across hybrid environments. IT teams can monitor workloads, enforce policies and manage configurations from a single control plane.

Security is another area where Kubernetes excels in hybrid deployments. It includes built-in role-based access control (RBAC), network policies and support for runtime security tools. Organizations can enforce consistent security practices across on-prem and cloud infrastructure. This helps minimize risk and ensures compliance across all environments.

Hybrid cloud Kubernetes supports workload portability. Developers can build and test applications in one environment and confidently deploy them in another without rework. This agility supports faster innovation and quicker time to market.

Finally, hybrid cloud Kubernetes works well for organizations following a multi-cloud strategy. Its open standards and infrastructure-agnostic approach make it easy to run and scale applications across clouds while avoiding proprietary tooling and fragmentation.

Challenges to running Kubernetes in hybrid cloud environments

What obstacles can you expect to face when running Kubernetes in hybrid cloud environments? The following are challenges worth preparing for:

• Complex networking and connectivity: Managing secure, low-latency communication between clusters across cloud and on-prem environments can be difficult. Networking configurations must be consistent and support cross-environment communication.
• Cluster sprawl and management overhead: As more clusters are deployed in different locations, managing updates, security patches and performance tuning becomes more difficult without a centralized solution.
• Observability and troubleshooting: Without unified tools, tracking metrics, logs and traces across environments can be fragmented. Hybrid cloud environments make Kubernetes monitoring more complex due to differences in infrastructure and configurations.
• Security and compliance: Hybrid environments must adhere to multiple security models and data privacy standards. Consider how you’ll handle unified access controls, policy enforcement and audit readiness.
• Application portability: While Kubernetes supports portability, differences in storage, networking or Identity Access Management (IAM) configurations between environments can limit true workload mobility.

Best practices for hybrid cloud Kubernetes 

So, how do you overcome these common challenges? Lean on best practices to make using Kubernetes in a hybrid cloud environment a success:

• Use centralized Kubernetes management: Adopt a solution like managed Kubernetes or SUSE Rancher to unify management, policy enforcement and visibility across clusters.
• Standardize configurations and deployment tools: Use Helm, Kustomize with GitOps workflows to ensure consistent configurations across all environments.
• Invest in unified observability: Implement centralized logging, monitoring and tracing across your hybrid environment. This makes Kubernetes troubleshooting faster and easier, especially when issues span infrastructure boundaries.
• Secure your environment end to end: Apply consistent RBAC, network policies, pod security standards, and secrets management. Integrate security into CI/CD pipelines and automate policy enforcement wherever possible.
• Automate cluster lifecycle management: Use infrastructure-as-code (IaC) and Kubernetes-native tools to manage provisioning, updates and scaling. Automation reduces manual overhead and improves reliability.
• Test across environments: Validate workloads in both on-prem and cloud environments before deploying to production. Include hybrid scenarios in performance and resilience testing.
• Create clear workload placement policies: Define rules for which workloads run where (based on cost, compliance, latency or other business needs). Doing so avoids resource misallocation and simplifies operations.

What are the use cases for hybrid cloud Kubernetes?

Hybrid cloud Kubernetes is ideal for organizations that need flexibility, control and performance across environments.

Burst capacity during peak demand

One of the most common use cases is burst capacity. Retailers or streaming services can run steady-state operations on-premises while bursting into the cloud during seasonal spikes or major product launches. 

Data residency and compliance

For industries with strict regulatory requirements, hybrid cloud enables data residency and compliance. Sensitive workloads and customer data can remain on-premises to meet local laws, while less sensitive operations like analytics or AI/ML run in the cloud. This dual setup maintains control while leveraging cloud innovation.

Edge computing and IoT

Hybrid cloud Kubernetes also supports edge computing use cases. Manufacturers or logistics companies can deploy lightweight clusters in distributed environments like warehouses, factories or retail locations. These edge nodes are centrally managed from the cloud. This setup allows for real-time processing at the edge with centralized visibility and control.

Application modernization

Large enterprises often use hybrid cloud Kubernetes for application modernization. They can refactor legacy monoliths into microservices gradually by keeping the existing workloads on-premises while testing and deploying new services in the cloud. This phased approach reduces risk and disruption while enabling faster innovation.

Disaster recovery and high availability

Disaster recovery is another critical use case. In a hybrid cloud setup, organizations can shift workloads between environments as needed. If an on-premises data center fails, Kubernetes can reroute workloads to the cloud, maintaining service continuity and minimizing downtime.

Global expansion and latency optimization

For businesses expanding into new markets, hybrid cloud Kubernetes supports global scale and latency optimization. Workloads can be deployed in cloud regions closer to end users for better performance, while core systems remain centralized on-premises. This balance helps deliver consistent user experiences across geographies.

DevOps automation across environments

Hybrid Kubernetes environments streamline DevOps practices. Teams can build, test and deploy applications using consistent CI/CD pipelines. This uniformity simplifies version control, accelerates release cycles and minimizes operational silos.

Multi-cloud interoperability

Organizations using multiple public clouds can benefit from Kubernetes’ multi-cloud interoperability. Hybrid Kubernetes enables a unified control plane across AWS, Azure and Google Cloud. This helps teams avoid vendor lock-in and improve resilience. It also enables strategic workload placement based on cost, compliance or performance factors.

Research and development agility

In research and development, hybrid Kubernetes offers the agility to spin up cloud-based test environments while maintaining core systems on-premises. This setup accelerates experimentation and iteration without compromising infrastructure control or data security.

Hybrid cloud Kubernetes: Final thoughts

Hybrid cloud Kubernetes offers a path forward for organizations balancing innovation, security and operational control. It enables a flexible infrastructure model where you can modernize applications, scale on demand and comply with regulatory requirements (without being locked into a single platform or vendor).

Running Kubernetes across hybrid environments isn’t without its challenges. From managing multiple clusters to securing distributed workloads, IT operations teams need the right tools, policies and processes in place.

SUSE delivers the capabilities you need to succeed in hybrid cloud Kubernetes environments. With solutions like SUSE Rancher Prime, you can simplify operations and maintain the freedom to run workloads anywhere.

Explore what SUSE can do for your hybrid cloud strategy. Get started with SUSE Rancher Prime.

Hybrid cloud Kubernetes FAQs

How do Kubernetes and hybrid cloud environments work together?

Kubernetes abstracts infrastructure, allowing workloads to run consistently across both on-premises and cloud environments. In hybrid cloud, Kubernetes orchestrates applications deployed in multiple locations while a centralized control plane and management tool ensures consistency, security and observability.

Why do businesses use hybrid cloud Kubernetes?

Businesses use hybrid cloud Kubernetes to balance cost, performance and compliance. Common use cases include bursting workloads into the cloud, separating sensitive data from public infrastructure, managing edge deployments and modernizing applications in phases.

What are the most important methods for managing hybrid cloud Kubernetes?

Key methods include:

• using centralized cluster management tools
• implementing GitOps and CI/CD pipelines
• standardizing configurations
• enforcing security policies
• integrating observability solutions that span on-prem and cloud environments