Kubernetes Architecture: Control Plane and Worker Nodes

You hear "control plane" and "worker nodes" in every Kubernetes conversation. But what actually runs where? Which process is responsible for scheduling, and which one starts your containers? When someone says "the API server is the front door," what does that mean concretely?

This article walks through each component in the control plane and on worker nodes, shows how they communicate, and explains how kubeadm wires it all together using static Pods. The conceptual understanding is what the KCNA tests (44% of the exam sits in the Kubernetes Fundamentals domain). The source code excerpts go deeper, showing how these components are actually built. If you are new to Kubernetes, focus on the what and why; come back to the code once the concepts click.