--- updatedAt: 2026-04-01T17:15:50.000Z agentTools: siteIndex: https://techdocs.akamai.com/llms.txt projectIndex: https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/llms.txt --- # High availability (HA) control plane on LKE In Kubernetes, the control plane is the set of components that orchestrate the cluster and manage the worker nodes (Linodes) in that cluster and the pods (containers) within the worker nodes. The control plane components include the Kubernetes API server (`kube-apiserver`), etcd, the Kubernetes scheduler (`kube-scheduler`), the cloud controller manager (`cloud-controller-manager`), and the Kubernetes controller manager (`kube-controller-manager`). Within Akamai Cloud, this control plane is fully managed by LKE (the Linode Kubernetes Engine). By default, these components are not replicated. If any of them fail, it's possible that there may be issues with your cluster. Enabling **HA (High Availability) Control Plane** adds an additional layer of redundancy by replicating these control plane components. In doing so, this feature can ensure that the cluster experiences maximum uptime and is recommended for all production applications running on LKE. # Cost The HA control plane feature is an optional billable service that starts at $60/month per cluster, depending on region. For more information, see our [pricing page](https://www.linode.com/pricing/). > ❗️ > > While upgrading to an HA cluster is always possible, **downgrading your cluster is not currently supported**. Enabling HA is an **irreversible** change for your cluster. # Replication and uptime details When HA control plane is enabled on a cluster, the following control plane components are replicated: * **etcd** and **kube-apiserver** increases from *one* to *three* replicas. * All other components, including the **Cloud Controller Manager**, **kube-scheduler**, and **kube-controller-manager**, increase from *one* to *two* replicas, with leader election put in place. When multiple replicas are created, they are always placed on separate infrastructure to better support uptime and redundancy. This configuration maintains a guaranteed 99.9% uptime for the control plane and worker nodes (API service). # Enable during cluster creation To enable this feature when creating a cluster, check the **Enable HA Control Plane** box in the Cluster Summary section. Review the [Create a Cluster](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/create-a-cluster#optionally-enable-high-availability) guide for full instructions. # Enable on existing clusters If a cluster was created *without* this feature, you can enable it at any time. > 🚧 > > Enabling the high availability control plane feature may result in *brief and temporary* downtime while the cluster is upgraded and the following actions are performed: > > * All nodes will be deleted and new nodes are created to replace them. > * Any local storage (such as `hostPath` volumes) will be erased. > > The upgrade process may take several minutes to complete, as nodes are replaced on a rolling basis. High Availability can be added to pre-existing clusters at any given time through the cluster's **Summary Page**. 1. To reach the summary page for the cluster, navigate first to the [Kubernetes section of Cloud Manager](https://cloud.linode.com/kubernetes/clusters). 2. Select the Cluster by label that you would like to enable HA for. The summary page for the cluster appears. 3. To enable HA, select the **Upgrade to HA** button at the top of the page. ![A screenshot of the Upgrade To HA button with the cluster's summary page.](https://techdocs.akamai.com/linode/compute/img/lke-upgrade-to-ha-v3.jpg "Kubernetes HA upgrade.") 4. A new window appears, asking you to confirm all of the changes that come with High Availability. Read through the message and select the **Enable HA Control Plane** checkbox to confirm that you agree to the changes. Then click the **Upgrade to HA** button. # Sibling pages * [LKE Enterprise](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/lke-enterprise.md) * [Getting started with LKE](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/getting-started-with-lke-linode-kubernetes-engine.md) * [Create a cluster](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/create-a-cluster.md) * [Manage Kubernetes clusters on LKE](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/manage-kubernetes-clusters-on-lke.md) * [Manage nodes and node pools](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/manage-nodes-and-node-pools.md) * [Kubernetes Dashboard on LKE](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/an-overview-of-the-kubernetes-dashboard-on-lke.md) * [Manage a cluster with kubectl](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/manage-a-cluster-with-kubectl.md) * [Kubernetes versioning and life cycle policy](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/lke-versioning-and-life-cycle-policy.md) * [Labels and taints](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/labels-and-taints.md) * [Using GPUs on LKE](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/gpus-on-lke.md) * [Upgrade a cluster to a newer Kubernetes version](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/upgrade-a-cluster-to-a-newer-kubernetes-version.md) * [Control Plane ACLs](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/control-plane-acls.md) * [How to drain a node pool on an LKE cluster](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/drain-a-node-pool-on-lke-cluster.md) * [Rotate Kubernetes secrets](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/rotate-kubernetes-secrets.md) * [Reset kubeconfig](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/reset-kubeconfig.md) * [Deploy and manage an LKE cluster with the Linode API](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/deploy-and-manage-a-kubernetes-cluster-with-the-api.md) * [Load balancing on LKE](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/get-started-with-load-balancing-on-an-lke-cluster.md) * [Secure a cluster with user permissions and RBAC](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/secure-a-cluster-with-user-permissions-and-rbac.md) * [Network and firewall details](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/lke-network-firewall-details.md) * [Create a custom CoreDNS configuration](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/coredns-custom-config.md) * [App Platform (for LKE)](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/application-platform.md) * [Monitor LKE](https://techdocs.akamai.com/cloud-computing/docs/monitor-lke.md)