How To Install Minikube on Ubuntu (Linux): Complete Step-by-Step Guide

Minikube is a powerful tool that lets you run Kubernetes locally on your Ubuntu machine. Whether you’re a developer testing Kubernetes applications or learning container orchestration, Minikube provides a lightweight, single-node Kubernetes cluster that’s perfect for development and testing purposes.

In this comprehensive guide, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know about installing Minikube on Ubuntu Linux, including prerequisites, installation methods, and verification steps.

What is Minikube?

Minikube is an open-source tool that runs a single-node Kubernetes cluster inside a virtual machine (VM) or container on your local system. It’s designed to make it easy for developers to develop and test Kubernetes applications locally without requiring a full-scale cluster.

Key Features:

Supports the latest Kubernetes releases
Cross-platform compatibility (Linux, macOS, Windows)
Multiple container runtimes (Docker, containerd, CRI-O)
Advanced features like LoadBalancer, filesystem mounts, and FeatureGates
Add-ons for DNS, dashboard, monitoring, and more

Prerequisites

Before installing Minikube on Ubuntu, ensure your system meets these requirements:

System Requirements

CPU: 2 CPUs or more
Memory: 2GB of free memory (4GB recommended)
Disk Space: 20GB of free disk space
Ubuntu Version: Ubuntu 18.04 or later
Internet Connection: Required for downloading packages

Required Software

A container or virtual machine manager such as:
- Docker (recommended)
- KVM
- VirtualBox
- Podman

Step 1: Update System Packages

Start by updating your Ubuntu system to ensure all packages are up to date:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2: Install Docker (Recommended Driver)

Docker is the most popular and recommended driver for Minikube. If you don’t have Docker installed, follow these steps:

# Remove old versions sudo apt remove docker docker-engine docker.io containerd runc # Install dependencies sudo apt install -y apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl software-properties-common # Add Docker's official GPG key curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu/gpg | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/docker-archive-keyring.gpg # Set up the stable repository echo "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/docker-archive-keyring.gpg] https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu $(lsb_release -cs) stable" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list > /dev/null # Install Docker Engine sudo apt update sudo apt install -y docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io docker-buildx-plugin docker-compose-plugin # Add your user to the docker group sudo usermod -aG docker $USER && newgrp docker # Verify Docker installation docker --version

Step 3: Install kubectl (Kubernetes CLI)

kubectl is the command-line tool for interacting with Kubernetes clusters:

# Download the latest kubectl binary curl -LO "https://dl.k8s.io/release/$(curl -L -s https://dl.k8s.io/release/stable.txt)/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl" # Validate the binary (optional) curl -LO "https://dl.k8s.io/release/$(curl -L -s https://dl.k8s.io/release/stable.txt)/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl.sha256" echo "$(cat kubectl.sha256) kubectl" | sha256sum --check # Install kubectl sudo install -o root -g root -m 0755 kubectl /usr/local/bin/kubectl # Verify installation kubectl version --client

Step 4: Install Minikube

Now let’s install Minikube using the official binary:

Method 1: Direct Binary Installation (Recommended)

# Download the latest Minikube binary curl -LO https://storage.googleapis.com/minikube/releases/latest/minikube-linux-amd64 # Install Minikube sudo install minikube-linux-amd64 /usr/local/bin/minikube # Verify installation minikube version

Method 2: Using Debian Package

# Download the Debian package curl -LO https://storage.googleapis.com/minikube/releases/latest/minikube_latest_amd64.deb # Install the package sudo dpkg -i minikube_latest_amd64.deb # Verify installation minikube version

Step 5: Start Minikube Cluster

Start your first Minikube cluster with Docker as the driver:

# Start Minikube with Docker driver minikube start --driver=docker # For more memory allocation (recommended for production-like testing) minikube start --driver=docker --memory=4096 --cpus=2 ``` You should see output similar to: ``` 😄 minikube v1.32.0 on Ubuntu 22.04 ✨ Using the docker driver based on user configuration 👍 Starting control plane node minikube in cluster minikube 🚜 Pulling base image ... 🔥 Creating docker container (CPUs=2, Memory=2200MB) ... 🐳 Preparing Kubernetes v1.28.3 on Docker 24.0.7 ... 🔎 Verifying Kubernetes components... 🌟 Enabled addons: storage-provisioner, default-storageclass 🏄 Done! kubectl is now configured to use "minikube" cluster and "default" namespace by default

Step 6: Verify the Installation

Check the status of your Minikube cluster:

# Check cluster status minikube status # Get cluster information kubectl cluster-info # View all nodes kubectl get nodes # Check running pods in all namespaces kubectl get pods -A ``` Expected output for `minikube status`: ``` minikube type: Control Plane host: Running kubelet: Running apiserver: Running kubeconfig: Configured

Step 7: Access the Kubernetes Dashboard

Minikube includes a web-based Kubernetes Dashboard:

# Enable the dashboard addon minikube addons enable dashboard # Open the dashboard in your browser minikube dashboard

This will automatically open the Kubernetes Dashboard in your default web browser.

Useful Minikube Commands

Here are essential commands for managing your Minikube cluster:

bash

# Stop the cluster minikube stop # Delete the cluster minikube delete # Pause the cluster (saves resources) minikube pause # Unpause the cluster minikube unpause # SSH into the Minikube VM minikube ssh # Check Minikube IP address minikube ip # View Minikube logs minikube logs # List available addons minikube addons list # Enable an addon (example: metrics-server) minikube addons enable metrics-server # Access service in browser minikube service <service-name>

Configuring Minikube

Setting Default Driver

Set Docker as the default driver for future starts:

minikube config set driver docker

Adjusting Resources

Modify CPU and memory allocation:

# Delete existing cluster first minikube delete # Start with custom resources minikube start --cpus=4 --memory=8192 --disk-size=40g

Selecting Kubernetes Version

Start Minikube with a specific Kubernetes version:

minikube start --kubernetes-version=v1.27.0

Minikube vs. Kind vs. K3s

While Minikube is excellent for local development, here’s a quick comparison:

Feature	Minikube	Kind	K3s
Setup Speed	Moderate	Fast	Fast
Resource Usage	Higher	Lower	Lower
Multi-node	Limited	Full Support	Full Support
Dashboard	Built-in	Manual	Manual
Best For	Beginners	CI/CD	Edge/IoT

Best Practices

Resource Management: Allocate adequate resources based on your workload
Regular Updates: Keep Minikube and kubectl updated to the latest versions
Use Profiles: Create different profiles for different projects: minikube start -p project-name
Clean Up: Regularly delete unused clusters to free up resources
Enable Only Required Addons: Too many addons can slow down your cluster

Conclusion

Installing Minikube on Ubuntu is straightforward and provides an excellent platform for learning Kubernetes and developing cloud-native applications locally. With this guide, you now have a fully functional local Kubernetes cluster running on your Ubuntu machine.

Whether you’re preparing for Kubernetes certifications, testing microservices architectures, or learning container orchestration, Minikube gives you a production-like environment without the complexity of managing a full cluster.

Start experimenting with Kubernetes deployments, services, and configurations in your local Minikube cluster today!