PVCs

Persistent Volume Claims (PVCs) are requests for storage by users. They allow pods to request specific storage resources without needing to know the underlying storage infrastructure details.

Key Concepts

PVC

A request for storage that can be bound to a Persistent Volume (PV).

Storage Class

Defines the type of storage (SSD, HDD, network) and provisioner to use.

Access Modes

Defines how the volume can be accessed (single node, multiple nodes, read-only).

Capacity

The amount of storage requested and allocated.

Required Permissions

Action	Permission
View PVCs	`iam:project:infrastructure:kubernetes:read`
Create PVC	`iam:project:infrastructure:kubernetes:write`
Edit PVC	`iam:project:infrastructure:kubernetes:write`
Delete PVC	`iam:project:infrastructure:kubernetes:delete`

PVC Status Values

Status	Description
Bound	PVC is successfully bound to a Persistent Volume
Pending	Waiting for a suitable PV to be provisioned or available
Lost	The PVC lost its binding to the underlying PV

A PVC in “Pending” status typically means the storage provisioner is creating storage, or no matching PV exists. Check events for details.

Access Modes

Mode	Abbreviation	Description
ReadWriteOnce	RWO	Volume can be mounted read-write by a single node
ReadOnlyMany	ROX	Volume can be mounted read-only by many nodes
ReadWriteMany	RWX	Volume can be mounted read-write by many nodes
ReadWriteOncePod	RWOP	Volume can be mounted read-write by a single pod

Not all storage backends support all access modes. Check your StorageClass documentation for supported modes.

How to View PVCs

Select Cluster

Choose a cluster from the cluster dropdown.

Select Namespace

Choose a namespace or select “all” to view PVCs across all namespaces.

Filter and Search

Use the search box to find PVCs by name, storage class, or volume name. Filter by status (Bound, Pending, Lost).

How to View PVC Details

Find the PVC

Locate the PVC in the list.

Click PVC Name

Click on the PVC name to open the detail drawer.

Review Details

View PVC information including:

Overview: Name, namespace, status, storage class, age
Storage: Requested size, actual capacity, volume name
Access: Access modes, volume mode (Filesystem/Block)
Selector: Label selector for PV matching (if specified)
Conditions: PVC controller conditions
Events: Recent provisioning and binding events

How to Create a PVC

Click Create PVC

Click the Create PVC button in the page header.

Write YAML

Enter the PVC manifest in YAML format. Key fields:

spec.accessModes - How the volume can be accessed
spec.resources.requests.storage - Amount of storage requested
spec.storageClassName - Storage class to use for provisioning

Select Namespace

Choose the target namespace for the PVC.

Create

Click Create to apply the manifest.

If you don’t specify a storageClassName, the default StorageClass will be used (if one exists).

How to Edit a PVC

Open Actions Menu

Click the actions menu (three dots) on the PVC row.

Click Edit YAML

Select Edit YAML to open the YAML editor.

Modify Spec

Edit the PVC specification. Note that most fields are immutable after creation.

Save

Click Update to apply changes.

Most PVC fields are immutable after creation. You can only expand storage (if supported by the StorageClass) and modify labels/annotations.

How to Delete a PVC

Open Actions Menu

Click the actions menu on the PVC row.

Click Delete

Select Delete from the menu.

Confirm

Confirm the deletion. Data on the volume may be lost depending on the reclaim policy.

Deleting a PVC that is in use by a pod will fail until all pods using it are terminated. The underlying data may be deleted depending on the PV’s reclaim policy (Delete, Retain, Recycle).

Volume Modes

PVCs support two volume modes:

Mode	Description
Filesystem	Volume is mounted as a directory (default)
Block	Volume is presented as a raw block device

apiVersion: v1
kind: PersistentVolumeClaim
metadata:
  name: block-pvc
spec:
  accessModes:
    - ReadWriteOnce
  volumeMode: Block
  resources:
    requests:
      storage: 10Gi

Example PVC

Basic PVC

apiVersion: v1
kind: PersistentVolumeClaim
metadata:
  name: my-pvc
spec:
  accessModes:
    - ReadWriteOnce
  resources:
    requests:
      storage: 10Gi
  storageClassName: standard

PVC with Selector

apiVersion: v1
kind: PersistentVolumeClaim
metadata:
  name: pvc-with-selector
spec:
  accessModes:
    - ReadWriteOnce
  resources:
    requests:
      storage: 5Gi
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      environment: production
      tier: database

Using PVCs in Pods

apiVersion: v1
kind: Pod
metadata:
  name: app-pod
spec:
  containers:
    - name: app
      image: myapp:latest
      volumeMounts:
        - name: data
          mountPath: /data
  volumes:
    - name: data
      persistentVolumeClaim:
        claimName: my-pvc

Storage Expansion

If the StorageClass allows volume expansion (allowVolumeExpansion: true), you can increase PVC size:

spec:
  resources:
    requests:
      storage: 20Gi  # Increased from 10Gi

Volume expansion is supported by most cloud providers. Shrinking volumes is generally not supported.

Troubleshooting

PVC stuck in Pending status

Check if a matching StorageClass exists
Verify the StorageClass provisioner is running
Check PVC events for provisioning errors
Ensure sufficient cluster resources for storage
Verify access mode is supported by the storage backend

PVC shows Lost status

The underlying PV has been deleted or become unavailable
Check PV status and events
The storage backend may have failed
Manual intervention may be required to recover data

Cannot delete PVC

PVC may still be in use by pods
Check for pods mounting the PVC: kubectl get pods --all-namespaces -o json | grep <pvc-name>
Delete or update pods to remove the volume reference
Check for finalizers blocking deletion

Volume expansion not working

Verify StorageClass has allowVolumeExpansion: true
Check if the storage backend supports expansion
Pod restart may be required for filesystem resize
Check PVC conditions for resize status

Pod fails to mount PVC

Verify PVC is in Bound status
Check if access mode is compatible with pod’s node
For RWO volumes, ensure no other node has it mounted
Check kubelet logs on the node
Verify the underlying storage is accessible

Wrong storage class used

If storageClassName is empty, the default class is used
Explicitly set storageClassName in the PVC spec
Check cluster’s default StorageClass: kubectl get sc -o wide

FAQ

What is the difference between PVC and PV?

PV (Persistent Volume) is the actual storage resource in the cluster. PVC (Persistent Volume Claim) is a request for storage by a user. PVCs bind to PVs, abstracting storage details from users.

What happens to data when I delete a PVC?

It depends on the PV’s reclaim policy:

Delete: PV and data are deleted (default for dynamic provisioning)
Retain: PV is kept for manual data recovery
Recycle: Data is scrubbed (deprecated)

Can I use the same PVC in multiple pods?

Yes, if the access mode allows it. ReadWriteMany (RWX) allows multiple pods on different nodes. ReadWriteOnce (RWO) allows multiple pods only on the same node.

How do I migrate data between PVCs?

Create a new PVC, run a data copy job between volumes, then update your workload to use the new PVC. Tools like kubectl cp or custom jobs with both volumes mounted can help.

What is dynamic provisioning?

When a PVC is created with a StorageClass, the provisioner automatically creates a matching PV. No manual PV creation is needed. Most cloud providers support dynamic provisioning.

Can I change the storage class of an existing PVC?

No. StorageClass is immutable after PVC creation. Create a new PVC with the desired class and migrate your data.

What does 'WaitForFirstConsumer' mean?

A StorageClass with volumeBindingMode: WaitForFirstConsumer delays PV provisioning until a pod using the PVC is scheduled. This ensures the PV is created in the correct availability zone.

How do I back up PVC data?

Use volume snapshots (if supported), application-level backups, or tools like Velero. The best approach depends on your storage backend and consistency requirements.

Getting Started

Infrastructure

Platform Services

CI/CD & Deployments

Pipeline & Helm

Performance Testing

Security

Mesh Networking

Access Management

Audit & Compliance

Settings

Key Concepts

PVC

Storage Class

Access Modes

Capacity

Required Permissions

PVC Status Values

Access Modes

How to View PVCs

How to View PVC Details

How to Create a PVC

How to Edit a PVC

How to Delete a PVC

Volume Modes

Example PVC

Basic PVC

PVC with Selector

Using PVCs in Pods

Storage Expansion

Troubleshooting

FAQ

​Key Concepts

PVC

Storage Class

Access Modes

Capacity

​Required Permissions

​PVC Status Values

​Access Modes

​How to View PVCs

​How to View PVC Details

​How to Create a PVC

​How to Edit a PVC

​How to Delete a PVC

​Volume Modes

​Example PVC

​Basic PVC

​PVC with Selector

​Using PVCs in Pods

​Storage Expansion

​Troubleshooting

​FAQ

Key Concepts

Required Permissions

PVC Status Values

Access Modes

How to View PVCs

How to View PVC Details

How to Create a PVC

How to Edit a PVC

How to Delete a PVC

Volume Modes

Example PVC

Basic PVC

PVC with Selector

Using PVCs in Pods

Storage Expansion

Troubleshooting

FAQ