PVs

Persistent Volumes (PVs) are cluster-wide storage resources provisioned by administrators or dynamically by StorageClasses. They represent actual storage in the cluster that can be claimed by PVCs.

Key Concepts

PV

A cluster-scoped storage resource that exists independently of any pod lifecycle.

Reclaim Policy

Defines what happens to the PV when its PVC is deleted (Retain, Delete, Recycle).

Volume Source

The underlying storage backend (NFS, CSI, Local, Cloud disks, etc.).

Claim Reference

Reference to the PVC that has bound this volume.

PersistentVolumes are cluster-scoped resources. They are not bound to any namespace and can be claimed by PVCs from any namespace.

Required Permissions

Action	Permission
View PVs	`iam:project:infrastructure:kubernetes:read`
Create PV	`iam:project:infrastructure:kubernetes:write`
Edit PV	`iam:project:infrastructure:kubernetes:write`
Delete PV	`iam:project:infrastructure:kubernetes:delete`

PV Status Values

Status	Description
Available	PV is free and not yet bound to a PVC
Bound	PV is bound to a PVC
Released	PVC was deleted but the resource is not yet reclaimed
Failed	Automatic reclamation of the volume failed
Pending	PV is being provisioned

A “Released” PV cannot be rebound to a new PVC automatically. The data must be manually handled based on the reclaim policy before the PV can be reused.

Reclaim Policies

Policy	Description
Retain	PV is kept after PVC deletion for manual data recovery (default for manually created PVs)
Delete	PV and underlying storage are deleted when PVC is deleted (default for dynamic provisioning)
Recycle	Basic scrub (`rm -rf /volume/*`) before making available again (deprecated)

Use Retain for production data that needs to be recoverable. Use Delete for ephemeral or easily reproducible data.

How to View PVs

Select Cluster

Choose a cluster from the cluster dropdown.

View List

The list shows all PersistentVolumes in the cluster (cluster-scoped, no namespace filter).

Filter and Search

Use the search box to find PVs by name, status, storage class, or volume source type. Filter by status (Available, Bound, Released, Failed).

How to View PV Details

Find the PV

Locate the PV in the list.

Click PV Name

Click on the PV name to open the detail drawer.

Review Details

View PV information including:

Overview: Name, status, storage class, reclaim policy, age
Capacity: Storage size and volume mode
Access Modes: How the volume can be accessed
Volume Source: Backend storage details (NFS path, CSI driver, etc.)
Claim: Reference to bound PVC (if any)
Node Affinity: Node constraints for local volumes
Labels & Annotations: Metadata attached to the PV
Events: Recent Kubernetes events

How to Create a PV

Click Create PV

Click the Create PV button in the page header.

Write YAML

Enter the PV manifest in YAML format. Key fields:

spec.capacity.storage - Storage capacity
spec.accessModes - How the volume can be accessed
spec.persistentVolumeReclaimPolicy - What happens when released
spec.storageClassName - Storage class for dynamic binding
Volume source (e.g., spec.nfs, spec.csi, spec.local)

Create

Click Create to apply the manifest.

How to Edit a PV

Open Actions Menu

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

Click Edit YAML

Select Edit YAML to open the YAML editor.

Modify Spec

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

Save

Click Update to apply changes.

Most PV fields are immutable after creation, including capacity, access modes, and volume source. You can modify reclaim policy, labels, and annotations.

How to Delete a PV

Open Actions Menu

Click the actions menu on the PV row.

Click Delete

Select Delete from the menu.

Confirm

Confirm the deletion. This removes the PV from the cluster.

Deleting a PV that is bound to a PVC will fail. Delete or unbind the PVC first. Deleting a PV does NOT necessarily delete the underlying storage (depends on the storage backend).

Volume Source Types

PVs support various storage backends:

Type	Description
CSI	Container Storage Interface drivers (modern, recommended)
NFS	Network File System shares
Local	Local node storage with node affinity
HostPath	Directory on the node (testing only)
iSCSI	iSCSI block storage
FC	Fibre Channel storage
RBD	Ceph RADOS Block Device
CephFS	Ceph Filesystem
GlusterFS	GlusterFS network filesystem
AWSElasticBlockStore	AWS EBS volumes
GCEPersistentDisk	Google Cloud persistent disks
AzureDisk	Azure managed disks
AzureFile	Azure File shares

Example PVs

NFS Volume

apiVersion: v1
kind: PersistentVolume
metadata:
  name: nfs-pv
spec:
  capacity:
    storage: 100Gi
  accessModes:
    - ReadWriteMany
  persistentVolumeReclaimPolicy: Retain
  storageClassName: nfs
  nfs:
    server: nfs-server.example.com
    path: /exports/data

Local Volume

apiVersion: v1
kind: PersistentVolume
metadata:
  name: local-pv
spec:
  capacity:
    storage: 500Gi
  accessModes:
    - ReadWriteOnce
  persistentVolumeReclaimPolicy: Retain
  storageClassName: local-storage
  local:
    path: /mnt/disks/ssd1
  nodeAffinity:
    required:
      nodeSelectorTerms:
        - matchExpressions:
            - key: kubernetes.io/hostname
              operator: In
              values:
                - worker-node-1

CSI Volume

apiVersion: v1
kind: PersistentVolume
metadata:
  name: csi-pv
spec:
  capacity:
    storage: 50Gi
  accessModes:
    - ReadWriteOnce
  persistentVolumeReclaimPolicy: Delete
  storageClassName: csi-standard
  csi:
    driver: ebs.csi.aws.com
    volumeHandle: vol-0123456789abcdef0
    fsType: ext4

Volume Modes

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

Access Modes

Mode	Abbreviation	Description
ReadWriteOnce	RWO	Mounted read-write by a single node
ReadOnlyMany	ROX	Mounted read-only by multiple nodes
ReadWriteMany	RWX	Mounted read-write by multiple nodes
ReadWriteOncePod	RWOP	Mounted read-write by a single pod

Troubleshooting

PV stuck in Released status

The PVC was deleted but reclaim policy is Retain
Manually delete the spec.claimRef to make it Available again
Or delete and recreate the PV after backing up data
Consider changing reclaim policy for future PVs

PV shows Failed status

Automatic reclamation failed (usually with Recycle policy)
Check events for error details
Manually handle the volume and recreate if needed
Recycle policy is deprecated; use Delete or Retain instead

PVC cannot bind to PV

Check access modes match between PVC and PV
Verify capacity: PV capacity must be >= PVC request
Ensure storage class matches (or both are empty for no class)
Check if PV is already bound to another PVC
For local volumes, verify node affinity allows scheduling

Cannot delete PV

PV may still be bound to a PVC
Delete the PVC first, then delete the PV
Check for finalizers blocking deletion
Verify you have delete permissions

Local PV not accessible

Verify the path exists on the specified node
Check node affinity configuration
Ensure pod is scheduled to the correct node
Verify directory permissions on the node

NFS PV mount issues

Verify NFS server is accessible from cluster nodes
Check NFS export permissions
Ensure NFS client packages are installed on nodes
Verify firewall allows NFS traffic

FAQ

What is the difference between PV and PVC?

PV (Persistent Volume) is the actual storage resource provisioned by an admin or dynamically. PVC (Persistent Volume Claim) is a request for storage by a user. PVCs bind to PVs to use the storage.

When should I create PVs manually?

Create PVs manually when:

Using storage that doesn’t support dynamic provisioning
Pre-provisioning storage for specific workloads
Using local storage with node affinity
Migrating from existing storage systems

Use dynamic provisioning (StorageClass) for cloud environments and CSI drivers.

Can I resize a PV?

Not directly. PV capacity is immutable after creation. To resize:

Back up your data
Create a new larger PV
Migrate data to the new volume
Update workloads to use the new PVC

What happens when I delete a PVC with Retain policy?

The PV enters “Released” state and keeps its data. It cannot be automatically bound to a new PVC. You must manually clear the claimRef or delete/recreate the PV to reuse it.

Can multiple PVCs use the same PV?

No. A PV can only be bound to one PVC at a time. For shared storage, use a volume type that supports ReadWriteMany (like NFS) and create separate PVs or use a CSI driver with volume sharing capabilities.

Why use CSI over in-tree volume plugins?

CSI (Container Storage Interface) is the modern standard:

Maintained by storage vendors, not Kubernetes core
Features don’t require Kubernetes upgrades
Supports snapshots, cloning, and expansion
In-tree plugins (awsElasticBlockStore, gcePersistentDisk) are deprecated

How do local volumes differ from hostPath?

Local volumes are for production use with:

Node affinity (binds to specific node)
Proper lifecycle management
Support for dynamic provisioning

HostPath is for testing only and should not be used in production.

How do I migrate data between PVs?

Create a new PV with desired configuration
Create a new PVC bound to the new PV
Run a migration pod with both volumes mounted
Copy data from old to new volume
Update workloads to use the new PVC
Delete old PVC/PV after verification

Getting Started

Infrastructure

Platform Services

CI/CD & Deployments

Pipeline & Helm

Performance Testing

Security

Mesh Networking

Access Management

Audit & Compliance

Settings

Key Concepts

PV

Reclaim Policy

Volume Source

Claim Reference

Required Permissions

PV Status Values

Reclaim Policies

How to View PVs

How to View PV Details

How to Create a PV

How to Edit a PV

How to Delete a PV

Volume Source Types

Example PVs

NFS Volume

Local Volume

CSI Volume

Volume Modes

Access Modes

Troubleshooting

FAQ

​Key Concepts

PV

Reclaim Policy

Volume Source

Claim Reference

​Required Permissions

​PV Status Values

​Reclaim Policies

​How to View PVs

​How to View PV Details

​How to Create a PV

​How to Edit a PV

​How to Delete a PV

​Volume Source Types

​Example PVs

​NFS Volume

​Local Volume

​CSI Volume

​Volume Modes

​Access Modes

​Troubleshooting

​FAQ

Key Concepts

Required Permissions

PV Status Values

Reclaim Policies

How to View PVs

How to View PV Details

How to Create a PV

How to Edit a PV

How to Delete a PV

Volume Source Types

Example PVs

NFS Volume

Local Volume

CSI Volume

Volume Modes

Access Modes

Troubleshooting

FAQ