Rethinking Cloud Resources As The Year Begins

Hey there,

New years are usually when teams take a step back and ask a simple question: "Is the way we are running things still the best way forward?"

Not everything needs to change, but this is often when it’s worth revisiting the mental models we rely on, especially the ones that quietly shape our day-to-day work

Like you already know, Kubernetes is great for running workloads. However, the moment you need to manage cloud resources outside your cluster, such as databases, buckets, and load balancers, things can get really messy, and fast.

You could even switch between CLIs, dashboards, and Terraform states, and the operational overhead would just keep growing with every new provider.

Well, that’s where Crossplane comes in.

Crossplane brings cloud resource provisioning into Kubernetes. Instead of managing external state files like you do with Terraform, Crossplane uses CRDs, controllers, and continuous reconciliation, just like Kubernetes itself.

This way, you define resources the same way you define deployments, then Crossplane keeps everything in sync automatically.

In today's issue, we explore:

• How Crossplane extends Kubernetes to manage cloud resources.

• Why continuous reconciliation matters more than plan and apply cycles.

• When this approach makes sense (and when it doesn't).

Let's dive in.

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Managing infrastructure the Kubernetes way

Most teams deploy applications with kubectl or GitOps, then switch to Terraform or CloudFormation for infrastructure. This creates friction, duplicate workflows, and more surface area to manage.

Crossplane removes that boundary by extending Kubernetes itself. It uses Custom Resource Definitions (CRDs) to represent cloud resources like databases, storage buckets, and load balancers, so you manage everything with the same tools and workflows you already use.

Here are a couple of things that make it different:

• Unified control plane: With Crossplane, apps and infrastructure are managed from the same place. No more bouncing between consoles, CLIs, or separate workflows.
  

• Continuous reconciliation: Unlike Terraform's plan and apply cycle, Crossplane runs constantly in the background. It watches your infrastructure and automatically corrects any drift from your desired state.
  

• Kubernetes-native model: Cloud resources become Kubernetes objects through provider CRDs. You apply a manifest, and the controllers handle provisioning and ongoing management.

This approach automates consistency and reduces the operational overhead of manual fixes. If someone changes a database setting manually, Crossplane doesn’t ask questions; it corrects it to match your declared state, keeping everything aligned.

Why host your management cluster separately

Running your Crossplane management cluster on a different cloud provider than your workloads gives you more control over how you scale, secure, and recover your infrastructure.

This setup provides three practical advantages:

• Cost efficiency: A management cluster does not require heavy compute or storage, and low-cost providers like Civo can easily support Crossplane and other control plane components.
  

• Simplified operations: The management environment can follow its own lifecycle, allowing you to upgrade, scale, or back it up without affecting production workloads.
  

• Resilience and recoverability: If your primary provider experiences an outage, the control plane remains available so you can still manage and recover infrastructure.

This small architectural choice delivers meaningful gains, especially when Crossplane manages infrastructure closely tied to Kubernetes workloads.

There are, however, tradeoffs to be aware of, such as the lack of a preview step, the need for a Kubernetes cluster, and varying provider maturity depending on the cloud and resource type.

We have a complete guide on deploying databases with Crossplane, and you can read and follow along here.

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Your Crossplane toolkit

Explore these resources to deepen your understanding of Kubernetes-native infrastructure management:

Crossplane vs Terraform: When to Choose Each - Practical comparison of both tools with guidance on when each approach makes sense.

Understanding Crossplane Concepts - Deep dive into providers, compositions, and composite resource definitions with examples.

From Terraform to Crossplane Migration Guide - Step-by-step approach for teams transitioning from Terraform to Crossplane.

Building Internal Platforms with Crossplane - How platform teams create self-service infrastructure using Crossplane abstractions.