Deploy PHP and Java Applications on Kubernetes: A Complete Step‑by‑Step Guide

Traditional Deployment vs K8S Deployment Differences

Traditional web deployment often follows a monolithic architecture, while Kubernetes enables elastic scaling, resource efficiency, and faster release cycles.

Preparing the Environment

Master node: 192.168.73.138 Node01: 192.168.73.139 Node02: 192.168.73.140 Harbor registry: 192.168.73.136

1. PHP Project Deployment Process

1.1 Build the Docker Image

Clone the repository, edit the WordPress configuration, and create a Dockerfile that packages the application.

# git clone https://github.com/zhangdongdong7/php-demo.git
# cd php-demo
# ls
deployment.yaml  ingress.yaml  mysql.yaml  namespace.yaml  README.md  service.yaml  wordpress
# cd wordpress
# vim wp-config.php   # modify DB_NAME, DB_USER, DB_PASSWORD, DB_HOST, etc.

Create a Dockerfile and build the image, then push it to the Harbor registry.

# vim Dockerfile
FROM registry.cn-hangzhou.aliyuncs.com/sunsharing/nginx-php:latest
MAINTAINER www.ctnrs.com
ADD . /usr/local/nginx/html
# login and push
docker login 192.168.73.136
docker build -t 192.168.73.136/test/php-demo:latest .
docker push 192.168.73.136/test/php-demo:latest

1.2 Create Controller to Manage Pods

Create a namespace, a secret for Harbor authentication, and a Deployment manifest.

# vim namespace.yaml
apiVersion: v1
kind: Namespace
metadata:
  name: test
kubectl apply -f namespace.yaml

# create secret
kubectl create secret docker-registry registry-pull-secret \
  --docker-username=admin \
  --docker-password=Harbor12345 \
  [email protected] \
  --docker-server=192.168.73.136 -n test

# deployment.yaml (excerpt)
apiVersion: apps/v1beta1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: php-demo
  namespace: test
spec:
  replicas: 2
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      project: www
      app: php-demo
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        project: www
        app: php-demo
    spec:
      imagePullSecrets:
      - name: registry-pull-secret
      containers:
      - name: nginx
        image: 192.168.73.136/test/php-demo:v3
        ports:
        - containerPort: 80
        resources:
          requests:
            cpu: "0.5"
            memory: 256Mi
          limits:
            cpu: "1"
            memory: 1Gi
        livenessProbe:
          httpGet:
            path: /status.php
            port: 80

1.3 Pod Data Persistence

The example uses a static website, so no persistent volume is required; the code is baked into the image.

1.4 Expose the Application

Create a Service and an Ingress to make the application reachable.

# service.yaml (excerpt)
apiVersion: v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: php-demo
  namespace: test
spec:
  selector:
    project: www
    app: php-demo
  ports:
  - name: web
    port: 80
    targetPort: 80
kubectl apply -f service.yaml

# ingress.yaml (excerpt)
apiVersion: extensions/v1beta1
kind: Ingress
metadata:
  name: php-demo
  namespace: test
spec:
  rules:
  - host: php.ctnrs.com
    http:
      paths:
      - path: /
        backend:
          serviceName: php-demo
          servicePort: 80
kubectl apply -f ingress.yaml

1.5 Bind Host Entries for Verification

Add the following line to your hosts file (Windows: C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts, macOS: /private/etc/hosts): 192.168.73.139 php.ctnrs.com After updating DNS, open http://php.ctnrs.com in a browser to complete the WordPress setup.

2. Java Project Deployment Process

2.1 Build the Docker Image

Clone the Java demo, install JDK and Maven, build the WAR, and create a Dockerfile.

# git clone https://github.com/zhangdongdong7/java-demo.git
# cd java-demo
# unzip tomcat-java-demo-master.zip
# cd tomcat-java-demo-master
# yum install java-1.8.0-openjdk maven -y
# mvn clean package -Dmaven.test.skip=true
# cat Dockerfile
FROM lizhenliang/tomcat
LABEL maintainer www.ctnrs.com
RUN rm -rf /usr/local/tomcat/webapps/
ADD target/*.war /usr/local/tomcat/webapps/ROOT.war
# login and push
docker login 192.168.73.136
docker build -t 192.168.73.136/test/java-demo:latest .
docker push 192.168.73.136/test/java-demo:latest

2.2 Create Controller to Manage Pods

Create the same namespace and secret as for PHP, then define a Deployment for the Tomcat container.

# namespace.yaml (same as before)
kubectl apply -f namespace.yaml

# secret (same as before)
kubectl create secret docker-registry registry-pull-secret \
  --docker-username=admin \
  --docker-password=Harbor12345 \
  [email protected] \
  --docker-server=192.168.73.136 -n test

# deployment.yaml (excerpt)
apiVersion: apps/v1beta1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: tomcat-java-demo
  namespace: test
spec:
  replicas: 2
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      project: www
      app: java-demo
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        project: www
        app: java-demo
    spec:
      imagePullSecrets:
      - name: registry-pull-secret
      containers:
      - name: tomcat
        image: 192.168.73.136/test/java-demo:latest
        ports:
        - containerPort: 8080
        resources:
          requests:
            cpu: "0.25"
            memory: 1Gi
          limits:
            cpu: "1"
            memory: 2Gi
        livenessProbe:
          httpGet:
            path: /
            port: 8080
          initialDelaySeconds: 60
          timeoutSeconds: 20
        readinessProbe:
          httpGet:
            path: /
            port: 8080
          initialDelaySeconds: 60
kubectl apply -f deployment.yaml

2.3 Expose the Application

Create a Service and an Ingress similar to the PHP example.

# service.yaml (excerpt)
apiVersion: v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: tomcat-java-demo
  namespace: test
spec:
  selector:
    project: www
    app: java-demo
  ports:
  - name: web
    port: 80
    targetPort: 8080
kubectl apply -f service.yaml

# ingress.yaml (excerpt)
apiVersion: extensions/v1beta1
kind: Ingress
metadata:
  name: tomcat-java-demo
  namespace: test
spec:
  rules:
  - host: java.ctnrs.com
    http:
      paths:
      - path: /
        backend:
          serviceName: tomcat-java-demo
          servicePort: 80
kubectl apply -f ingress.yaml

2.4 Bind Host Entries for Verification

Add the following line to your hosts file: 192.168.73.139 java.ctnrs.com Open http://java.ctnrs.com in a browser to verify the Java application is reachable.