🐋 How to Install Rancher Desktop on Windows 11 and Deploy a Sample Application 🚀

Are you looking to get started with Rancher Desktop on your Windows 11 machine? You’re in the right place! In this blog, I'll walk you through the simple steps to install Rancher Desktop and deploy your first sample application.

💡 What You Will Learn:

• How to install Rancher Desktop on Windows 11.

• How to deploy a sample Kubernetes application.

Step 1: Install Rancher Desktop on Windows 11 ⚙️

Rancher Desktop simplifies running Kubernetes on your local machine, and it's super easy to set up!

• Download Rancher Desktop: Head over to the official Rancher Desktop download page and download the Windows version.

• Install Rancher Desktop:

Run the installer.

• Follow the installation wizard. Make sure you enable the Kubernetes support during installation.

• First Run: Launch Rancher Desktop. Choose the Kubernetes version you want to run. The app will set everything up automatically!

🖼️ Screenshot Pause: Here’s how Rancher Desktop should look after the installation:

(Insert Screenshot of Rancher Desktop running with Kubernetes options)

Step 2: Configure Kubernetes and Verify the Installation 🛠️

After installation, let’s verify if everything is working.

• Open PowerShell or Windows Terminal and run:

kubectl version --client

• You should see the version of kubectl running. This confirms that Rancher Desktop has set up Kubernetes for you.

🖼️ Screenshot Pause: Verifying kubectl version.

Step 3: Deploying a Sample Application 🏗️

Now that you have Rancher Desktop and Kubernetes running, let’s deploy a simple app to make sure everything works.

• Create a sample YAML file: Open a text editor and paste the following Kubernetes deployment config:

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
name: hello-world
spec:
replicas: 2
selector:
matchLabels:
app: hello-world
template:
metadata:
labels:
app: hello-world
spec:
containers:
- name: hello-world
image: "karthequian/helloworld:latest"
ports:
- containerPort: 80

• Apply the YAML file: Save the file as hello-world.yaml and run the following command in PowerShell:

kubectl apply -f hello-world.yaml

• Check the status: Run this command to check if your deployment is up and running:

kubectl get pods

🖼️ Screenshot Pause: Checking the status of pods after deployment.

Step 4: Expose the Application 🌐

Now that the app is running, let’s expose it to access it from your browser:

• Run the following command:

kubectl expose deployment hello-world --type=LoadBalancer --port=8080

• Get the URL: Use this command to get the external URL:

kubectl get svc

• Access the App: Open the displayed URL in your browser, and you should see a simple “Hello World” app!

🎉 Congrats! You've Deployed Your First Application on Rancher Desktop!

You’ve successfully set up Rancher Desktop, deployed a Kubernetes app, and exposed it to the world. Feel free to play around with more apps and configurations!

🔗 Connect with me:

• 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rifaterdemsahin/

• 🐦 Twitter: https://x.com/rifaterdemsahin

• 🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@RifatErdemSahin

• 💻 GitHub: https://github.com/rifaterdemsahin

Stay tuned for more Kubernetes and Rancher Desktop tips! 👩‍💻👨‍💻

Imported from rifaterdemsahin.com · 2025