How did you deploy and configure the Kubernetes cluster?

Deploying and configuring a Kubernetes cluster typically involves several steps:

1. Infrastructure preparation: selecting and configuring servers or virtual machines on which the cluster will run.
2. Installing Kubernetes: using tools like kubeadm, kops, or managed services (e.g., GKE, EKS).
3. Cluster initialization: starting the control plane and adding worker nodes.
4. Network configuration: installing a network plugin (e.g., Calico, Flannel) to enable communication between pods.
5. Storage configuration: attaching persistent volumes for data storage.
6. Access and security setup: configuring RBAC, TLS certificates, and authentication.
7. Application deployment: creating manifests and launching services within the cluster.

Example command for initializing a cluster with kubeadm:

sudo kubeadm init --pod-network-cidr=10.244.0.0/16

After this, a network plugin such as Flannel is installed:

kubectl apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/coreos/flannel/master/Documentation/kube-flannel.yml

And worker nodes are added using the command provided by kubeadm after initialization.