> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.cnap.tech/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Add Workers

> Connect compute capacity to your managed cluster to run applications

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/cnap/gJ-ST_bGe6W7g4m1/images/cluster/add-worker.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=gJ-ST_bGe6W7g4m1&q=85&s=ca20f4193dc0da7f26517785c6326b45" alt="add workers" width="752" height="459" data-path="images/cluster/add-worker.png" />
</Frame>

After creating a managed cluster, you need to add <Tooltip headline="Worker Nodes" tip="Worker nodes are the machines that run your applications in a Kubernetes cluster. They provide compute capacity and storage, and need outbound networking access to communicate with the control plane. The control plane schedules workloads to run on these nodes.">worker nodes</Tooltip> where your applications will run. CNAP handles all the Kubernetes setup and <Tooltip headline="Lifecycle Management" tip="CNAP manages the ongoing operations of your workers including joining them to the cluster, configuring networking and security, and maintaining the connection. The connection between workers and the control plane is TLS-secured with automatic certificate rotation, ensuring secure communication without requiring firewall configuration.">lifecycle management</Tooltip> once you connect your machines.

<Note>
  This guide applies to **managed clusters** only. For imported clusters, worker management is handled by your cloud provider or yourself, depending on your cluster type.
</Note>

<Tip>
  **Don't want to manage servers?** CNAP can [provision and manage machines](/clusters/machines) for you. Add compute capacity from the dashboard without needing a separate cloud provider account.
</Tip>

<Tip>
  **Testing locally?** Use [Multipass](/clusters/local-testing) for free local testing before buying production servers. CNAP's managed <Tooltip headline="Control Plane" tip="The control plane is the management layer of a Kubernetes cluster. It manages the cluster's state, schedules workloads, and handles API requests. CNAP manages the control plane for you in managed clusters.">control plane</Tooltip> can communicate with local workers via tunneling without requiring public IP addresses.
</Tip>

## Prerequisites

* An active managed cluster (status shows "Active" in the dashboard)
* A server or machine to connect (see supported operating systems below)
* Server meets minimum requirements: 2 CPU, 4GB RAM (4 CPU, 8GB RAM recommended for production)

## How to Add Workers

<Steps>
  <Step title="Get Worker Setup Command">
    In your [clusters dashboard](https://cnap.tech/clusters), click on your cluster and find the **"Quick Actions"** section. Click **"Add a worker"** and copy the bootstrap command.

    The command looks like:

    ```bash Bootstrap command theme={null}
    curl -fsSL "https://cnap.tech/worker.sh?k0sVersion=..." | sudo bash -s -- -t "your-join-token"
    ```

    **Join token details:** The token expires 30 minutes after generation and can be used multiple times to join multiple machines.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Connect and Run Setup Command">
    SSH into your server:

    ```bash SSH to server theme={null}
    ssh root@your-server-ip
    ```

    Then execute the bootstrap command you copied from the dashboard. The script automatically installs Kubernetes components, joins the worker to your cluster, and configures networking and security.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Verify Connection">
    Your worker will appear in the dashboard within 1-2 minutes as "Active". You can now start deploying applications to your cluster!
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Automated Provisioning with Cloud-init

For fully automated worker provisioning, use **cloud-init** when creating servers on Hetzner, AWS, DigitalOcean, or any cloud provider. The server will automatically join your cluster on first boot - no SSH required.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Copy Cloud-init Config">
    In your cluster dashboard, click **"Add a worker"** and switch to the **"Cloud-init"** tab. Copy the configuration:

    ```yaml Cloud-init config theme={null}
    #cloud-config
    runcmd:
      - curl -fsSL "https://cnap.tech/worker.sh?k0sVersion=v1.33.1-k0s.0" | bash -s -- -t "your-join-token"
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Create Server with Cloud-init">
    When creating a new server in your cloud provider's dashboard:

    * **Hetzner**: Paste into "Cloud config" under "Additional features"
    * **AWS EC2**: Paste into "User data" under "Advanced details"
    * **DigitalOcean**: Paste into "User data" under "Advanced options"
    * **Vultr**: Paste into "Cloud-Init User-Data"
    * **GCP**: Paste into "Automation > Startup script"

    The server will automatically join your cluster within minutes of booting.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Info>
  Cloud-init's `runcmd` executes once on first boot only. If you need to re-run the bootstrap (e.g., after a reset), you'll need to use the manual command method or recreate the server.
</Info>

## Supported Operating Systems

CNAP workers support a wide range of Linux distributions and Windows Server:

* **Debian**: 11 (Bullseye), 12 (Bookworm)
* **Ubuntu**: 22.04 LTS or later
* **Red Hat Enterprise Linux**: 7.9, 8.10, 9.5
* **CentOS Stream**: 9, 10
* **Oracle Linux Server**: 8.9, 9.3
* **Amazon Linux**: 2023
* **Fedora**: 41 (Cloud Edition)
* **Fedora CoreOS**: Stable stream
* **Alpine Linux**: 3.19, 3.22
* **Flatcar Container Linux**
* **Windows Server**: 2019 (experimental support)

## What's Next?

Once workers are connected, you can:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Deploy Products Yourself" icon="rocket" href="/products">
    Trigger deploying your product from the dashboard to your own workspace
  </Card>

  <Card title="Package Your Software" icon="box" href="/products">
    Turn your applications into sellable products
  </Card>

  <Card title="Add More Capacity" icon="server" href="add-workers">
    Scale your infrastructure as demand grows
  </Card>

  <Card title="Learn About Clusters" icon="server" href="/clusters">
    Understand how clusters work in CNAP
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Troubleshooting

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Worker not appearing in dashboard">
    * Verify the server has internet connectivity
    * Check that the setup command was copied correctly
    * Ensure you're running as root (with `sudo`)
    * Wait 2-3 minutes for the registration process
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Setup command fails">
    * Check server meets minimum requirements (2 CPU, 4GB RAM)
    * Ensure you're using a supported Linux distribution (see [supported operating systems](#supported-operating-systems))
    * Verify no conflicting Docker/Kubernetes installations
    * Verify server has outbound networking access to the control plane (outbound HTTPS connections are allowed by default, but check if behind a firewall)
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Worker behind firewall or NAT?">
    CNAP's managed KaaS architecture is designed so workers don't need public IP addresses. Workers automatically create outbound connectivity tunnels to the control plane, allowing the control plane to reach the kubelet securely. This works behind firewalls, NAT, and restrictive networks.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>