metrics-server

metrics-server is a Kubernetes add-on that aggregates resource usage metrics (CPU/memory) from kubelets and exposes them to the Kubernetes API for use by tools like kubectl top, Horizontal Pod Autoscaler (HPA), and other metrics consumers.

Evaluated Apr 04, 2026 (17d ago)
Homepage ↗ Repo ↗ Monitoring kubernetes metrics autoscaling observability infrastructure
⚙ Agent Friendliness
30
/ 100
Can an agent use this?
🔒 Security
58
/ 100
Is it safe for agents?
⚡ Reliability
48
/ 100
Does it work consistently?

Score Breakdown

⚙ Agent Friendliness

MCP Quality
0
Documentation
30
Error Messages
0
Auth Simplicity
45
Rate Limits
10

🔒 Security

TLS Enforcement
70
Auth Strength
60
Scope Granularity
50
Dep. Hygiene
50
Secret Handling
60

Runs in-cluster and communicates with kubelets and the Kubernetes API; effective security depends on correct TLS settings and least-privilege RBAC. No direct evidence of secret-handling or dependency posture from the provided info.

⚡ Reliability

Uptime/SLA
30
Version Stability
60
Breaking Changes
60
Error Recovery
40
AF Security Reliability

Use Cases

  • • Enable kubectl top (top node/pod) by providing aggregated resource metrics
  • • Support Horizontal Pod Autoscaler based on CPU/memory utilization
  • • Provide metrics to other components that rely on the Kubernetes metrics.k8s.io API

Not For

  • • General-purpose metrics storage/visualization (e.g., long-term retention/graphs)
  • • Replacing Prometheus/Grafana for full monitoring and alerting
  • • Reporting application-level metrics beyond CPU/memory resource usage

Interface

REST API
No
GraphQL
No
gRPC
No
MCP Server
No
SDK
No
Webhooks
No

Authentication

Methods: Kubernetes service account/RBAC In-cluster authorization via Kubernetes API server access controls
OAuth: No Scopes: No

metrics-server typically runs as a cluster add-on and relies on Kubernetes RBAC and in-cluster connectivity; no external OAuth scopes are indicated from the provided info.

Pricing

Free tier: No
Requires CC: No

Open-source Kubernetes component; pricing is not applicable based on provided information.

Agent Metadata

Pagination
none
Idempotent
False
Retry Guidance
Not documented

Known Gotchas

  • ⚠ Kubernetes add-ons require cluster-admin-level setup (RBAC, TLS/kubelet auth, wiring to kubelets) which may cause confusing failures if misconfigured
  • ⚠ Behavior can vary by Kubernetes version and kubelet configuration; agent automation should validate API availability (metrics.k8s.io) after deployment

Alternatives

Prometheus + adapters (e.g., Prometheus Adapter) kube-state-metrics (for cluster state, not resource usage) Cloud provider monitoring integrations (with suitable adapters)

Full Evaluation Report

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Scores are editorial opinions as of 2026-04-04.

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Packages Evaluated
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