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kubernetes

Pod containers have CPU limits set

core_cpu_limits_set
Service: coreSeverity: medium
OfficialBuilt-inVerified
Categories:resilience
Resource Type:KubernetesPod

Ensure CPU limits are set for containers to prevent noisy neighbors and resource exhaustion.

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Risk

Missing CPU limits can allow containers to consume unbounded CPU leading to performance issues.

Run this check with Prowler

Run in Prowler Cloud
Run
prowler kubernetes --checks core_cpu_limits_set

Recommendation

Define CPU limits to bound a container's CPU usage and protect node stability.

Remediation

CLI

kubectl set resources deployment/<name> -n <namespace> --containers=<container> --limits=cpu=500m

NativeIaC

# Example: set cpu limits in container resources
resources:
  limits:
    cpu: "500m"

Other

1Edit the Pod/Deployment manifest and set `resources.limits.cpu` for each container.

Check Code

from prowler.lib.check.models import Check, Check_Report_Kubernetes
from prowler.providers.kubernetes.services.core.core_client import core_client


class core_cpu_limits_set(Check):
    """Check whether regular pod containers have CPU limits configured."""

    def execute(self) -> list[Check_Report_Kubernetes]:
        """Execute the Kubernetes pod CPU limits check.

        Returns:
            List of check reports for Kubernetes pods.
        """
        findings = []
        for pod in core_client.pods.values():
            report = Check_Report_Kubernetes(metadata=self.metadata(), resource=pod)
            report.status = "PASS"
            report.status_extended = (
                f"Pod {pod.name} regular containers have CPU limits configured."
            )

            for container in (pod.containers or {}).values():
                resources = container.resources or {}
                limits = (
                    resources.get("limits") if isinstance(resources, dict) else None
                )
                cpu = limits.get("cpu") if limits and isinstance(limits, dict) else None
                if not cpu:
                    report.status = "FAIL"
                    report.status_extended = f"Pod {pod.name} container {container.name} does not have a CPU limit configured."
                    break

            findings.append(report)

        return findings

References