Developing and Maintaining Multi-Tenant, Multi-Cluster Kubernetes in a University Environment

12 pages•Published: June 18, 2026

Sven Haardiek, Markus Blank-Burian and Raimund Vogl

Abstract

The IT Department of the University of Münster (CIT) manages a diverse portfolio of infrastructure services. Its users include other IT departments, university management, researchers, and projects extending beyond the boundaries of the university. In response to the increasing adoption of containerized software, a Kubernetes cluster was established to provide a reliable and secure platform for software deployment. Our objective was to deliver a platform that meets or exceeds the reliability, security, and performance of legacy services. Accordingly, we implemented a setup combining multiple clusters distributed across several locations. By employing a single multi-tenant Kubernetes cluster rather than creating separate vanilla clusters for each tenant, we were able to maintain easy access, even for small projects. This approach allows tenants to focus on developing their applications using the provided tools and integrations, rather than managing the cluster itself.

Keyphrases: kubernetes, multi cluster, multi tenancy, openstack

In: Laurence Desnos, Carmen Diaz, Janina Mincer-Daszkiewicz, Lazaros Merakos, Raimund Vogl, Stuart McLellan and Ulrike Lucke (editors). Proceedings of EUNIS 2026 Annual Congress, vol 109, pages 108-119.

Links:	https://easychair.org/publications/paper/p3Gc
	https://doi.org/10.29007/d7bt

BibTeX entry

@inproceedings{EUNIS2026:Developing_Maintaining_Multi_Tenant,
  author    = {Sven Haardiek and Markus Blank-Burian and Raimund Vogl},
  title     = {Developing and Maintaining Multi-Tenant, Multi-Cluster Kubernetes in a University Environment},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of EUNIS 2026 Annual Congress},
  editor    = {Laurence Desnos and Carmen Diaz and Janina Mincer-Daszkiewicz and Lazaros Merakos and Raimund Vogl and Stuart McLellan and Ulrike Lucke},
  series    = {EPiC Series in Computing},
  volume    = {109},
  publisher = {EasyChair},
  bibsource = {EasyChair, https://easychair.org},
  issn      = {2398-7340},
  url       = {/publications/paper/p3Gc},
  doi       = {10.29007/d7bt},
  pages     = {108-119},
  year      = {2026}}

Download PDF Open PDF in browser