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Configure Network Policy for vK8s Deployment

Published April 5, 2023 | Last modified February 25, 2026

Objective

This document provides instructions on how to configure and apply a network policy for traffic to/from virtual K8s (vK8s) Pods using policy rules. To learn more about the network policy, see Network Policy.

Using the instructions provided in this document, you can create network policies with policy rules controlling the traffic to secure the applications in your namespace.

Prerequisites

Configuration

Configuring network policy in F5® Distributed Cloud Console (Console) includes creating a network policy in Console using the guided wizard. You can create and then activate the network policies. Alternatively, you can create individual policy rules and apply them to policies which in turn can be applied. The steps presented in this guide show creating the policy using the guided wizard.

Create Network Policy

Step 1: Start creating vK8s network policy.

  • Log into Console.

  • Select Distributed Apps.

Note: Also available in Shared Configuration.

Figure: Console Homepage

Figure: Console Homepage

  • Select your application namespace from the namespace drop-down menu. Or create a new namespace.

  • Select Manage > vK8s Network Policies > Network Policies.

  • Select Add Network Policy to open the network policy configuration page.

Figure: Network Policy Creation

Figure: Network Policy Creation

Step 2: Start creating network policy.

  • Enter Name.

  • In Policy For Endpoints section, performing the following:

    • From the Endpoint(s) menu, select an option from the following:

      • IPv4 Prefix List: Prefix is the IP prefix written in the <ip address>/<prefix length> format. You must enter a prefix for this option.

      • Any Endpoint: Any endpoint that matches 0/0 IP prefix.

      • Label Selector: Label selector is a selector expression. If the labels of an IP address match the selector expression, that IP is considered a local endpoint. You must enter a selector expression for this option.

Figure: Local Endpoint Configuration

Figure: Local Endpoint Configuration

Step 3: Create rules for ingress traffic.

  • Select Configure under Ingress Rules in Connections To and From Endpoints box.

  • Select + Add Item.

  • Enter Name.

  • Select option from Action menu. The default action is to deny all traffic.

  • In Select Other Endpoint menu, configure the remote endpoint per the following guidelines:

    • Any Endpoint: Any endpoint that matches 0/0 IP prefix.

    • IPv4 Prefix List: Prefix is the IP prefix in the <ip address>/<prefix length> format. Enter the IP prefix in the Prefixes field. You can add more than one entry using the Add item option.

    • Label Selector: Label selector is a selector expression. If the labels of an IP address match the selector expression, that IP is considered. Enter the expression in the Selector Expression field. You can add more than one entry using the Add item option.

    • List IP Prefix Set: A set of IP prefixes. You can also create a new IP prefix set from here. Click in the Reference field to add the IP prefix set to the rule.

  • InSelect Type of Traffic to Match menu, select an option from the following:

    • Match All Traffic

    • Match All TCP Traffic

    • Match All UDP Traffic

    • Match Application Traffic: For this option, you must select an option from the Application Protocols menu.

    • Match Protocol and Port Ranges: For this option, you must select an option from the Protocols menu. Select Add item in the Port ranges field, and add a range of ports in the <startport-endport> format.

  • In the Label Matcher second, select + Add item to select label keys. These keys will be matched in the prefix selector of endpoint configuration. You can add multiple keys.

  • Toggle Show Advanced Fields to show Logging Action drop-down menu options.

  • Select Apply button in form.

  • Select Apply button in Ingress Rules page.

Figure: Ingress Rule Configuration

Figure: Ingress Rule Configuration

Step 4: Create rules for egress traffic.

  • Select Configure under Egress Rules in Connections To and From Endpoints box.

  • Select + Add Item.

  • Enter Name.

  • Select an option from the Action menu. The default action is to deny all traffic.

  • From the Select Other Endpoint menu, configure the remote endpoint per the following guidelines:

    • Any Endpoint: Any endpoint that matches 0/0 IP prefix.

    • IPv4 Prefix List: Prefix is the IP prefix in the <ip address>/<prefix length> format. Enter the IP prefix in the Prefixes field. You can add more than one entry using the Add item option.

    • Label Selector: Label selector is a selector expression. If the labels of an IP address match the selector expression, that IP is considered. Enter the expression in the Selector Expression field. You can add more than one entry using the Add item option.

    • List IP Prefix Set: A set of IP prefixes. You can also create a new IP prefix set from here. Click in the Reference field to add the IP prefix set to the rule.

  • From the Select Type of Traffic to Match menu, select an option from the following:

    • Match All Traffic

    • Match All TCP Traffic

    • Match All UDP Traffic

    • Match Application Traffic: For this option, you must select an option from the Application Protocols menu.

    • Match Protocol and Port Ranges: For this option, you must select an option from the Protocols menu. Select Add item in the Port ranges field and add a range of ports in the <startport-endport> format.

  • In the Label Matcher second, select + Add item to select label keys. These keys will be matched in the prefix selector of endpoint configuration. You can add multiple keys.

  • Toggle Show Advanced Fields to show Logging Action drop-down menu options.

  • Select Apply button in form.

  • Select Apply button in Ingress Rules page.

Step 5: Activate the network policy.
  • Select Manage > vK8s Network Policy > Active Network Policies.
Figure: Network Policy Selection

Figure: Network Policy Selection

  • Select Select Active Network Policies.

  • Select Select Network Policy.

Figure: Click on Network Policy

Figure: Click on Network Policy

  • Select network policy previously created, select Select Network Policy.
Figure: Selection

Figure: Selection

  • Select Save and Exit button.
Step 6: Verify the policy operation.

You can verify the network policy by sending traffic to your egress traffic from your local endpoint or sending traffic from a remote endpoint (as specified in the ingress rule) to your local endpoint. You can also use Console.

  • Open a terminal window and use the ping command to verify if the traffic is allowed or rejected based on the rule configuration.

Note: The implicit action for any rule is to deny the traffic.

  • In Console, navigate to Manage > vK8s Network Policy > Network Policies in your application namespace. Check the Hits column for your policy to view how many times the policy is applied. Select on the value in the Hits column to view the rule hits.

Concepts

API References

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