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

# Demo Apply labels and tags to GKE clusters

> This tutorial teaches managing labels on Google Kubernetes Engine clusters and node pools.

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to manage **labels** on Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) clusters and their node pools. You will:

1. Create a new GKE cluster with labels
2. View labels on an existing cluster
3. Update labels on a cluster
4. Remove labels from a cluster
5. Verify labels on both the cluster and its node pools
6. Understand how cluster-level label changes affect node pools

***

## Table of Contents

* [1. Create a New Cluster with a Label](#1-create-a-new-cluster-with-a-label)
* [2. View Labels on an Existing Cluster](#2-view-labels-on-an-existing-cluster)
* [3. Update Labels on an Existing Cluster](#3-update-labels-on-an-existing-cluster)
* [4. Remove a Label from a Cluster](#4-remove-a-label-from-a-cluster)
* [5. Verify Labels on the New Cluster](#5-verify-labels-on-the-new-cluster)
* [6. Remove the Label from the New Cluster](#6-remove-the-label-from-the-new-cluster)
* [7. Node Pool Labels Remain After Cluster Label Removal](#7-node-pool-labels-remain-after-cluster-label-removal)
* [Command Reference](#command-reference)
* [Links and References](#links-and-references)

***

## 1. Create a New Cluster with a Label

Spin up a GKE cluster named `gke-deep-dive-new` with:

* 1 node
* 10 GB standard persistent disk
* Label `test=gke`

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters create gke-deep-dive-new \
  --num-nodes=1 \
  --disk-type=pd-standard \
  --disk-size=10 \
  --labels=test=gke
```

This command provisions a single-node pool (HDD) and attaches the `test=gke` label at creation.

***

## 2. View Labels on an Existing Cluster

To inspect labels on a cluster (e.g., `gke-deep-dive`) run:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters describe gke-deep-dive \
  --format="yaml(resourceLabels)"
```

If there are no labels, the `resourceLabels` section will be empty.

***

## 3. Update Labels on an Existing Cluster

Add or modify labels using `--update-labels`. For example, set `newlabel=gkeold` on `gke-deep-dive`:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters update gke-deep-dive \
  --update-labels=newlabel=gkeold
```

Verify the update:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters describe gke-deep-dive \
  --format="yaml(resourceLabels)"
```

Expected output:

```yaml theme={null}
resourceLabels:
  newlabel: gkeold
```

***

## 4. Remove a Label from a Cluster

To delete a label, specify its key with `--remove-labels`:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters update gke-deep-dive \
  --remove-labels=newlabel
```

Confirm removal:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters describe gke-deep-dive \
  --format="yaml(resourceLabels)"
```

The `resourceLabels` field should now be empty.

***

## 5. Verify Labels on the New Cluster

Check that `gke-deep-dive-new` has the `test=gke` label:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters describe gke-deep-dive-new \
  --format="yaml(resourceLabels)"
```

You should see:

```yaml theme={null}
resourceLabels:
  test: gke
```

Alternatively, filter with `grep`:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters describe gke-deep-dive-new \
  | grep -i resourceLabels -A1
```

***

## 6. Remove the Label from the New Cluster

Remove the `test` label:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters update gke-deep-dive-new \
  --remove-labels=test
```

Verify:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters describe gke-deep-dive-new \
  --format="yaml(resourceLabels)"
```

`resourceLabels` will now be empty.

***

## 7. Node Pool Labels Remain After Cluster Label Removal

Cluster-level label updates **do not** automatically propagate to existing node pools. Even after removing `test` from the cluster, the default node pool still holds its label:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container clusters describe gke-deep-dive-new \
  --format="yaml(nodePools[0].resourceLabels)"
```

```yaml theme={null}
resourceLabels:
  test: gke
```

To remove a label from the node pool itself:

```bash theme={null}
gcloud container node-pools update default-pool \
  --cluster=gke-deep-dive-new \
  --remove-labels=test
```

<Callout icon="lightbulb" color="#1CB2FE">
  After detaching a label from the cluster, always verify node-pool labels if you rely on them for workloads, autoscaling, or monitoring.
</Callout>

***

## Command Reference

| Operation                 | Command Snippet                                                |
| ------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Create cluster with label | `gcloud container clusters create ... --labels=test=gke`       |
| View cluster labels       | `gcloud container clusters describe ... --format="yaml(...)"`  |
| Update cluster labels     | `gcloud container clusters update ... --update-labels=key=val` |
| Remove cluster labels     | `gcloud container clusters update ... --remove-labels=key`     |
| View node-pool labels     | `gcloud container clusters describe ... --format="yaml(...)"`  |
| Remove node-pool label    | `gcloud container node-pools update ... --remove-labels=key`   |

***

## Links and References

* [GKE Labels Documentation](https://cloud.google.com/kubernetes-engine/docs/concepts/labels)
* [Kubernetes Labels and Selectors](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/overview/working-with-objects/labels/)
* [gcloud container clusters](https://cloud.google.com/sdk/gcloud/reference/container/clusters)
* [gcloud container node-pools](https://cloud.google.com/sdk/gcloud/reference/container/node-pools)

<CardGroup>
  <Card title="Watch Video" icon="video" cta="Learn more" href="https://learn.kodekloud.com/user/courses/gke-google-kubernetes-engine/module/897349c1-bf57-4c08-82fb-0aa0ce0e0f6b/lesson/c65372aa-2491-489b-a47c-c9c2c5163a8f" />
</CardGroup>