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Run a pod in isolated mode - Amazon EKS
Choose your setup pathPrerequisitesRun a pod in isolated modeWhat happens when a pod startsRun pods created by a workload controller
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Run a pod in isolated mode

Isolated mode protects the node and other pods from a compromised container. The parent instance is trusted.

Choose your setup path

You run isolated and confidential pods on EKS in one of two ways. Both run the pod in a Nitro Sandbox and both use the same runtimeClassName in the pod spec. They differ only in how the nodes are prepared.

EKS Auto Mode (recommended)

Auto Mode includes Nitro Sandbox support with no additional setup. You do not build or manage an AMI. Set runtimeClassName: isolated-sandbox (or confidential-sandbox) on the pod, and Auto Mode provisions a compatible node and runs the pod in a sandbox. This is the simplest path, and the rest of this topic uses it.

Managed or self-managed node groups

Alternatively, if you run your own node groups outside of Auto Mode, build a custom AMI that includes the Nitro Sandbox runtime, and use instance types that support Nitro Enclaves. Launch the nodes with Nitro Enclaves enabled (EnclaveOptions.Enabled=true) in the node group’s launch template. Choosing an instance type that supports Nitro Enclaves is not sufficient on its own; without Nitro Enclaves enabled, the node never advertises sandbox capacity. Join those nodes to the cluster, then set the same runtimeClassName on the pod. For the build steps, see Create and update a Nitro Sandbox AMI.

Prerequisites

  • An Amazon EKS cluster. For the simplest experience, use EKS Auto Mode, which runs isolated and confidential pods without additional configuration.

  • For managed or self-managed node groups outside of Auto Mode, a custom AMI built with the Nitro Sandbox runtime, on instance types that support Nitro Enclaves. Launch the nodes with Nitro Enclaves enabled (EnclaveOptions.Enabled=true) in the node group’s launch template; otherwise the node never advertises sandbox capacity. See Create and update a Nitro Sandbox AMI.

Run a pod in isolated mode

Set runtimeClassName: isolated-sandbox in your pod spec:

apiVersion: v1
kind: Pod
metadata:
  name: my-app
spec:
  runtimeClassName: isolated-sandbox
  containers:
  - name: main
    image: public.ecr.aws/amazonlinux/amazonlinux:2023
    command: ["sleep", "3600"]
    resources:
      limits:
        cpu: "1"
        memory: 512Mi

Apply the manifest:

kubectl apply -f manifest.yaml

Verify the pod is running:

kubectl get pod my-app

The pod runs inside a Nitro Sandbox. From the workload’s perspective, the environment looks like a normal Linux container. No changes to your application code are required.

What happens when a pod starts

  1. A Nitro Sandbox is created for the pod.

  2. The Cedar policy attached to the pod is evaluated (if present).

  3. The container images are loaded into the sandbox.

  4. Containers start inside the sandbox.

Each pod gets its own Nitro Sandbox. Multiple containers within the same pod share a single sandbox.

Run pods created by a workload controller

Deployments, StatefulSets, DaemonSets, ReplicaSets, Jobs, and CronJobs create pods from a pod template. Put runtimeClassName and every sandbox.amazonaws.com/ annotation in the pod template, not on the controller object itself:

  • spec.template.spec.runtimeClassName

  • spec.template.metadata.annotations

Set annotations on the pod template

An annotation on the controller’s own metadata is accepted and then ignored. For example, a sandbox.amazonaws.com/ annotation set on a Deployment’s own metadata.annotations, rather than under spec.template.metadata.annotations, has no effect. Kubernetes does not copy it into the pods, so policy, network, and throttle annotations placed there have no effect.

Example Deployment:

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: my-app
spec:
  replicas: 2
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: my-app
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: my-app
      annotations:
        sandbox.amazonaws.com/policy: "<base64 policy>"
    spec:
      runtimeClassName: isolated-sandbox
      containers:
      - name: main
        image: public.ecr.aws/amazonlinux/amazonlinux:2023
        command: ["sleep", "3600"]
        resources:
          limits:
            cpu: "1"
            memory: 512Mi

Verify that the created pods carry the runtime class:

kubectl get pods -l app=my-app \
  -o custom-columns='NAME:.metadata.name,RUNTIME:.spec.runtimeClassName'