CKAD Application Deployment Practice Question
A pod is running but not responding to requests. The developer suspects the liveness probe is misconfigured. Which command can they use to check the probe configuration of a running pod?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse `kubectl logs` (which shows runtime output) with `kubectl describe` (which shows configuration), assuming logs would reveal probe failures, but logs only show application output, not the probe definition itself.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
kubectl describe pod <pod-name>
`kubectl describe pod <pod-name>` displays the full pod specification, including the liveness probe configuration (e.g., `Liveness: http-get /healthz delay=0s timeout=1s period=10s #success=1 #failure=3`). This allows the developer to verify the probe type, endpoint, initial delay, timeout, and failure threshold directly from the running pod's definition.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
kubectl logs <pod-name>
Why it's wrong here
kubectl logs streams the container's stdout and stderr, which reflect application output, errors, and possibly probe failure messages generated by the kubelet—but it never reveals the probe configuration defined in the pod spec. The developers' request is about checking how probes are set, not app-level messaging. Thus, logs cannot show endpoints, thresholds, or probe types, making this the wrong tool.
- ✓
kubectl describe pod <pod-name>
Why this is correct
kubectl describe pod displays the pod's full specification in a human-readable format, including each container's livenessProbe, readinessProbe, and startupProbe with their exact HTTP paths, ports, initialDelaySeconds, periodSeconds, failureThreshold, and timeoutSeconds. It also surfaces recent events, such as 'Liveness probe failed,' which directly indicate why the pod is unresponsive. This is the definitive command for inspecting probe configuration and diagnosing probe-related responsiveness issues.
- ✗
kubectl exec <pod-name> -- env
Why it's wrong here
kubectl exec ... -- env runs the env binary inside the container, printing environment variables like PATH and custom variables—information entirely unrelated to pod-level or container-level probe settings. It requires a running container with a shell/environment tool, and it cannot access the pod's API representation. Therefore, it provides no insight into how liveness or readiness probes are configured.
- ✗
kubectl get pod <pod-name>
Why it's wrong here
kubectl get pod outputs a concise table of the pod's status, such as NAME, READY, STATUS, RESTARTS, and AGE, which is useful for a quick overview but omits all container-level details, including probe definitions. Unless combined with -o yaml or -o json, it does not expose the spec fields where probes live. Hence, it cannot show the probe configuration the developer needs.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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