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Set up Google Distributed Cloud (GKE on-premises)
This page provides a quick overview of the steps you need to follow to set up GKE on-premises with a software-only deployment of Google Distributed Cloud.
This page is for IT administrators and Operators who set up, monitor,
and manage the lifecycle of the cloud infrastructure, including backup
infrastructure. To learn more about common roles and example tasks that we
reference in Google Cloud content, see
Common GKE user roles and tasks.
Set up clusters
You can choose between installing your on-premises clusters on VMware or on bare metal, depending on your application and business needs. Both versions extend GKE for use in on-premises environments. For complete guides to our on-premises options, including cluster setup and administration, see:
Installing Google Distributed Cloud software on VMware lets you run GKE-managed Kubernetes clusters on-premises in a vSphere environment, using VMware's vCenter Server.
Installation guides: Google Distributed Cloud has a number of
possible installation options on VMware, some more complex than others. To get started
with the simplest installation flow, follow
Set up minimal infrastructure.
Install on bare metal
Installing Google Distributed Cloud software on bare metal lets you run
GKE-managed Kubernetes clusters directly on your own
data center machine resources, with flexibility, performance, and security in
your environment. You can find out more about whether this is the right option
for you in the Google Distributed Cloud (software-only) on bare metal overview.
Prerequisites and requirements: See the complete list of prerequisites for
installing Google Distributed Cloud software on bare metal in
Installation prerequisites.
Installation guides: Google Distributed Cloud lets you choose
from multiple cluster deployment models on bare metal to suit your specific needs. For
deployment options and links to more detailed installation guides, see our
Cluster creation overview.
Adding on-premises attached clusters
The GKE attached clusters feature lets you add
third-party Kubernetes clusters to your fleet and use some
GKE features with them, including viewing them in the
Google Cloud console. You can add any
conformant Kubernetes cluster
that includes x86 nodes. For more information, see
Attach your CNCF conformant cluster.
Attached clusters must be registered manually to your fleet.
Registering clusters to the fleet
By default, you don't need to do anything to register your Google Distributed Cloud
clusters. As part of the setup process, each
cluster that you create automatically runs the
Connect Agent and is registered to your current project fleet. You can then
log in to the cluster from the Google Cloud console
as well as from the command line.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Hard to understand","hardToUnderstand","thumb-down"],["Incorrect information or sample code","incorrectInformationOrSampleCode","thumb-down"],["Missing the information/samples I need","missingTheInformationSamplesINeed","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-09-04 UTC."],[],[],null,["# Set up Google Distributed Cloud (GKE on-premises)\n=================================================\n\nThis page provides a quick overview of the steps you need to follow to set up GKE on-premises with a software-only deployment of Google Distributed Cloud.\n\nThis page is for IT administrators and Operators who set up, monitor,\nand manage the lifecycle of the cloud infrastructure, including backup\ninfrastructure. To learn more about common roles and example tasks that we\nreference in Google Cloud content, see\n[Common GKE user roles and tasks](/kubernetes-engine/enterprise/docs/concepts/roles-tasks).\n\nSet up clusters\n---------------\n\nYou can choose between installing your on-premises clusters on VMware or on bare metal, depending on your application and business needs. Both versions extend GKE for use in on-premises environments. For complete guides to our on-premises options, including cluster setup and administration, see:\n\n- [Google Distributed Cloud (software-only) on VMware](/kubernetes-engine/distributed-cloud/vmware/docs)\n- [Google Distributed Cloud (software-only) on bare metal](/kubernetes-engine/distributed-cloud/bare-metal/docs)\n\n### Install on VMware\n\nInstalling Google Distributed Cloud software on VMware lets you run GKE-managed Kubernetes clusters on-premises in a vSphere environment, using VMware's [vCenter Server](https://www.vmware.com/products/vcenter-server.html).\n\n- **Prerequisites and requirements** : See the complete list of system\n requirements in the\n [Google Distributed Cloud on VMware documentation](/anthos/clusters/docs/on-prem/latest/how-to/vsphere-requirements).\n\n- **Installation guides** : Google Distributed Cloud has a number of\n possible installation options on VMware, some more complex than others. To get started\n with the simplest installation flow, follow\n [Set up minimal infrastructure](/anthos/clusters/docs/on-prem/latest/how-to/minimal-infrastructure).\n\n### Install on bare metal\n\nInstalling Google Distributed Cloud software on bare metal lets you run\nGKE-managed Kubernetes clusters directly on your own\ndata center machine resources, with flexibility, performance, and security in\nyour environment. You can find out more about whether this is the right option\nfor you in the [Google Distributed Cloud (software-only) on bare metal overview](/anthos/clusters/docs/bare-metal/latest/concepts/about-bare-metal).\n\n- **Prerequisites and requirements** : See the complete list of prerequisites for\n installing Google Distributed Cloud software on bare metal in\n [Installation prerequisites](/anthos/clusters/docs/bare-metal/latest/installing/install-prereq).\n\n- **Installation guides** : Google Distributed Cloud lets you choose\n from multiple cluster deployment models on bare metal to suit your specific needs. For\n deployment options and links to more detailed installation guides, see our\n [Cluster creation overview](/anthos/clusters/docs/bare-metal/latest/installing/creating-clusters/create-clusters-overview).\n\n### Adding on-premises attached clusters\n\nThe GKE attached clusters feature lets you add\nthird-party Kubernetes clusters to your fleet and use some\nGKE features with them, including viewing them in the\nGoogle Cloud console. You can add any\n[conformant Kubernetes cluster](https://www.cncf.io/certification/software-conformance/)\nthat includes x86 nodes. For more information, see\n[Attach your CNCF conformant cluster](/anthos/clusters/docs/multi-cloud/attached/generic/how-to/attach-cluster).\nAttached clusters must be registered manually to your fleet.\n\nRegistering clusters to the fleet\n---------------------------------\n\nBy default, you don't need to do anything to register your Google Distributed Cloud\nclusters. As part of the setup process, each\ncluster that you create automatically runs the\nConnect Agent and is registered to your current project fleet. You can then\n[log in to the cluster from the Google Cloud console](/kubernetes-engine/fleet-management/docs/console)\nas well as from the command line.\n\nTo register an on-premises attached cluster, follow the instructions to [attach third-party clusters](/anthos/clusters/docs/multi-cloud/attached/generic/how-to/attach-cluster), paying attention to any [specific prerequisites for your Kubernetes cluster type](/anthos/clusters/docs/multi-cloud/attached/generic/reference/cluster-prerequisites).\n\nEnabling Google Cloud features\n------------------------------\n\nAfter you set up your project and your clusters, use the\nfollowing guides to enable additional available Google Cloud features for your applications.\n\n### Enabling features for Google Distributed Cloud deployments on VMware\n\n- Cloud Service Mesh:\n - [Install Cloud Service Mesh](/service-mesh/docs/onboarding/kubernetes-off-gcp/install/install-in-cluster-cloud-service-mesh)\n - [Set up a multi-cluster mesh outside Google Cloud](/service-mesh/docs/unified-install/off-gcp-multi-cluster-setup)\n- Configuration and policy management:\n - [Set up Config Sync](/anthos-config-management/docs/how-to/installing-config-sync)\n - [Install Config Connector](/config-connector/docs/how-to/install-other-kubernetes)\n - [Install Policy Controller](/anthos-config-management/docs/how-to/installing-policy-controller)\n- [Set up Knative serving](/anthos/run/docs/install/outside-gcp)\n- [Set up Binary Authorization on Google Distributed Cloud](/binary-authorization/docs/setting-up-on-prem)\n\n### Enabling features for Google Distributed Cloud deployments on bare metal\n\n- Configuration and policy management:\n - [Set up Config Sync](/anthos-config-management/docs/how-to/installing-config-sync)\n - [Install Config Connector](/config-connector/docs/how-to/install-other-kubernetes)\n - [Install Policy Controller](/anthos-config-management/docs/how-to/installing-policy-controller)\n- [Set up Binary Authorization on Google Distributed Cloud](/anthos/clusters/docs/bare-metal/latest/how-to/binary-authorization-policy)\n\nWhat's next?\n------------\n\n- If you also need to set up GKE clusters on Google Cloud, see the [GKE Enterprise on Google Cloud setup guide](/kubernetes-engine/enterprise/docs/setup/set-up-google-cloud).\n- If you also need to set up clusters on another public cloud (such as AWS) as part of a multicloud deployment, see the [public clouds setup guide](/kubernetes-engine/enterprise/docs/setup/public-cloud)"]]
