For a tool for finding stale Kubernetes objects, the first results are containernetworking/cni, robusta-dev/krr (KRR analyzes pod resource usage to recommend right‑sizing CPU and memory, but it does not detect or remove orphaned/unused resources — it is a cost‑optimization tool, not a cleanup/garbage‑collection tool) and spotify/docker-gc (This tool is a garbage collector for Docker hosts, not for Kubernetes resources — it cleans up containers, images, and volumes on a single machine, leaving Kubernetes-native objects like pods, services, and Helm releases untouched). komodorio/helm-dashboard and velero-io/velero round out the shortlist. Compare the match explanations and check the project documentation against your requirements.
Automated utilities for identifying and removing orphaned or unused resources within your Kubernetes cluster environments.
This repository provides a CNI (Container Network Interface) plugin framework for Kubernetes networking, not a general-purpose tool for identifying and removing orphaned Kubernetes resources; while it includes some network-resource cleanup capabilities, it does not cover the broad resource-type cleanup and dry-run features the visitor is looking for.
KRR is an open-source tool for analyzing Kubernetes resource requests and recommendations. It evaluates how pods are currently configured and provides suggestions for optimizing CPU and memory allocations based on actual usage patterns. The project focuses on helping teams right-size their Kubernetes workloads by identifying over-provisioned and under-provisioned resources. It scans clusters and generates reports that highlight where adjustments can reduce costs or improve performance without compromising reliability. KRR is distributed as a Python command-line tool that can be run directly
KRR analyzes pod resource usage to recommend right‑sizing CPU and memory, but it does not detect or remove orphaned/unused resources — it is a cost‑optimization tool, not a cleanup/garbage‑collection tool.
docker-gc is a garbage collection tool for Docker hosts designed to reclaim disk space by automatically removing exited containers, unused images, and dangling volumes. It functions as a resource cleaner that optimizes host storage through the lifecycle management of orphaned or inactive container resources. The utility manages image retention by preserving a minimum number of the most recent images per repository while deleting older versions. It employs configurable grace periods to determine when images and containers become eligible for deletion and supports pattern-based exclusion to pre
This tool is a garbage collector for Docker hosts, not for Kubernetes resources — it cleans up containers, images, and volumes on a single machine, leaving Kubernetes-native objects like pods, services, and Helm releases untouched.
Helm Dashboard is a web-based interface for managing and monitoring Helm releases in Kubernetes clusters. It provides a graphical alternative to the command line for viewing deployed releases, inspecting installed charts, and performing the full lifecycle of Helm operations including installation, upgrades, rollbacks, and uninstalls. The dashboard enables users to browse releases with filtering by namespace or name, view revision history and deployment details, and compare manifest or values differences between revisions before applying changes. It supports deploying charts from repositories,
This is a Helm release management dashboard, not a tool for automatically identifying and removing orphaned Kubernetes resources—it lacks the core cleanup and detection capabilities required for that use case.
Velero is a backup and recovery tool for Kubernetes cluster resources and persistent volumes. It functions as a disaster recovery solution and a utility for migrating applications and their associated data between different clusters. The project enables the replication of production environments by cloning cluster resources into development or testing environments for validation and debugging. It provides capabilities for backing up system objects, restoring resources to a known good state, and transferring applications across environments to facilitate system transitions.
Velero backs up and migrates Kubernetes resources rather than identifying and removing unused ones, so it is not the cleanup tool this search targets.
Kyverno is a Kubernetes policy engine and cloud native governance tool. It functions as a policy-as-code framework that validates, mutates, and generates resources to enforce security and governance standards within a cluster. The project distinguishes itself through a declarative policy model that utilizes native Kubernetes custom resource definitions, allowing policies to be managed as standard cluster objects without custom code. It provides specific security capabilities for container image verification and signature validation to ensure only trusted images are deployed. Its broader capa
Kyverno is a policy engine and governance tool, not a dedicated resource cleanup/garbage collection tool; while it can enforce rules that delete orphaned objects via policies, its core identity is policy-as-code rather than automated cleanup detection and removal.
Descheduler is a Kubernetes workload rebalancer and pod eviction manager designed to optimize resource distribution and maintain cluster stability. It identifies and removes pods that no longer satisfy scheduling constraints or health requirements, allowing the cluster to relocate them to more suitable nodes. The project provides specialized capabilities for balancing node resource utilization, enforcing topology spread constraints, and removing duplicate pods to improve distribution. It also functions as an autoscaler helper by compacting workloads onto fewer nodes to facilitate the downscal
The descheduler focuses on evicting and rebalancing pods to improve scheduling and resource distribution, not on identifying and removing orphaned or unused Kubernetes resources such as PVCs, ConfigMaps, or old ReplicaSets, so it is a neighbouring tool rather than a general cleanup solution.
| Repository | Stars | Language | License | Last push |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| containernetworking/cni | 6.1K | Go | apache-2.0 | |
| robusta-dev/krr | 4.5K | Python | mit | |
| spotify/docker-gc |
| 5K |
| Shell |
| Apache-2.0 |
| komodorio/helm-dashboard | 5.6K | TypeScript | apache-2.0 |
| velero-io/velero | 10.1K | Go | Apache-2.0 |
| kyverno/kyverno | 7.8K | Go | Apache-2.0 |
| kubernetes-sigs/descheduler | 5.5K | Go | Apache-2.0 |