How Does Kyverno Work? A Simple Explanation for DevOps Teams

What Is Kyverno? How Kyverno Works in Kubernetes Kyverno’s Core Policy Types Explained Validation Policies (Validate) Mutation Policies (Mutate) Generation Policies (Generate) Cleanup Policies (Cleanup) Why DevOps Teams Prefer Kyverno Kyverno vs Other Kubernetes Policy Tools How Kyverno Fits into CI/CD Pipelines Real-World Example: Kyverno in Action Best Practices for Using Kyverno Simplify Kyverno Policy Management at Scale with Nirmata Kyverno is a Kubernetes-native policy engine that allows DevOps teams to define, validate, mutate, and generate Kubernetes resources using simple YAML-based policies. Unlike other policy tools, Kyverno works without custom languages, making policy enforcement easier to adopt and manage at scale. In short: Kyverno lets you enforce Kubernetes best practices automatically, using the same YAML you already use for manifests. Kyverno is an open-source policy management tool designed specifically for Kubernetes. It enables teams to apply Policy as Code directly to Kubernetes clusters by evaluating resources against declarative rules written in YAML. Kyverno runs as a Kubernetes admission controller and enforces policies when resources are created, updated, or deleted. Kyverno operates by intercepting Kubernetes API requests and evaluating them against predefined policies before the request is allowed to proceed. The basic flow looks like this: A Kubernetes resource is submitted (such as a Pod or Deployment) Kyverno evaluates the resource against applicable policies Kyverno allows, modifies, or blocks the request The resource is admitted into the cluster or rejected This process happens automatically and in real time, without manual intervention. Kyverno policies fall into four main categories that cover most Kubernetes governance needs. Validation policies ensure Kubernetes resources meet specific requirements before deployment. Common use cases include requiring CPU and memory limits, blocking privileged containers, enforcing approved container registries, and requiring labels like environment or owner. The result is that misconfigured or insecure workloads never reach production.