Kubectl Rollout Status Deployment 2026: Monitor Kubernetes Deployments

Kubectl rollout status deployment is the essential command for monitoring Kubernetes deployment progress. It provides real-time feedback during rollouts and integrates seamlessly with CI/CD pipelines. This guide covers everything you need to know about tracking deployment status in 2026.

Quick Reference: Kubectl Rollout Status Commands

Command	Description
`kubectl rollout status deployment/nginx`	Monitor deployment rollout
`kubectl rollout status deployment/nginx --timeout=5m`	With timeout
`kubectl rollout status deployment/nginx --watch=false`	Non-blocking check
`kubectl rollout status deployment/nginx --revision=3`	Specific revision
`kubectl rollout status statefulset/mysql`	StatefulSet status
`kubectl rollout status daemonset/fluentd`	DaemonSet status

What Is Kubectl Rollout Status?

The kubectl rollout status command monitors a workload’s rollout until completion. It blocks execution and provides real-time updates, making it ideal for CI/CD pipelines and deployment scripts.

How It Works

Command connects to Kubernetes API
Watches deployment conditions and pod states
Reports progress until rollout completes
Exits with code 0 (success) or non-zero (failure)

Exit Codes

Code	Meaning	Action
0	Rollout successful	Deployment complete
1	Rollout failed	Check deployment events
Non-zero	Timeout/Error	Investigate and retry

Basic Usage

Monitor Deployment Rollout

kubectl rollout status deployment/nginx

Output during rollout:

Waiting for deployment "nginx" rollout to finish: 0 of 3 updated replicas are available...
Waiting for deployment "nginx" rollout to finish: 1 of 3 updated replicas are available...
Waiting for deployment "nginx" rollout to finish: 2 of 3 updated replicas are available...
deployment "nginx" successfully rolled out

With Namespace

kubectl rollout status deployment/api-server -n production

StatefulSet and DaemonSet

# StatefulSet
kubectl rollout status statefulset/mysql

# DaemonSet
kubectl rollout status daemonset/fluentd

Advanced Options

Set Timeout

Fail if rollout doesn’t complete within specified time:

# 5 minute timeout
kubectl rollout status deployment/nginx --timeout=5m

# 300 second timeout
kubectl rollout status deployment/nginx --timeout=300s

# 2 minute timeout
kubectl rollout status deployment/nginx --timeout=2m

Non-Blocking Check

Get current status without waiting:

kubectl rollout status deployment/nginx --watch=false

Output:

deployment "nginx" successfully rolled out
# or
Waiting for deployment "nginx" rollout to finish: 1 of 3 updated replicas are available...

Monitor Specific Revision

# Check specific revision status
kubectl rollout status deployment/nginx --revision=3

Understanding Output Messages

Common Status Messages

Message	Meaning
`0 of N updated replicas are available`	New pods starting
`N of N updated replicas are available`	All pods ready
`M old replicas are pending termination`	Old pods shutting down
`deployment "X" successfully rolled out`	Complete
`error: deployment "X" exceeded its progress deadline`	Timeout/failure

Example Complete Rollout

$ kubectl rollout status deployment/api
Waiting for deployment "api" rollout to finish: 0 of 3 updated replicas are available...
Waiting for deployment "api" rollout to finish: 1 of 3 updated replicas are available...
Waiting for deployment "api" rollout to finish: 2 of 3 updated replicas are available...
deployment "api" successfully rolled out

Example Failed Rollout

$ kubectl rollout status deployment/api --timeout=2m
Waiting for deployment "api" rollout to finish: 1 of 3 updated replicas are available...
error: timed out waiting for rollout to finish

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions

name: Deploy
on:
  push:
    branches: [main]

jobs:
  deploy:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Deploy to Kubernetes
        run: |
          kubectl apply -f deployment.yaml
          kubectl rollout status deployment/api --timeout=5m
        env:
          KUBECONFIG: ${{ secrets.KUBECONFIG }}

GitLab CI

deploy:
  stage: deploy
  script:
    - kubectl apply -f k8s/
    - kubectl rollout status deployment/api -n production --timeout=300s
  only:
    - main

Jenkins Pipeline

pipeline {
    stages {
        stage('Deploy') {
            steps {
                sh '''
                kubectl apply -f deployment.yaml
                kubectl rollout status deployment/api --timeout=5m
                '''
            }
        }
    }
}

Bash Script with Error Handling

#!/bin/bash
set -e

DEPLOYMENT="api"
NAMESPACE="production"
TIMEOUT="5m"

echo "Deploying $DEPLOYMENT..."
kubectl apply -f deployment.yaml

echo "Waiting for rollout to complete..."
if kubectl rollout status deployment/$DEPLOYMENT -n $NAMESPACE --timeout=$TIMEOUT; then
    echo "Deployment successful!"
    exit 0
else
    echo "Deployment failed!"
    kubectl rollout undo deployment/$DEPLOYMENT -n $NAMESPACE
    exit 1
fi

Troubleshooting Failed Rollouts

Step 1: Check Rollout Status

kubectl rollout status deployment/api --watch=false

Step 2: Describe Deployment

kubectl describe deployment api | tail -20

Look for conditions and events:

Conditions:
  Type           Status  Reason
  ----           ------  ------
  Available      True    MinimumReplicasAvailable
  Progressing    False   ProgressDeadlineExceeded

Step 3: Check Pod Status

# Find problematic pods
kubectl get pods -l app=api

# Describe failing pod
kubectl describe pod api-new-abc123

Step 4: Check Logs

# Current pod logs
kubectl logs api-new-abc123

# Previous container logs (if restarting)
kubectl logs api-new-abc123 --previous

Step 5: Check Events

kubectl get events --sort-by='.lastTimestamp' | grep api

Common Failure Causes

Issue	Symptom	Solution
Image pull failure	`ImagePullBackOff`	Check image name, registry access
Readiness probe failing	Pods not ready	Fix probe or app startup
Resource limits	`OOMKilled`	Increase memory limits
Config issues	`CrashLoopBackOff`	Check ConfigMaps, Secrets
Liveness probe	Pod restarts	Increase probe delays

View Rollout History

kubectl rollout history deployment/api

Output:

deployment.apps/api
REVISION  CHANGE-CAUSE
1         kubectl apply --filename=deployment.yaml
2         kubectl set image deployment/api api=api:v1.1.0
3         kubectl rollout restart deployment/api

View Specific Revision

kubectl rollout history deployment/api --revision=2

Undo Rollout

# Undo last rollout
kubectl rollout undo deployment/api

# Undo to specific revision
kubectl rollout undo deployment/api --to-revision=2

Pause and Resume

# Pause rollout
kubectl rollout pause deployment/api

# Resume rollout
kubectl rollout resume deployment/api

Progress Deadline Configuration

Kubernetes has a progress deadline that determines when a rollout is considered failed.

Set Progress Deadline

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: api
spec:
  progressDeadlineSeconds: 600  # 10 minutes (default)
  replicas: 3
  template:
    spec:
      containers:
        - name: api
          image: api:latest

Progress Deadline Values

Value	Use Case
300 (5m)	Quick deployments
600 (10m)	Standard apps (default)
900 (15m)	Large deployments
1800 (30m)	Slow-starting apps

Monitoring Multiple Deployments

Sequential Monitoring

#!/bin/bash
DEPLOYMENTS=("api" "worker" "scheduler")
NAMESPACE="production"

for deploy in "${DEPLOYMENTS[@]}"; do
    echo "Checking $deploy..."
    kubectl rollout status deployment/$deploy -n $NAMESPACE --timeout=5m
done

Parallel Monitoring

#!/bin/bash
kubectl rollout status deployment/api -n production &
kubectl rollout status deployment/worker -n production &
kubectl rollout status deployment/scheduler -n production &
wait
echo "All deployments complete"

Check All Deployments in Namespace

# List all deployment statuses
kubectl get deployments -n production

# Watch all deployments
kubectl get deployments -n production -w

Best Practices

1. Always Set Timeouts in CI/CD

kubectl rollout status deployment/api --timeout=5m || exit 1

2. Combine with Apply

kubectl apply -f deployment.yaml && \
kubectl rollout status deployment/api --timeout=5m

3. Auto-Rollback on Failure

#!/bin/bash
if ! kubectl rollout status deployment/api --timeout=5m; then
    echo "Rollout failed, rolling back..."
    kubectl rollout undo deployment/api
    exit 1
fi

4. Log Rollout Details

#!/bin/bash
echo "Starting deployment at $(date)"
kubectl apply -f deployment.yaml

if kubectl rollout status deployment/api --timeout=5m; then
    echo "Deployment succeeded at $(date)"
    kubectl get deployment api -o yaml > deployment-success.yaml
else
    echo "Deployment failed at $(date)"
    kubectl describe deployment api > deployment-failure.txt
    kubectl logs -l app=api --tail=100 >> deployment-failure.txt
fi

5. Use with Progress Deadline

spec:
  progressDeadlineSeconds: 300  # Match your --timeout

Comparison with Alternatives

Method	Blocking	Exit Code	Best For
`kubectl rollout status`	Yes	Yes	CI/CD, scripts
`kubectl get deployment`	No	No	Quick checks
`kubectl describe deployment`	No	No	Debugging
`kubectl get pods -w`	Yes	No	Visual monitoring

Conclusion

Kubectl rollout status deployment is essential for reliable Kubernetes deployments in 2026. Key takeaways:

Use in all CI/CD pipelines for deployment verification
Always set timeouts with --timeout
Combine with kubectl rollout undo for auto-rollback
Check exit codes for automation
Use --watch=false for non-blocking status checks

Master this command to build robust deployment pipelines and catch issues early.

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