Judging from the survey data, more people lean toward choosing small clusters. Below is a comparison list from the perspective of node count and node configuration.
Below is a comparison of choosing a few large clusters versus many small clusters:
| Feature | A few large clusters | Many small clusters |
|---|---|---|
| Resource utilization | High | Low |
| Node management overhead | Low | High |
| Resource scaling range | Large | Small |
| Resource scheduling range | Large | Small |
| Efficiency of inter-application communication | High | Low |
| Cluster operations difficulty | High | Low |
| Cluster version diversity | Low | High |
| Blast radius | Large | Small |
Below is a comparison of choosing a few high-spec nodes versus many low-spec nodes:
| Feature | A few high-spec nodes | Many low-spec nodes |
|---|---|---|
| Resource utilization | High | Low |
| Node management overhead | Low | High |
| Application memory ceiling | High | Low |
| Kubelet pressure | High | Low |
| Image pull efficiency | High | Low |
| Pod density per node | High | Low |
| Blast radius | Large | Small |
| Cost per unit of resource | Low | High |
