How to Connect Kubernetes Pods to Persistent Storage

Author

Govardhana M K
February 12, 2026

TechOps Examples

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🧠 DEEP DIVE USE CASE

How to Connect Kubernetes Pods to Persistent Storage

If you are…

  1. Running an application that must retain user uploads, logs, or generated files.

  2. Deploying a database that cannot afford data loss on restart or rescheduling.

  3. Sharing data between multiple Pods that need access to the same storage.

then you need to understand how Kubernetes connects Pods to persistent storage.

Basics First

Persistent Volume (PV)

A Persistent Volume is a piece of storage inside the Kubernetes cluster.
Think of it like a hard disk. Even if a Pod restarts or moves, the data remains.

The storage can be local disk, NFS, or cloud storage like AWS EBS, GCP Disk, or Azure Disk.

The key idea is abstraction. Developers do not need to manage cloud disks, mount commands, or storage plugins manually. They just use the Kubernetes API.

Persistent Volume Claim (PVC)

A Persistent Volume Claim is a request for storage. You define how much storage you need and Kubernetes binds your request to a matching PV.

Different storage systems exist for different use cases: block storage, network file systems, object storage, and more.

Managing each one separately would be complex. Persistent Volumes solve this by providing a common interface.

❝

PV is the actual storage.
PVC is the request for that storage.

What Actually Happens During Binding

Pod spec references a PVC

In pod.yaml, under volumes, you reference a persistentVolumeClaim.
The Pod does not know anything about disks, EBS, or NFS. It only knows the claim name.

PVC defines storage requirements

In pvc.yaml, you define:

  • resources.requests.storage

  • accessModes

  • Optional storageClassName

Example: request 3Gi with ReadWriteOnce.

Control Plane Binding Logic

The PersistentVolume controller watches for unbound PVCs. It searches for a PV that matches:

  • Capacity ≥ requested size

  • Compatible access mode

  • Matching StorageClass

  • Not already bound

If a match exists, it binds the PVC to that PV.

Dynamic Provisioning (if enabled)

If no PV exists but a StorageClass is defined, Kubernetes triggers the CSI driver. The CSI driver provisions a new volume (EBS, GCE PD, Azure Disk, etc.) and creates a PV automatically. The PVC is then bound to the newly created PV.

Volume Mount on the Node

When the Pod is scheduled:

  • Kubelet sees the bound PVC

  • It calls the CSI driver on that node

  • The volume is attached and mounted

  • The container receives the mounted path

At runtime: Pod → PVC → PV → CSI Driver → Actual Storage

Having understood how PVs and PVCs work and how Kubernetes binds them, let us now see how this looks in a practical, end to end implementation inside a cluster.

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