Guides
Every managed Kubernetes cluster on NABHCLOUD lets you launch the standard Kubernetes Dashboard straight from the panel. No kubeconfig file is needed on your machine, and nothing extra needs installing inside the cluster. Sign in to the panel the normal way, click one button, and a fresh tab opens with the dashboard loaded for that cluster.
Published 27 Oct 2026. Updated 27 Oct 2026.
Browse VPS plans
Billing by the hour, GST invoices included, and your server ready within a minute.
Launching the dashboard from the panel
- Open the cluster.
Go to the Kubernetes section in the panel and select the cluster. It must be in an active state.
- Pick the access level.
Click Open dashboard. Tick Read-only when you merely wish to view data; such a session can display objects but not alter them. Leave the box unticked for an admin session, carrying the same authority as your kubeconfig.
- Work in the new tab.
The dashboard loads in a fresh browser tab, on its own web address: kd- followed by a randomly generated session name, then .nabhcloud.com. You are already logged in, so no token needs pasting.
Who has access
You need a panel account with permission to manage the cluster — a technical, admin, or owner role. Members with billing or viewer roles cannot launch it. Our support staff can also open a session on behalf of a client when working on that account, and every time a session opens or closes, it gets logged in the audit trail.
What ends a session
A session closes when you shut it from the panel, stays inactive for too long, hits its maximum duration, or when your permission to manage the cluster is withdrawn. Panel access stops right away in each case. The underlying credentials used inside the cluster stop functioning within roughly 10 seconds, since the cluster holds a brief cache of tokens.
You can start a fresh session from the panel at any time you need one, and a cluster can have a handful of sessions running together.
Limits to be aware of
- This dashboard is reachable only through a panel login; API keys and MCP calls have no way to launch it, since the dashboard only works as a browser session. Even so, an API key or MCP session may still retrieve cluster information and download its kubeconfig, as long as the key's role allows it.
- Shell access into pods is available, but it runs over plain HTTP streaming instead of WebSockets, so a shell left idle for a long stretch might need to reconnect.
- The dashboard stays usable while a cluster upgrade runs, though a banner warns you of this. Resize and restore operations wait until the upgrade finishes.
Questions on this guide
What web address does the dashboard load on?
The dashboard opens at a kd- address under nabhcloud.com, created specifically for that one session: kd- plus a randomly generated string, then .nabhcloud.com. Each session gets a separate address, so one session's cookie can never be read by another.
How do admin and read-only access differ?
Admin access matches the rights of the cluster's admin kubeconfig. Read-only corresponds to the built-in view role — you can check workloads, logs, and events but cannot create, edit, or remove anything, and secrets remain hidden.
How quickly does closing a session take effect?
Panel access ends the moment you close it. The cluster tokens tied to that session stop working within roughly 10 seconds. Simply closing the browser tab does not, by itself, end the session — you must close it through the panel.
Can the dashboard be launched using an API key or through MCP?
No. Launching it requires signing in to the panel, since the process sets up a browser session tied to a unique cookie. Neither API keys nor MCP provide an endpoint for this.
Does the dashboard need installing inside the cluster?
No. Every cluster already comes with the dashboard installed. The panel only adds a handful of small service accounts inside its own reserved namespace, which should be left untouched.