What it does
This skill provides commands and procedural steps to inspect and switch Kurtosis’ runtime backend between Docker and Kubernetes. It explains how to check the current cluster, list available clusters, switch to Docker or Kubernetes, restart the Kurtosis engine, and the Kubernetes-specific setup steps (kubectl checks, starting the gateway). It references the config file location for persisting the chosen cluster.
When to use it
Use this skill when you need to move Kurtosis execution between local Docker and a Kubernetes cluster (for example, developing locally but validating in k8s), or when troubleshooting environments where Kurtosis must target a specific backend. It’s useful for CI, multi-environment workflows, and developers who orchestrate blockchain or distributed infra via Kurtosis.
What's included
- Scripts: none bundled (has_scripts=false)
- References: points to kurtosis config path and uses standard CLIs (kubectl, kurtosis)
- Instructions: concrete CLI snippets for
kurtosis cluster get/ls/set, engine restart/start, gateway invocation, and verification commands.
Compatible agents
Designed for agents that can execute shell commands and interact with developer CLIs (Codex, Claude Code, Cursor, other CLI-capable agents).
Tags
Information
- Repository
- kurtosis









