cni tips — authorized cni network-plugin literacy

Snapshot

Tip checklist (authorized only)

1. Confirm you may run cni on the lab host (syllabus box you own or were given access to).
2. Prefer documenting who / why / ticket before any pull/push/run — never poke production engines without change control.
3. Record short factual notes; quote short Evidence (image name, digest, id — never registry tokens or secret mounts).
4. Optional: runtime peer → podman-tips.
5. Optional: netfilter peer → iptables-tips.
6. Prefer disposable lab images/registries for cni drills; quote non-secret labels afterward as Evidence.
7. Prefer read-only inspect/list modes for most Evidence binders unless the syllabus asks for write drills.
8. Stop at literacy — no attack or unauthorized container-escape cookbooks.

Allowed framing

• Classroom labs reviewing cni on authorized disposable engines (reading authorized CNI conflists / plugin versions).
• Binding short factual notes as Evidence (image/id/network — no secrets).
• Documenting expected vs observed cni network-plugin literacy for authorized inventory notes.
• Comparing cni ↔ peer tip pages under one binder.
• Testing write/push/run only when the syllabus authorizes that drill on lab resources.

Scope we will not cover

• No crack/pirate/keygen via cni.
• No intentional unauthorized container escapes or privileged mounts against foreign hosts.
• No secret-theft or credential harvesting via secret mounts / registry tokens on hosts you do not own.
• No cookbooks that weaken CNI / netfilter policy for unauthorized lateral movement on foreign clusters.

Beginner path (authorized only)

1. Obtain one syllabus-approved disposable lab host with a usable cni toolchain.
2. Prefer a throwaway lab image/registry before any write drill.
3. With authorization, run a syllabus-approved cni list/inspect; quote non-secret labels as Evidence (list plugin binaries + quote conflist plugin types the syllabus authorized).
4. Optional: peer tip pages above when the syllabus asks.
5. Stop at literacy — no attack or unauthorized escape cookbooks.

Practical notes for authorized labs

• CNI is a plugin interface — keep Evidence labels (plugin type, conflist name) distinct from podman-tips containers and iptables-tips filter tables.
• Pair with nsenter-tips only when the syllabus authorizes netns inspection on lab pods.
• Registry logins and secret mounts may embed credentials — never paste them into notes or git.
• Prefer documenting image/name/network labels the syllabus authorized without dumping full secret inspect JSON.
• Never commit cni dumps with secrets to git — even for labs.
• Label lab-only artifacts clearly so they are not mistaken for production posture.
• Quote conflist plugin types and binary versions — never paste live cluster network credentials into notes.

FAQ-aligned refusals (quick)

• Foreign-host container inspect / escape → refuse.
• Unauthorized CNI/netfilter-weaken / lateral-movement cookbooks → refuse.
• Attack/credential-theft framing → refuse.

For legal, authorized and educational use only.

FAQ

Sources