Introduction
The Kubernetes landscape within VMware's ecosystem has undergone a significant transformation over the past year. What was once known as the Tanzu Kubernetes release (TKr) is now officially the vSphere Kubernetes release (VKr) — a rename that reflects a broader strategic shift toward a vSphere-centric, enterprise-grade Kubernetes experience under the VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) umbrella.
Whether you're a platform engineer managing production clusters, a DevOps practitioner planning your next upgrade cycle, or a cloud architect designing a Kubernetes strategy for your organization, understanding what VKr means today is essential.
What Is vSphere Kubernetes Release (VKr)?
vSphere Kubernetes release (VKr) is VMware's signed and supported Kubernetes software distribution, purpose-built for use with vSphere Kubernetes Service (VKS) clusters running in the vSphere Supervisor environment. Every VKr distribution aligns with upstream Kubernetes versioning and comes packaged with:
- A tested and signed Kubernetes binary
- Pre-bundled VMware-specific packages (Antrea CNI, vSphere CSI, CPI, Pinniped, etc.)
- Support for multiple operating systems: Photon OS 5.0, Ubuntu 22.04, Ubuntu 24.04(VKr 1.33 onwards), RHEL 9(VKr 1.35 onwards), and Windows Server 2022(VKr 1.31 onwards)
- Compatibility with the VKS Standard Packages ecosystem
In simple terms:
VKr = A VMware-tested, validated, and lifecycle-managed Kubernetes version for vSphere.
Each VKr is distributed via a vSphere content library — either a subscribed (internet-connected) or local (air-gapped) library — and can be listed in your environment using:
kubectl get kr
Why VKr?
Managing Kubernetes versions manually can be complex and error-prone.
VKr solves this by:
- Providing pre-tested Kubernetes versions
- Ensuring compatibility with vSphere components
- Simplifying cluster lifecycle management
- Offering enterprise-grade stability and support
How VKr Works (Workflow)
- Admin enables Workload Management(Supervisor) on vSphere
- Supervisor Cluster is created
- VKr versions become available (After attaching content library to Supervisor)
- Admin selects an available VKr version
- Kubernetes cluster is deployed using that release
- Future upgrades are done via VKS/VKr lifecycle management
VKr vs TKr vs VKS — Comparison
Quick Reference
| VKS | VKr | TKr | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | vSphere Kubernetes Service | vSphere Kubernetes release | Tanzu Kubernetes release |
| One-liner | The platform | Current distro name (2025+) | Legacy distro name (pre-2025) |
Detailed Comparison
| Attribute | VKS | VKr | TKr |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Kubernetes platform layer inside vSphere / VCF | Signed Kubernetes distro deployed on clusters | Previous name for the same concept as VKr |
| Layer / role | Platform | Distribution | Distribution (deprecated name) |
| Introduced | Originally as TKG Service; renamed VKS in 2025 | Renamed from TKr with VKS 3.3 GA · March 2025 | Original naming under Tanzu branding (pre-2025) |
| Status | Active | Active — current term | Deprecated — name retired |
| Versioning | VKS 3.3,3.4, 3.5, 3.6… (platform releases) | Mirrors upstream K8s: v1.33, v1.34, v1.35… | Same versioning scheme as VKr |
| Relationship | Contains and manages VKr versions | Deployed by VKS; lives inside VKS | Was deployed by TKG Service; same containment model |
| kubectl command | — | kubectl get kr | kubectl get tkr (legacy) |
| What it bundles | Supervisor control plane, Cluster API, content library, Standard Packages ecosystem | K8s binary + Antrea CNI + vSphere CSI/CPI + Pinniped + OS images | Same bundle as VKr — no functional difference |
| OS support | — | Photon 5, Ubuntu 22.04, Ubuntu 24.04, RHEL 9, Windows Server 2022 | Photon 4/5, Ubuntu 20.04/22.04 (older versions) |
| Branding origin | Broadcom / VMware vSphere (post-Tanzu rebrand) | Broadcom / VMware vSphere (post-Tanzu rebrand) | VMware Tanzu portfolio (pre-Broadcom acquisition era) |
| Action needed? | Upgrade VKS to access new VKr versions | Migrate clusters off TKC API before upgrading to v1.33+ | No action — name change only; functional parity with VKr |
Key Takeaways
-
VKS is the platform; VKr/TKr is the distro. They operate at different layers — VKS manages everything, VKr is what actually runs inside your workload clusters.
-
TKr and VKr are functionally identical. The rename (March 2025, VKS 3.3 GA) was purely a branding change — same binary, same bundled packages, same delivery mechanism.
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The only real migration work is moving off the deprecated TKC API TanzuKubernetesCluster before upgrading clusters to VKr v1.33 or later — that API is blocked from v1.33 onwards.
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24-month support is now standard for all new VKr minor versions from v1.34, and was first introduced as Extended Support in v1.33.
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vCenter 7.x users must note that VKr v1.28 is the last supported version on vCenter 7.x (EOS: May 28, 2025).
Note : Latest Released VKr Notes are available here