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--- title: Create an AKS-managed GPU node pool on Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) description: Learn how to provision a fully managed GPU node pool on your new or existing cluster on Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS). ms.topic: how-to ms.custom: devx-track-azurecli ms.subservice: aks-developer ms.date: 11/7/2025 author: sachidesai ms.author: sachidesai ms.service: azure-kubernetes-service # Customer intent: As a cluster administrator or developer, I want to provision an Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) cluster with GPU-enabled node pools, without deploying or managing the fundamental GPU software and observability components myself. --- # Create a fully managed GPU node pool on Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) (preview) When you run GPU workloads in Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), you need to install and maintain several software components, including the GPU driver, Kubernetes device plugin, and GPU metrics exporter for telemetry. These components are essential for enabling GPU scheduling, container-level GPU access, observability of resource usage, and proper functioning of AKS GPU-enabled nodes. Previously, cluster operators had to either install these components manually or use open-source alternatives like the [NVIDIA GPU Operator](./nvidia-gpu-operator.md), which can introduce complexity and operational overhead. AKS now supports fully managed GPU nodes (preview) and installs the NVIDIA GPU driver, device plugin, and Data Center GPU Manager [(DCGM) metrics exporter](https://github.com/NVIDIA/dcgm-exporter/tree/main) by default. This feature enables one-step GPU node pool creation and makes the availability of GPU resources in AKS as simple as general purpose CPU nodes. In this article, you learn how to provision a fully managed GPU node pool (preview) in your AKS cluster, including default installation of the NVIDIA GPU driver, device plugin, and metrics exporter. [!INCLUDE [preview features callout](~/reusable-content/ce-skilling/azure/includes/aks/includes/preview/preview-callout.md)] ## Before you begin - This article assumes you have an existing AKS cluster. If you don't have a cluster, create one using the [Azure CLI][aks-quickstart-cli], [Azure PowerShell][aks-quickstart-powershell], or the [Azure portal][aks-quickstart-portal]. - You need the Azure CLI version 2.72.2 or later installed. To find the version, run `az --version`. If you need to install or upgrade, see [Install Azure CLI][install-azure-cli]. - You need to [install and upgrade to latest version of the `aks-preview` extension](#install-the-aks-preview-cli-extension). - You need to [register the `ManagedGPUExperiencePreview` feature flag in your subscription](#register-the-managedgpuexperiencepreview-feature-flag-in-your-subscription). ## Limitations - This feature currently supports [NVIDIA GPU-enabled virtual machine (VM) sizes](/azure/virtual-machines/sizes-gpu) only. - Updating a general-purpose node pool to add a GPU VM size isn't supported on AKS. - Windows node pools are not supported with this feature, because GPU metrics are not supported. When creating Windows GPU node pools, AKS automatically installs and manages the drivers and Directx device plugin. See [AKS Windows GPU documentation](./use-windows-gpu.md) for more information. - Migrating your existing [multi-instance GPU](./gpu-multi-instance.md) node pools to use this feature isn't supported. - In-place upgrades to use this feature on existing GPU-enabled nodes isn't supported. > [!NOTE] > GPU-enabled VMs contain specialized hardware subject to higher pricing and region availability. For more information, see the [pricing][azure-pricing] tool and [region availability][azure-availability]. ### Install the `aks-preview` CLI extension 1. Install the `aks-preview` CLI extension using the [`az extension add`][az-extension-add] command. ```azurecli-interactive az extension add --name aks-preview ``` 1. Update the extension to ensure you have the latest version installed using the [`az extension update`][az-extension-update] command. ```azurecli-interactive az extension update --name aks-preview ``` ### Register the `ManagedGPUExperiencePreview` feature flag in your subscription - Register the `ManagedGPUExperiencePreview` feature flag in your subscription using the [`az feature register`][az-feature-register] command. ```azurecli-interactive az feature register --namespace Microsoft.ContainerService --name ManagedGPUExperiencePreview ``` ## Get the credentials for your cluster - Get the credentials for your AKS cluster using the [`az aks get-credentials`][az-aks-get-credentials] command. ```azurecli-interactive az aks get-credentials --resource-group $RESOURCE_GROUP --name $CLUSTER_NAME ``` ## Create an AKS-managed GPU node pool (preview) You can add a fully managed GPU node pool (preview) to an existing AKS cluster by specifying OS SKU and `--tags EnableManagedGPUExperience=true` command. When you do this, AKS will install the GPU driver, GPU device plugin, and metrics exporter automatically. ### [Ubuntu Linux node pool (default SKU)](#tab/add-ubuntu-gpu-node-pool) To use the default Ubuntu operating system (OS) SKU, you create the node pool without specifying an OS SKU. The node pool is configured for the default operating system based on the Kubernetes version of the cluster. 1. Add a node pool to your cluster using the [`az aks nodepool add`][az-aks-nodepool-add] command with the `--tags EnableManagedGPUExperience=true` command. ```azurecli-interactive az aks nodepool add \ --resource‐group MyResourceGroup \ --cluster‐name MyAKSCluster \ --name gpunp \ --node‐count 1 \ --node‐vm‐size Standard_NC6s_v3 \ --node‐taints sku=gpu:NoSchedule \ --enable‐cluster‐autoscaler \ --min‐count 1 \ --max‐count 3 \ --tags EnableManagedGPUExperience=true ``` 1. Confirm that the managed NVIDIA GPU software components are installed successfully: ```azurecli-interactive az aks nodepool show \ --resource-group myResourceGroup \ --cluster-name myAKSCluster \ --name gpunp \ ``` Your output should include the following values: ```output ... ... "gpuInstanceProfile": … "gpuProfile": { "driver": "Install" }, ... ... ``` ### [Azure Linux node pool](#tab/add-azure-linux-gpu-node-pool) To use Azure Linux, you specify the operating system (OS) SKU by setting `os-sku` to `AzureLinux` during node pool creation. The `os-type` is set to `Linux` by default. 1. Add a node pool to your cluster using the [`az aks nodepool add`][az-aks-nodepool-add] command with the `--os-sku` flag set to `AzureLinux` and `--tags EnableManagedGPUExperience=true`. ```azurecli-interactive az aks nodepool add \ --resource-group myResourceGroup \ --cluster-name myAKSCluster \ --name gpunp \ --node-count 1 \ --os-sku AzureLinux \ --node-vm-size Standard_NC6s_v3 \ --node-taints sku=gpu:NoSchedule \ --enable-cluster-autoscaler \ --min-count 1 \ --max-count 3 --tags EnableManagedGPUExperience=true ``` 1. Confirm that the managed NVIDIA GPU software components are installed successfully: ```azurecli-interactive az aks nodepool show \ --resource-group myResourceGroup \ --cluster-name myAKSCluster \ --name gpunp \ ``` Your output should include the following values: ```output ... ... "gpuInstanceProfile": … "gpuProfile": { "driver": "Install" }, ... ... ``` --- ## Migrate existing GPU workloads to an AKS-managed GPU node pool In-place upgrades from a standard NVIDIA GPU node pool to a fully managed NVIDIA GPU node pool (preview) on your AKS cluster isn't supported. We recommend cordoning and draining your existing GPU nodes, then redeploying your workloads to a new GPU-enabled node pool with this feature enabled. See [Resize node pools on AKS](./resize-node-pool.md) to learn more. ## Bring your own (BYO) GPU driver If you want to control the installation of the NVIDIA drivers or use the [NVIDIA GPU Operator](https://docs.nvidia.com/datacenter/cloud-native/gpu-operator/latest/getting-started.html), you can bypass the GPU driver installation during node pool creation. In this case, Microsoft **doesn't support or manage** the maintenance and compatibility of the NVIDIA drivers as part of the node image deployment. See [Skip GPU driver installation](./use-nvidia-gpu.md#skip-gpu-driver-installation) for NVIDIA GPU-enabled nodes on AKS to learn more. ## Next steps - Deploy a [sample GPU workload](./use-nvidia-gpu.md#run-a-gpu-enabled-workload) on your AKS-managed GPU-enabled nodes. - Learn about [GPU utilization and performance metrics](./monitor-gpu-metrics.md) from managed NVIDIA DCGM exporter on your GPU node pool. ## Related articles - Learn about [GPU health monitoring](./gpu-health-monitoring.md) with Node Problem Detector (NPD) on AKS. - Run [distributed inference on multiple AKS GPU nodes](https://blog.aks.azure.com/2025/07/08/kaito-inference-with-acstor). <!-- LINKS - external --> [kubectl-apply]: https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/generated/kubectl/kubectl-commands#apply [kubectl-get]: https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/generated/kubectl/kubectl-commands#get [kubectl-describe]: https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/generated/kubectl/kubectl-commands#describe [kubectl-logs]: https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/generated/kubectl/kubectl-commands#logs [kubectl delete]: https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/generated/kubectl/kubectl-commands#delete [kubectl-create]: https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/generated/kubectl/kubectl-commands#create [azure-pricing]: https://azure.microsoft.com/pricing/ [azure-availability]: https://azure.microsoft.com/global-infrastructure/services/ <!-- LINKS - internal --> [az-aks-create]: /cli/azure/aks#az_aks_create [az-aks-nodepool-update]: /cli/azure/aks/nodepool#az_aks_nodepool_update [az-aks-nodepool-add]: /cli/azure/aks/nodepool#az_aks_nodepool_add [az-aks-get-credentials]: /cli/azure/aks#az_aks_get_credentials [aks-quickstart-cli]: ./learn/quick-kubernetes-deploy-cli.md [aks-quickstart-portal]: ./learn/quick-kubernetes-deploy-portal.md [aks-quickstart-powershell]: ./learn/quick-kubernetes-deploy-powershell.md [gpu-skus]: /azure/virtual-machines/sizes-gpu [install-azure-cli]: /cli/azure/install-azure-cli [nvidia-gpu-operator]: nvidia-gpu-operator.md [az-provider-register]: /cli/azure/provider#az-provider-register [az-feature-register]: /cli/azure/feature#az-feature-register [az-feature-show]: /cli/azure/feature#az-feature-show [az-extension-add]: /cli/azure/extension#az-extension-add [az-extension-update]: /cli/azure/extension#az-extension-update