Getting Started with Cilium eBPF

Cilium is an open-source project that leverages the power of eBPF to provide advanced networking and security features for containerized environments.

Note: If you’re unfamiliar with eBPF or want to get a quick review, I wrote an intro article about eBPF in this article. Read on!

Cilium enables API-aware network security, load balancing, and visibility for microservices, both on-premises and in the cloud, providing a transparent and efficient way to secure and manage network communication between containers, virtual machines, and bare-metal hosts without the need for complex, traditional networking components.

Some notable use cases include securing cloud-native applications, improving network performance, and simplifying network management.

With its programmable nature, Cilium eBPF can help reduce the complexity of managing containerized environments, making it easier for teams to deploy and manage their applications.

In this article, I’ll walk you through the process of getting started with Cilium eBPF, including installation, setup, and code samples in the Go language.

Let’s get started!

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure that you have the following prerequisites: