kubectl cp (from pod): Usage, Options & Common CI Errors

Pull a report or artifact out of a running container to the runner.

kubectl cp in the pod-to-local direction extracts files from a container onto the CI runner - a coverage report, a generated bundle, a debug dump. The pod source path uses a namespace/pod:/path form and depends on tar inside the container.

What it does

kubectl cp NS/POD:/path/in/container ./local/path copies files out by streaming a tar archive from the container, so the source container must have a tar binary on its PATH. -c selects the container in a multi-container pod. The remote path is interpreted inside the container; the local path is on the runner.

Common usage

kubectl cp my-pod:/app/report.xml ./report.xml
kubectl cp my-ns/my-pod:/var/log/app.log ./app.log -c app
kubectl cp my-pod:/app/coverage ./coverage          # a whole directory
kubectl exec my-pod -- cat /app/report.xml > report.xml   # tar-free fallback

Common errors in CI

"tar: not found" / "exec: \"tar\": executable file not found" is the defining failure on distroless or scratch images that ship no tar - fall back to kubectl exec my-pod -- cat /path > file for a single file, or copy into a debug sidecar that has tar. kubectl warns and strips a leading / from the remote path ("Removing leading '/' from member names"), which can land the file somewhere unexpected - it is a warning, not an error, but verify the destination. Copying a directory whose local parent does not exist fails; create the target dir first.

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