Linkerd Architecture

Linkerd Architecture An architecture diagram generated by Archify. Destination · Service Discovery · Control Plane Destination Service Discovery Identity · Certificate Authority · Control Plane Identity Certificate Authority Proxy Injector · Webhook · Control Plane Proxy Injector Webhook Linkerd2-proxy · Rust · Data Plane › Pod 1 Linkerd2-proxy Rust Application · Application container · Data Plane › Pod 1 Application Application container Linkerd2-proxy · Rust · Data Plane › Pod 2 Linkerd2-proxy Rust Application · Application container · Data Plane › Pod 2 Application Application container Inject Inject Certificates Certificates Endpoints Endpoints mTLS (bidirectional) Control Plane Data Plane Pod 1 Pod 2 Legend Backend Security

Core Components

  • • Destination: service discovery and routing policies
  • • Identity: automatic mTLS certificate issuance
  • • Proxy Injector: automatic sidecar injection

Features

  • • Proxy: Linkerd2-proxy (Rust, custom-built)
  • • Architecture: microservice control plane
  • • Strengths: ultra-lightweight, easy installation and operation, fast performance
  • • Weaknesses: limited features, no VM support