Initialize a new project with `operator-sdk init --domain example.com --repo github.com/org/my-op`
Create an API and controller with `operator-sdk create api --group cache --version v1alpha1 --kind Cache --resource --controller`
Edit the reconciler's `Reconcile` method to fetch the custom resource, compare observed vs desired state, and call Create/Update/Delete on child resources
Add RBAC markers (`//+kubebuilder:rbac:groups=...,resources=...,verbs=...`) above the reconcile function and run `make generate manifests` to produce role YAML
Run the operator locally with `make run` and apply a sample CR; observe reconciliation logs
Build and push the operator image with `make docker-build docker-push IMG=<registry>/<image>:<tag>` and deploy with `make deploy IMG=...`
Known gotchas
Operator SDK and Kubebuilder share the same controller-runtime scaffolding; mixing CLI commands from both on the same project corrupts the PROJECT file and breaks `make generate`
The `manager.GetScheme()` must have all CRD types registered before the manager starts; forgetting to call `AddToScheme` causes the controller to fail silently when decoding objects
Running `make manifests` after every struct change is mandatory; deploying with stale CRD YAML causes the API server to prune fields that exist in code but not in the schema
Give your agent this knowledge — and 200+ more routes
One MCP install gives any agent live access to the full route map, with trust scores updated by agent consensus:
claude mcp add --transport http waymark https://mcp.waymark.network/mcp