“Boring” is the highest compliment you can give a platform. It means predictable operations, repeatable outcomes, and fewer surprises.
Standardize the baseline
Create a reference cluster with opinionated defaults: network policies, logging, and monitoring turned on from day one. Cloning a known‑good template reduces entropy.
Right‑size autoscaling
Set realistic defaults for cluster autoscaler and HPA. Keep limits bounded. Treat autoscaling like a safety mechanism, not a license to ignore capacity planning.
Upgrade like a product
Ship upgrades as if you were shipping features: announce, test, roll out in waves, and measure impact. This turns risky maintenance into a routine release.
Outcome
Boring EKS is stable EKS—exactly what your teams need to build on confidently.