kubernetes-sigs/cluster-api

Add machineNaming support to MachineDeploymentClass and MachineDeploymentTopology

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#13,540 opened on Apr 4, 2026

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area/apiarea/clusterclassarea/machinedeploymenthelp wantedkind/featurepriority/backlogtriage/accepted

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Description

What would you like to be added (User Story)?

machineNaming field from MachineDeploymentSpec should be exposed in MachineDeploymentClass and MachineDeploymentTopology so topology-managed clusters can customize Machine names within MachineDeployments.

Detailed Description

machineNaming on MachineDeploymentSpec allows customizing Machine names, but the topology controller doesn't propagate it. There's no way to set it through ClusterClass or Cluster topology.

This means topology-managed MachineDeployments always produce Machine names like cluster-worker-8fh2k-xn4wp (MachineSet name + random suffix). There's no way to simplify this to e.g. cluster-worker-xn4wp.

Proposal: add machineNaming to MachineDeploymentClass with optional override in MachineDeploymentTopology, same as how naming already works for the MachineDeployment object name.

References:

  • MachineNamingStrategy on MachineDeploymentSpec: #9340
  • naming / machineNaming rename: #12524
  • API consistency umbrella: #12497

Anything else you would like to add?

Same gap applies to MachinePoolClass / MachinePoolTopology.

Label(s) to be applied

/kind feature /area clusterclass /area machinedeployment /area api

Contributor guide

Research direction
Understand the existing machineNaming implementation in MachineDeploymentSpec, then propagate it through ClusterClass and Cluster topology by adding fields to MachineDeploymentClass and MachineDeploymentTopology.
Tech stack
go
Domain
backendapi
Issue type
Feature
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
3
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
1-2 days
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
Active
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
Clear
Prerequisites
GoKubernetesCluster API
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
30