Support for worker node deletion, along with new cordon and drain options

You can now delete specific worker nodes in Kubernetes clusters you've created with Container Engine for Kubernetes.

To ensure that workloads running on a cluster are not disrupted when you delete a worker node, new Cordon and drain options (with sensible defaults) enable you to specify when and how the worker node is terminated. You can specify an eviction grace period, to allow time for the worker node to be cordoned and drained before terminating it. And you can choose whether to force the termination of the worker node at the end of the eviction grace period, even if the worker node has not been successfully cordoned and drained.

Worker nodes are also deleted when you scale down node pools and change placement configurations. The same Cordon and drain options are available to ensure that worker nodes are deleted safely during these operations, without disrupting workloads running on the cluster.

For more information, see Deleting Worker Nodes.