On-Prem Rancher Kubernetes Setup

I need a clean, reproducible Rancher-managed Kubernetes cluster running on my on-premise hardware. The cluster will serve as our primary development environment, so rapid spin-up of microservices, frequent redeploys, and straightforward troubleshooting are critical.

Here is what I expect:

• Architecture & prerequisites – validate my server specs, storage, and network layout, then outline the node roles and any required OS tweaks.
• Installation – deploy Rancher, provision the Kubernetes cluster through it, and harden the installation with sensible defaults (HA etc. only if the existing hardware allows).
• Core configuration – set up namespaces, ingress, basic RBAC, and persistent storage suitable for microservices in dev.
• Demonstration – deploy a simple sample microservice to prove scheduling, service discovery, and ingress all work.
• Handover – provide clear runbooks or scripts so I can rebuild or expand the cluster without guesswork.

Tool-wise, I already use Docker, GitLab CI, and Helm charts, so please align with those where it makes sense.

I will regard the job as complete once I can click through Rancher, see a healthy cluster, and deploy/rollback a containerised service in under a minute.