A ConfigMap holds nonsecret application configuration. Its data values are strings, even when a value looks numeric. Keeping configuration separate lets the same image run in different environments. Creating the resource is only half the work: a Pod must consume it through environment references or a mounted volume. A missing map or key can prevent startup. Also remember that an existing process environment doesn't refresh merely because the source map changed; a rollout may be part of the production change. The exercises first prepare settings, then connect a Pod to the exact named map without baking those settings into its image.