---
title: Why isn't my namespace in the Namespace Selection dropdown?
weight: 105
---
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When deploying Kiali with the Kiali operator, by default some namespaces are https://github.com/kiali/kiali-operator/blob/v1.33/roles/default/kiali-deploy/defaults/main.yml#L24-L28[excluded] from the list of namespaces provided by the API and UI. Kiali filters out these namespaces and you will not see them in the Namespace Selection dropdown. You can adjust which namespaces are excluded by setting the `spec.api.namespaces.exclude` field on the Kiali CR.

In addition, you must ensure that Kiali has access to the namespaces you are interested in by setting the `spec.deployment.accessible_namespaces` field on the Kiali CR accordingly. Setting `spec.api.namespaces.exclude` alone does not give Kiali access to the namespaces. See the link:{{< ref "/documentation/latest/installation-guide#_namespace_management" >}}[Namespace Management] guide for more information.

Kiali also caches namespaces by default for https://github.com/kiali/kiali-operator/blob/v1.33/deploy/kiali/kiali_cr.yaml#L745-L749[10 seconds]. If the cache is enabled, it might take up to the `spec.kubernetes_config.cache_token_namespace_duration` in order for a newly added namespace to be seen by Kiali.