diff --git a/NOTICE.txt b/NOTICE.txt
index d934eeb3120..fab5243022f 100644
--- a/NOTICE.txt
+++ b/NOTICE.txt
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-Copyright 2018-2025 Elasticsearch BV
+Copyright 2018-2026 Elasticsearch BV
 
 This product includes software developed by The Apache Software
 Foundation (http://www.apache.org/).
diff --git a/config/samples/elasticsearch/elasticsearch.yaml b/config/samples/elasticsearch/elasticsearch.yaml
index 45da21c3319..8cdb0e210a8 100644
--- a/config/samples/elasticsearch/elasticsearch.yaml
+++ b/config/samples/elasticsearch/elasticsearch.yaml
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ spec:
         #   securityContext:
         #     privileged: true
         #     runAsUser: 0
-        #   command: ['sh', '-c', 'sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=262144']
+        #   command: ['sh', '-c', 'sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=1048576']
         ###
         # uncomment the line below if you are using a service mesh such as linkerd2 that uses service account tokens for pod identification.
         # automountServiceAccountToken: true
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/hot-warm-cold.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/hot-warm-cold.yaml
index 4eb99e60eb4..9e591275de7 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/hot-warm-cold.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/hot-warm-cold.yaml
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ nodeSets:
   config:
     node.roles: ["master"]
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ nodeSets:
   config:
     node.roles: ["data_hot", "data_content", "ingest"]
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
@@ -103,7 +103,7 @@ nodeSets:
   config:
     node.roles: ["data_warm"]
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ nodeSets:
   config:
     node.roles: ["data_cold"]
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-aks.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-aks.yaml
index 0ca310c34be..6c7bbe6643a 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-aks.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-aks.yaml
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ nodeSets:
 - name: default
   count: 3
   # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-  # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+  # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
   # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
   # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
   #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-eks-alb.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-eks-alb.yaml
index d3cc4041ec2..00d982ad9f6 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-eks-alb.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-eks-alb.yaml
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ nodeSets:
 - name: default
   count: 3
   # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-  # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+  # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
   # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
   # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
   #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-eks-nlb.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-eks-nlb.yaml
index 3809e871cf4..7d9ffae66b0 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-eks-nlb.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-eks-nlb.yaml
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ nodeSets:
 - name: default
   count: 3
   # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-  # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+  # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
   # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
   # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
   #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-gke.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-gke.yaml
index 3adbd29c0ce..d7c6a2cb86f 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-gke.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/examples/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-gke.yaml
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ nodeSets:
 - name: default
   count: 3
   # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-  # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+  # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
   # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
   # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
   #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/values.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/values.yaml
index 5826cc7979e..1050289f83a 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/values.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-elasticsearch/values.yaml
@@ -164,7 +164,7 @@ nodeSets:
   count: 1
   config:
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
@@ -260,7 +260,7 @@ nodeSets:
     # - command:
     #   - sh
     #   - "-c"
-    #   - sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=262144
+    #   - sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=1048576
     #   name: sysctl
     #   securityContext:
     #     privileged: true
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-kibana/examples/ingress/kibana-eks.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-kibana/examples/ingress/kibana-eks.yaml
index c5f2f43b537..e49390fd8b9 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-kibana/examples/ingress/kibana-eks.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/charts/eck-kibana/examples/ingress/kibana-eks.yaml
@@ -40,7 +40,7 @@ nodeSets:
 - name: default
   count: 3
   # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-  # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+  # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
   # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
   # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
   #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/agent/fleet-agents.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/agent/fleet-agents.yaml
index 4358b6f6042..922f337411d 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/agent/fleet-agents.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/agent/fleet-agents.yaml
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
   - name: default
     count: 3
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/apm-server/basic.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/apm-server/basic.yaml
index 227b58257d7..f1b3406feff 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/apm-server/basic.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/apm-server/basic.yaml
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
   - name: default
     count: 3
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/apm-server/jaeger-with-http-configuration.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/apm-server/jaeger-with-http-configuration.yaml
index b694955ff3c..dcf03b19510 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/apm-server/jaeger-with-http-configuration.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/apm-server/jaeger-with-http-configuration.yaml
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
   - name: default
     count: 3
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/beats/metricbeat_hosts.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/beats/metricbeat_hosts.yaml
index 7529c553364..0dd3826142f 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/beats/metricbeat_hosts.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/beats/metricbeat_hosts.yaml
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
     count: 3
     config:
       # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
       # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
       # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
       #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/custom-elasticsearch-kibana.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/custom-elasticsearch-kibana.yaml
index 081f585137d..020060e1a40 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/custom-elasticsearch-kibana.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/custom-elasticsearch-kibana.yaml
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
     count: 1
     config:
       # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
       # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
       # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
       #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/elasticsearch/hot-warm-cold.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/elasticsearch/hot-warm-cold.yaml
index 919cb4c7b2f..2fba35fc7ec 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/elasticsearch/hot-warm-cold.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/elasticsearch/hot-warm-cold.yaml
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
     config:
       node.roles: ["master"]
       # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
       # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
       # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
       #
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
     config:
       node.roles: ["data_hot", "data_content", "ingest"]
       # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
       # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
       # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
       #
@@ -104,7 +104,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
     config:
       node.roles: ["data_warm"]
       # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
       # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
       # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
       #
@@ -153,7 +153,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
     config:
       node.roles: ["data_cold"]
       # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
       # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
       # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
       #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/elasticsearch/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-gke.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/elasticsearch/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-gke.yaml
index 0ca2e8a5918..4b23a06ca06 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/elasticsearch/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-gke.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/elasticsearch/ingress/elasticsearch-ingress-gke.yaml
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
   - name: default
     count: 3
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/enterprise-search/basic.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/enterprise-search/basic.yaml
index aeb61b061d5..5e0e1f6f026 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/enterprise-search/basic.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/enterprise-search/basic.yaml
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
   - name: default
     count: 3
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/enterprise-search/with-custom-configuration.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/enterprise-search/with-custom-configuration.yaml
index a7c3ad49cc0..5413e93317b 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/enterprise-search/with-custom-configuration.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/enterprise-search/with-custom-configuration.yaml
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
   - name: default
     count: 3
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/kibana/ingress/kibana-gke.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/kibana/ingress/kibana-gke.yaml
index 339a7a578a5..52a6e7708b0 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/kibana/ingress/kibana-gke.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/kibana/ingress/kibana-gke.yaml
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
   - name: default
     count: 3
     # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+    # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
     # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
     # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/master/k8s-virtual-memory.html
     #
diff --git a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/logstash/basic-eck.yaml b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/logstash/basic-eck.yaml
index 00f0b94f9ee..969b87777f3 100644
--- a/deploy/eck-stack/examples/logstash/basic-eck.yaml
+++ b/deploy/eck-stack/examples/logstash/basic-eck.yaml
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ eck-elasticsearch:
     count: 3
     config:
       # Comment out when setting the vm.max_map_count via initContainer, as these are mutually exclusive.
-      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 262144
+      # For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting vm.max_map_count to 1048576
       # and leave node.store.allow_mmap unset.
       # ref: https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/cloud-on-k8s/current/k8s-virtual-memory.html
       #
diff --git a/docs/orchestrating-elastic-stack-applications/elasticsearch/virtual-memory.asciidoc b/docs/orchestrating-elastic-stack-applications/elasticsearch/virtual-memory.asciidoc
index 6a90d6a5ddf..1591acb919b 100644
--- a/docs/orchestrating-elastic-stack-applications/elasticsearch/virtual-memory.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/orchestrating-elastic-stack-applications/elasticsearch/virtual-memory.asciidoc
@@ -9,9 +9,11 @@ endif::[]
 = Virtual memory
 
 By default, Elasticsearch uses memory mapping (`mmap`) to efficiently access indices.
-Usually, default values for virtual address space on Linux distributions are too low for Elasticsearch to work properly, which may result in out-of-memory exceptions. This is why link:k8s-quickstart.html[the quickstart example] disables `mmap` through the `node.store.allow_mmap: false` setting. For production workloads, it is strongly recommended to increase the kernel setting `vm.max_map_count` to `262144` and leave `node.store.allow_mmap` unset.
+Default values for virtual address space on Linux distributions can be too low for Elasticsearch to work properly, which may result in out-of-memory exceptions. This is why link:k8s-quickstart.html[the quickstart example] disables `mmap` through the `node.store.allow_mmap: false` setting. For production workloads, we recommend that you increase the kernel setting `vm.max_map_count` to `1048576` and leave `node.store.allow_mmap` unset.
 
-The kernel setting `vm.max_map_count=262144` can be set on the host directly, by a dedicated init container which must be privileged, or a dedicated Daemonset.
+The kernel setting `vm.max_map_count=1048576` can be set on the host directly, by a dedicated init container which must be privileged, or a dedicated Daemonset.
+
+IMPORTANT: For {{es}} version 8.16 and later, set the `vm.max_map_count` kernel setting to `1048576`; for {{es}} version 8.15 and earlier, set `vm.max_map_count` to `262144`. The exception is in GKE Autopilot environments, where `vm.max_map_count` must always be set to `262144`. This is because any privileged DaemonSet in GKE Autopilot must match the DaemonSet pre-approved by Google. 
 
 For more information, check the Elasticsearch documentation on
 link:https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/elasticsearch/reference/current/vm-max-map-count.html[Virtual memory].
@@ -32,7 +34,7 @@ spec:
 == Using an Init Container to set virtual memory
 
 To add an init container that changes the host kernel setting before your Elasticsearch container starts, you can use the following example Elasticsearch spec:
-[source,yaml,subs="attributes,+macros"]
+[source,yaml,subs="attributes,+macros,callouts"]
 ----
 cat $$<<$$EOF | kubectl apply -f -
 apiVersion: elasticsearch.k8s.elastic.co/{eck_crd_version}
@@ -51,17 +53,19 @@ spec:
           securityContext:
             privileged: true
             runAsUser: 0
-          command: ['sh', '-c', 'sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=262144']
+          command: ['sh', '-c', 'sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=1048576'] <1>
 EOF
 ----
 
+<1> In GKE Autopilot environments, `vm.max_map_count` must be set to 262144.
+
 Note that this requires the ability to run privileged containers, which is likely not the case on many secure clusters.
 
 == Using a Daemonset to set virtual memory
 
 To use a Daemonset that changes the host kernel setting on all nodes:
 
-[source,yaml,subs="attributes,+macros"]
+[source,yaml,subs="attributes,+macros,callouts"]
 ----
 cat $$<<$$EOF | kubectl apply -n elastic-system -f -
 apiVersion: apps/v1
@@ -89,7 +93,7 @@ spec:
           securityContext:
             privileged: true
             runAsUser: 0
-          command: ['/usr/local/bin/bash', '-e', '-c', 'echo 262144 > /proc/sys/vm/max_map_count']
+          command: ['/usr/local/bin/bash', '-e', '-c', 'echo 1048576 > /proc/sys/vm/max_map_count'] <1>
       containers:
         - name: sleep
           image: docker.io/bash:5.2.21
@@ -97,9 +101,11 @@ spec:
 EOF
 ----
 
+<1> In GKE Autopilot environments, `vm.max_map_count` must be set to 262144.
+
 To run an Elasticsearch instance that waits for the kernel setting to be in place:
 
-[source,yaml,subs="attributes,+macros"]
+[source,yaml,subs="attributes,+macros,callouts"]
 ----
 cat $$<<$$'EOF' | kubectl apply -f -
 apiVersion: elasticsearch.k8s.elastic.co/{eck_crd_version}
@@ -121,6 +127,8 @@ spec:
         # Do not use this if setting config.node.store.allow_mmap: false
         initContainers:
         - name: max-map-count-check
-          command: ['sh', '-c', "while true; do mmc=$(cat /proc/sys/vm/max_map_count); if [ ${mmc} -eq 262144 ]; then exit 0; fi; sleep 1; done"]
+          command: ['sh', '-c', "while true; do mmc=$(cat /proc/sys/vm/max_map_count); if [ ${mmc} -eq 1048576 ]; then exit 0; fi; sleep 1; done"] <1>
 EOF
 ----
+
+<1> In GKE Autopilot environments, `vm.max_map_count` must be set to 262144.