diff --git a/examples/templates/kubernetes/main.tf b/examples/templates/kubernetes/main.tf
index 67c9cfcc4882f..4ad85572ef556 100644
--- a/examples/templates/kubernetes/main.tf
+++ b/examples/templates/kubernetes/main.tf
@@ -55,6 +55,14 @@ resource "coder_agent" "main" {
   startup_script = <<EOT
     #!/bin/bash
 
+    # home folder can be empty, so copying default bash settings
+    if [ ! -f ~/.profile ]; then
+      cp /etc/skel/.profile $HOME
+    fi
+    if [ ! -f ~/.bashrc ]; then
+      cp /etc/skel/.bashrc $HOME
+    fi
+
     # install and start code-server
     curl -fsSL https://code-server.dev/install.sh | sh  | tee code-server-install.log
     code-server --auth none --port 13337 | tee code-server-install.log &