Deploy the kanister-mysql helm chart on Kubernetes

Question

Pulumi · Accepted Answer

Deploying Helm charts on Kubernetes using Pulumi is a straightforward process. Pulumi provides first-class support for managing Kubernetes resources, including deploying Helm charts, via the Kubernetes provider.

For your case, we'll be using the `kubernetes.helm.v3.Chart` resource from Pulumi’s Kubernetes provider to deploy the `kanister-mysql` Helm chart. This provider allows us to interact with Helm charts as if we were using the Helm CLI, but we get the added benefits of Pulumi's state management and orchestration.

Here's what you'll need to do in general terms:
1. Set up Pulumi with the Kubernetes provider.
2. Define the Helm chart to be deployed within your Pulumi program.
3. Configure the chart values (if necessary), specifying the details of your MySQL deployment.
4. Run `pulumi up` to preview and deploy your resources.

Let's turn this into a concrete TypeScript program. Below you'll find the full Pulumi program that defines the deployment of the `kanister-mysql` Helm chart.

```typescript
import * as pulumi from "@pulumi/pulumi";
import * as k8s from "@pulumi/kubernetes";

// Step 1: Initialize a Kubernetes provider instance (uses current context from kubeconfig by default)
const provider = new k8s.Provider("provider", {});

// Step 2: Define the kanister-mysql Helm chart
const mysqlChart = new k8s.helm.v3.Chart("kanister-mysql", {
    // Assuming the kanister-mysql chart is available in the Helm repository
    // Specify the repository URL that contains the chart
    // You would replace "repoUrl" with the actual repository URL
    repo: "your-helm-chart-repository",  // Example: "https://charts.bitnami.com/bitnami"
    chart: "kanister-mysql",
    version: "chart-version",  // Substitute with the version of the chart you want to deploy
    // Step 3: Provide any custom values for the chart
    values: {
        // These values would configure your kanister-mysql chart
        // Specify them as per the chart's configurable options
        // Example:
        mysqlRootPassword: "your-root-password",
        mysqlUser: "your-username",
        mysqlPassword: "your-user-password",
        mysqlDatabase: "your-database"
        // Add other configurable values here
    },
}, { provider: provider });

// Export the chart's name which could be later used to reference the chart in your Kubernetes cluster
export const chartName = mysqlChart.metadata.apply(meta => meta.name);

// Run the Pulumi CLI command `pulumi up` to deploy your chart
```

To explain the code:
- We first import the necessary Pulumi packages for Kubernetes.
- We then create an instance of the Kubernetes provider. In this case, we're using the default configuration that assumes the Kubernetes context is already set up in `.kube/config`.
- Next, we define a `Chart` resource representing the `kanister-mysql` Helm chart. Here, you need to specify the repository URL that houses the chart and any chart values—these are the custom settings you can pass to configure the MySQL chart to suit your needs (like usernames, passwords, and database names).
- Finally, we export the `chartName`, which is the name of the deployed Helm chart in your cluster.

Before running the `pulumi up` command, ensure that Pulumi is logged in and configured for your Kubernetes cluster. You can check this by running `pulumi stack` and `kubectl config current-context`.

Make sure that the `repo` and `version` in the program match the Helm chart repository you want to use. Additionally, you should customize the `values` map with the appropriate MySQL configuration parameters per the `kanister-mysql` chart's requirements.

To execute the deployment, open a terminal in a directory with the above file, then run:

```bash
pulumi up
```

Pulumi will show you a detailed preview of what the program will deploy. If everything looks good, confirm the deployment, and Pulumi will execute the changes and deploy your MySQL Helm chart to your Kubernetes cluster.