Deploy the u4a-component helm chart on Opensshift

Question

Pulumi · Accepted Answer

To deploy a Helm chart on an OpenShift cluster using Pulumi, we'll use the `kubernetes.helm.sh/v3.Chart` resource from the Pulumi Kubernetes provider. This resource allows you to deploy Helm charts to a Kubernetes cluster, which includes OpenShift since OpenShift is a specialized Kubernetes distribution.

Before you begin, ensure you have the following prerequisites in place:

1. An existing OpenShift cluster where you have administrative privileges.
2. `kubectl` configured to access your OpenShift cluster.
3. Helm CLI installed on your local machine.
4. Pulumi CLI installed on your local machine.
5. The Helm chart `u4a-component` should be available in a Helm repository or on your local filesystem.

Below is a Pulumi program in TypeScript that demonstrates how to deploy a Helm chart to your OpenShift cluster. This example assumes you're deploying a Helm chart named `u4a-component` which is located in a public or private Helm repository.

First, I will provide an explanation of what each part of the code does, then you will see the complete code you can use to carry out the deployment.

1. **Imports**: We import the packages we need from Pulumi and Kubernetes.
2. **Helm Chart Resource**: We create a new Helm chart resource. Replace the `repo` and `chart` properties with the repository where your `u4a-component` chart is located and the chart name, respectively.
3. **Namespace**: You may specify the namespace where you want to deploy the chart. If the namespace doesn't exist, it will be created.
4. **Values**: The `values` property allows you to override default values in the chart. It's analogous to what you would pass to the `helm install` command using the `--set` flag or a values file.

Now, let's look at the Pulumi program:

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

// Define the namespace where the Helm chart will be installed.
const namespace = new k8s.core.v1.Namespace('u4a-namespace', {
    metadata: {
        name: 'u4a-component-ns', // Replace with the desired namespace name.
    },
});

// Deploy the Helm chart.
const u4aComponentChart = new k8s.helm.v3.Chart('u4a-component-chart', {
    // The namespace where the chart will be deployed, using the namespace object defined above.
    namespace: namespace.metadata.name,
    chart: 'u4a-component', // Replace with the actual chart name.
    version: '1.0.0', // Replace with the specific version you intend to deploy.
    // For a chart from a custom repository, uncomment the following lines and specify the repo URL.
    // fetchOpts: {
    //     repo: 'https://example.com/helm-charts',
    // },
    values: {
        // You can specify the values that your chart accepts. These replace the defaults in the chart's 'values.yaml'.
        // Below is an example of using a placeholder value. You need to replace 'serviceType' with an actual value key from your chart.
        // serviceType: 'LoadBalancer',
    },
}, { dependsOn: [namespace] }); // Establishes an explicit dependency on the namespace resource.
```

After creating the Pulumi program, you will deploy it using the Pulumi CLI. Here's the general process:

1. Initialize a new Pulumi project using `pulumi new typescript`.
2. Replace the generated `index.ts` file with the Pulumi program above.
3. Install the necessary dependencies with `npm install` or `yarn add`.
4. Preview the deployment with `pulumi preview`.
5. Deploy the resources with `pulumi up`.

You will be prompted by the Pulumi CLI to confirm the deployment. If everything looks good, proceed with the deployment, and Pulumi will start creating the resources on your OpenShift cluster.

Remember to adjust the `values` property in the chart configuration to reflect the actual values required by your `u4a-component` Helm chart.