Deploy the python-app helm chart on Kubernetes

Question

Pulumi · Accepted Answer

Deploying a Helm chart on Kubernetes using Pulumi involves creating an instance of the `Chart` resource from Pulumi's Kubernetes provider. The `Chart` resource represents a Helm chart in a Pulumi program, allowing for installation and management of Helm charts and their associated resources within Kubernetes clusters.

Here's a step-by-step guide to accomplishing this task:

1. **Define the Helm Chart**: Specify the details of the Helm chart you want to deploy, including its repository, name, and version.
2. **Configure Chart Values**: Provide configuration for the Helm chart via the `values` property. These values override the defaults specified within the chart.
3. **Create a Namespace**: (Optional) If you wish to deploy the Helm chart within a specific Kubernetes namespace, ensure that the namespace exists or create it using Pulumi.
4. **Deploy the Chart**: Instantiate a `Chart` resource with the defined chart details and configuration. Pulumi will handle the deployment to the Kubernetes cluster.

Here's a TypeScript program that demonstrates these steps:

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

// Define the Helm chart repository and chart details.
const chartName = "python-app";
const chartVersion = "1.0.0"; // Replace with the desired version
const chartRepository = "https://charts.example.com/"; // Replace with the actual repository URL

// Define the configuration values for the Helm chart.
// These are specific to the Helm chart you are deploying and can override default settings.
const chartValues = {
  service: {
    type: "LoadBalancer",
  },
  // Other values as needed...
};

// Define the namespace where the chart will be deployed.
// You can skip the namespace creation if you are deploying into the 'default' namespace or if it already exists.
const namespaceName = "python-app-namespace";
const namespace = new k8s.core.v1.Namespace(namespaceName, {
  metadata: {
    name: namespaceName,
  },
});

// Deploy the Helm chart.
const pythonAppChart = new k8s.helm.v3.Chart(chartName, {
  chart: chartName,
  version: chartVersion,
  fetchOpts: {
    repo: chartRepository,
  },
  values: chartValues,
  namespace: namespace.metadata.name,
});

// Export the base URL for the Python application
export const pythonAppServiceUrl = pythonAppChart.getResourceProperty(
  "v1/Service",
  `${namespaceName}-${chartName}`,
  "status"
).apply(status => `http://${status.loadBalancer.ingress[0].ip}`);
```

This program performs the following actions:

- Imports the Pulumi Kubernetes library.
- Defines the Helm chart details, such as the name, version, and repository URL.
- Specifies the configuration values that will be provided to the Helm chart. These values should be set according to the specific Helm chart's expected configuration parameters.
- Optionally creates a Kubernetes namespace where the Helm chart will be deployed. If a specific namespace is not required, this step can be omitted.
- Deploys the Helm chart into the specified namespace using the `Chart` resource. It tells Pulumi to fetch the chart from the specified repository and deploy it with the provided values.

After you run this program using the Pulumi CLI, it will deploy the specified Helm chart to your Kubernetes cluster. You must ensure that your Pulumi environment is configured for your Kubernetes cluster for this deployment to succeed. If required, you should configure your `kubeconfig` file to point to the correct cluster.

After deployment, Pulumi will provide the output of the service URL if the Helm chart exposes an application through a Kubernetes service of type `LoadBalancer`.

Remember to replace the `chartVersion`, `chartRepository`, and `chartValues` with the actual values that correspond to your `python-app` Helm chart.