Chapter 4. Helm CLI

Procedure

1. Create a new project:

   $ oc new-project mysql

2. Add a repository of Helm charts to your local Helm client:

   $ helm repo add stable https://kubernetes-charts.storage.googleapis.com/

   Example output

   "stable" has been added to your repositories

3. Update the repository:

   $ helm repo update

4. Install an example MySQL chart:

   $ helm install example-mysql stable/mysql

5. Verify that the chart has installed successfully:

   $ helm list

   Example output

   NAME NAMESPACE REVISION UPDATED STATUS CHART APP VERSION
   example-mysql mysql 1 2019-12-05 15:06:51.379134163 -0500 EST deployed mysql-1.5.0 5.7.27

Procedure

1. Create a new project:

   $ oc new-project nodejs-ex-k

2. Download an example Node.js chart that contains OpenShift Container Platform objects:

   $ git clone https://github.com/redhat-developer/redhat-helm-charts

3. Go to the directory with the sample chart:

   $ cd redhat-helm-charts/alpha/nodejs-ex-k/

4. Edit the Chart.yaml file and add a description of your chart:

   apiVersion: v2 1
   name: nodejs-ex-k 2
   description: A Helm chart for OpenShift 3
   icon: https://static.redhat.com/libs/redhat/brand-assets/latest/corp/logo.svg 4

   1

   The chart API version. It should be v2 for Helm charts that require at least Helm 3.

   2

   The name of your chart.

   3

   The description of your chart.

   4

   The URL to an image to be used as an icon.

5. Verify that the chart is formatted properly:

   $ helm lint

   Example output

   [INFO] Chart.yaml: icon is recommended
   
   1 chart(s) linted, 0 chart(s) failed

6. Navigate to the previous directory level:

   $ cd ..

7. Install the chart:

   $ helm install nodejs-chart nodejs-ex-k

8. Verify that the chart has installed successfully:

   $ helm list

   Example output

   NAME NAMESPACE REVISION UPDATED STATUS CHART APP VERSION
   nodejs-chart nodejs-ex-k 1 2019-12-05 15:06:51.379134163 -0500 EST deployed nodejs-0.1.0  1.16.0

Procedure

1. To add a new Helm Chart Repository, you must add the Helm Chart Repository custom resource (CR) to your cluster.

   Sample Helm Chart Repository CR

   apiVersion: helm.openshift.io/v1beta1
   kind: HelmChartRepository
   metadata:
     name: <name>
   spec:
    # optional name that might be used by console
    # name: <chart-display-name>
     connectionConfig:
       url: <helm-chart-repository-url>

   For example, to add an Azure sample chart repository, run:

   $ cat <<EOF | oc apply -f -
   apiVersion: helm.openshift.io/v1beta1
   kind: HelmChartRepository
   metadata:
     name: azure-sample-repo
   spec:
     name: azure-sample-repo
     connectionConfig:
       url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Azure-Samples/helm-charts/master/docs
   EOF

2. Navigate to the Developer Catalog in the web console to verify that the Helm charts from the chart repository are displayed.

   For example, use the Chart repositories filter to search for a Helm chart from the repository.

   Figure 4.1. Chart repositories filter

   
   Note

   If a cluster administrator removes all of the chart repositories, then you cannot view the Helm option in the +Add view, Developer Catalog, and left navigation panel.

1. In the openshift-config namespace, create a ConfigMap object with a custom CA certificate in PEM encoded format, and store it under the ca-bundle.crt key within the config map:

   $ oc create configmap helm-ca-cert \
   --from-file=ca-bundle.crt=/path/to/certs/ca.crt \
   -n openshift-config

2. In the openshift-config namespace, create a Secret object to add the client TLS configurations:

   $ oc create secret generic helm-tls-configs \
   --from-file=tls.crt=/path/to/certs/client.crt \
   --from-file=tls.key=/path/to/certs//client.key \
   -n openshift-config

   Note that the client certificate and key must be in PEM encoded format and stored under the keys tls.crt and tls.key, respectively.

3. Add the Helm repository as follows:

   $ cat <<EOF | oc apply -f -
   apiVersion: helm.openshift.io/v1beta1
   kind: HelmChartRepository
   metadata:
     name: <helm-repository>
   spec:
     name: <helm-repository>
     connectionConfig:
       url: <URL for the Helm repository>
       tlsConfig:
           name: helm-tls-configs
       ca:
   	name: helm-ca-cert
   EOF

   The ConfigMap and Secret are consumed in the HelmChartRepository CR using the tlsConfig and ca fields. These certificates are used to connect to the Helm repository URL.

4. By default, all authenticated users have access to all configured charts. However, for chart repositories where certificates are needed, you must provide users with read access to the helm-ca-cert config map and helm-tls-configs secret in the openshift-config namespace, as follows:

   $ cat <<EOF | kubectl apply -f -
   apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
   kind: Role
   metadata:
     namespace: openshift-config
     name: helm-chartrepos-tls-conf-viewer
   rules:
   - apiGroups: [""]
     resources: ["configmaps"]
     resourceNames: ["helm-ca-cert"]
     verbs: ["get"]
   - apiGroups: [""]
     resources: ["secrets"]
     resourceNames: ["helm-tls-configs"]
     verbs: ["get"]
   ---
   kind: RoleBinding
   apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
   metadata:
     namespace: openshift-config
     name: helm-chartrepos-tls-conf-viewer
   subjects:
     - kind: Group
       apiGroup: rbac.authorization.k8s.io
       name: 'system:authenticated'
   roleRef:
     apiGroup: rbac.authorization.k8s.io
     kind: Role
     name: helm-chartrepos-tls-conf-viewer
   EOF