Mastering Helm from Scratch: Part 1 – The Purpose of Helm
Understanding the benefits of using Helm for Kubernetes projects
Introduction
Welcome to Part 1 of Mastering Helm from Scratch. In this section, we’ll explore the core objectives of Helm and its significance in the Kubernetes ecosystem. Helm is designed to simplify the deployment and management of applications on Kubernetes by packaging resources together for easy installation, updates, and removal.
Helm’s Mission
If you have some experience with Kubernetes, you probably know that deploying applications often requires using the command kubectl apply -f <resource>
for each individual resource, such as deployments, services, and config maps. Imagine you have an application consisting of several parts: a web server, a database, and a caching layer. Each of these components requires its own set of configurations/resources, which means you’d have to execute multiple commands to deploy them one by one. This can quickly become tedious and error-prone, especially as your application grows in complexity.
That’s where Helm comes in. It acts like a package manager for Kubernetes, allowing you to bundle all the resources needed for your application into a single package called a chart.
Rather than asking you to piece together your own applications, Helm aims to provide ready-to-use, production-ready charts. You can find these charts in the so-called Helm chart repositories. You can install them, observe their functionality, and learn how Kubernetes operates in the process.
Helm has several main objectives:
Simplify Onboarding: Helm aims to make it easier for users to get started with Kubernetes, reducing the learning curve for newcomers.
Package Management: Just like operating systems have package managers to install and manage software, Helm provides a similar system for Kubernetes, allowing you to package, distribute, and manage applications effectively.
Enhance Security and Customization: When deploying applications to Kubernetes, Helm prioritizes security and offers customization options to meet various needs.
Security: Helm enables you to verify the source, author, and integrity of a package, ensuring that you can trust the resources you are deploying.
Reusability: By packaging your YAML files into charts, you can easily reuse them across different projects or deployments, saving time and effort.
Configurability: Helm offers templating capabilities, allowing users to customize charts with additional settings during installation. For example, when installing a website through Helm, users can specify the site's name at installation time. Additionally, Helm provides tools to configure packages during installation and modify configurations during upgrades, making it a flexible choice for managing applications.
When a Helm chart is installed into Kubernetes, the following workflow occurs:
Conclusion
In this section, we’ve explored the fundamental goals of Helm and its role in simplifying Kubernetes management. By packaging applications, Helm makes it easier for users to deploy, update, reuse, and manage resources within a cluster. This approach is particularly beneficial for newcomers, as it abstracts much of the complexity involved in Kubernetes. It allows them to focus on building and deploying the applications.
As we continue our journey in the next part, we’ll dive deeper into the architecture of Helm. Understanding its core features is essential before you get your hands dirty. Stay tuned for more insights and hands-on guidance as we progress!