Edge Delta on an OpenShift Cluster

Overview

OpenShift is an enterprise Kubernetes container platform with full-stack automated operations to manage hybrid cloud, multi-cloud, and edge deployments more consistently and securely. It is utilized to streamline the development, deployment, and management of containerized applications. OpenShift provides a consistent foundation for building, deploying, and scaling applications across multiple infrastructures.

The primary reason for using OpenShift is its robust suite of tools that simplifies the orchestration of cloud-native applications. OpenShift automates many routine tasks related to container orchestration, including provisioning, scaling, monitoring, and upgrading, which can significantly reduce the operational overhead. It is designed to empower developers with self-service environments, enabling them to quickly create and deploy applications, while operations teams benefit from the control and visibility required to enforce compliance and optimize resources.

The benefits of OpenShift include improved efficiency in deploying and managing applications, higher reliability through automated operations, and enhanced security features that help in maintaining compliance with industry standards. The platform’s support for hybrid and multi-cloud environments offers flexibility in choosing the infrastructure that best suits specific needs, thus avoiding vendor lock-in.

However, one of the potential drawbacks of OpenShift is its complexity, which can necessitate a steep learning curve for new users, especially those not familiar with Kubernetes. Additionally, while it provides a lot of automation and simplification features, the initial setup and customization might require significant effort and expertise. This can be compounded by licensing costs, which can be a consideration for organizations operating under tight budgets. Overall, OpenShift presents a powerful tool for managing containerized workloads, but its deployment and management need careful planning and resources.

Configure Edge Delta for OpenShift Clusters

In an OpenShift cluster, you need to create a custom Security Context Constraint (SCC) that governs security settings for pods managed by the Edge Delta Helm chart. To do this you set a podSecurity value either using a values file or by passing it in as a flag.

Execute the helm upgrade command while passing in the podSecurity flag:

--set podSecurity.securityContextConstraints.create=true

Note: This configuration requires agent version v1.30.0 or higher.

Alternatively, if you have a values file that you are passing in, include the following variable:

podSecurity:
  securityContextConstraints:
    create: true