partner-charts-ci

partner-charts-ci is used to automate the process of working with the Rancher Partner Charts Repository. More specifically, it uses configuration that specifies "upstream" helm charts to download those charts, modify them for Rancher, and construct/maintain a new helm chart repository. It also includes commands for things like validating the state of the repository and removing out-of-date versions of helm charts.

The Basics

Terminology

A package is a set of configuration and files that specifies an upstream helm chart and modifications applied to it when integrating new versions of it into the repository. There is a single package for every chart in the repository.

A chart is a helm chart.

A chart version is a specific version of a chart. Each chart included in the repository has one or more chart versions.

Upstream refers to the place a chart comes from. It can take the form of a helm repository, an Artifact Hub repository or a git repository.

Directory Structure

configuration.yaml                      configuration for partner-charts-ci
index.yaml                              the index.yaml for the helm repository
packages/                               contains package directories
  suse/
    kubewarden-controller/              referred to as a "package directory"
      upstream.yaml                     configuration specific to a single package
      overlay/
        app-readme.md
        questions.yaml
    ...
  ...
charts/                                 unarchived chart versions
  suse/
    kubewarden-controller/
      1.2.3/
        ...
      1.2.4/
        ...
      ...
    ...
  ...
assets/                                 archived chart versions
  suse/
    kubewarden-controller-1.2.3.tgz
    kubewarden-controller-1.2.4.tgz
    ...
  ...

Package Directories

Each package has a package directory. Package directories are of the form packages/<vendor>/<chart>/, where <vendor> is the vendor that provides the chart and <chart> is the name of the chart. Taken together, <vendor>/<chart> is the full name used to refer to the package.

Package directories must contain an upstream.yaml file. Typically they also contain an overlay/ directory that contains files that are copied into the chart directory when integrating new versions of the chart. overlay/ is most often used for adding app-readme.md and questions.yaml files.

Example Workflow for Adding a Package

These steps assume that the working directory is set to the root of the repository you want to operate on. They use the example suse/kubewarden-controller package in commands.

1. Create a directory for your package of the form packages/<vendor>/<chart>

mkdir -p packages/suse/kubewarden-controller

2. Create an upstream.yaml file in the package directory

3. Populate overlay/

If you want any files to be added when chart versions are integrated into the repo, now is the time add them to overlay/.

mkdir packages/suse/kubewarden-controller/overlay
echo "Example app-readme.md" > packages/suse/kubewarden-controller/overlay/app-readme.md

4. Run partner-charts-ci update

partner-charts-ci update will download any new chart versions from upstream and integrate them into the repository. Append the --commit flag if you want partner-charts-ci to create a git commit containing these changes. The PACKAGE environment variable allows you to specify a package to operate on.

PACKAGE=suse/kubewarden-controller partner-charts-ci update --commit

5. Validate your changes

partner-charts-ci validate

6. Test your chart by installing it in the Rancher UI

1. Ensure that you have a fork of the Rancher Partner Charts repository in your personal Github account.
2. Push your changes to your fork.
3. In the Rancher UI, create a test repository that points to the branch you pushed your changes to in your fork. To do this, navigate to Apps > Repositories and click Create. Enter a name, the URL of your fork, and the branch containing your changes, and click Create again.
4. Once the new repository is active, you should be able to find your chart in Apps > Charts. Check that the readme is correct, and then install your chart. It should install successfully.

File Reference

upstream.yaml

upstream.yaml contains package configuration.

Important

In GKE clusters, a Helm Chart will NOT display in Rancher Apps unless kubeVersion includes -0 suffix in Chart.yaml. You can set it through the ChartMetadata.kubeVersion field in the upstream.yaml file.

Variable	Requires	Description
ArtifactHubPackage	ArtifactHubRepo	Defines the package to pull from the defined ArtifactHubRepo
ArtifactHubRepo	ArtifactHubPackage	Defines the repo to access on Artifact Hub
AutoInstall		Allows setting a required additional chart to deploy prior to current chart, such as a dedicated CRDs chart
ChartMetadata		Allows setting/overriding the value of any valid Chart.yaml variable
Deprecated		Whether the package is deprecated. Deprecated packages will not integrate any new chart versions from upstream. Do not set this field directly; instead, use partner-charts-ci deprecate.
DisplayName		The name of the chart used in the Rancher UI
Experimental		Adds the 'experimental' annotation which adds a flag on the UI entry
Fetch	HelmChart, HelmRepo	Selects set of charts to pull from upstream. - latest will pull only the latest chart version default - newer will pull all newer versions than currently stored - all will pull all versions
GitBranch	GitRepo	Defines which branch to pull from the upstream GitRepo
GitHubRelease	GitRepo	If true, will pull latest GitHub release from repo. Requires GitHub URL
GitRepo		Defines the git repo to pull from
GitSubdirectory	GitRepo	Allows selection of a subdirectory of the upstream git repo to pull the chart from
HelmChart	HelmRepo	Defines which chart to pull from the upstream Helm repo
HelmRepo	HelmChart	Defines the upstream Helm repo to pull from
Hidden		Adds the 'hidden' annotation which hides the chart from the Rancher UI. Do not set this field directly unless the package is new; instead, use partner-charts-ci hide.
Namespace		Addes the 'namespace' annotation which hard-codes a deployment namespace for the chart
PackageVersion		Deprecated. Allows for creating multiple local chart versions from a single upstream chart version. Should not be added to any existing packages, nor should it be defined on any new packages.
ReleaseName		Sets the value of the release-name Rancher annotation. Defaults to the chart name
Vendor		The name of the vendor used in the Rancher UI

Example: Helm Repo

HelmRepo: https://charts.kubewarden.io
HelmChart: kubewarden-controller
Vendor: SUSE
DisplayName: Kubewarden Controller
ChartMetadata:
  kubeVersion:  '>=1.21-0'

Example: Artifact Hub

ArtifactHubRepo: kubewarden
ArtifactHubPackage: kubewarden-controller
Vendor: SUSE
DisplayName: Kubewarden Controller
ChartMetadata:
  kubeVersion: '>=1.21-0'

Example: Git Repo

GitRepo: https://github.com/kubewarden/helm-charts.git
GitBranch: main
GitSubdirectory: charts/kubewarden-controller
Vendor: SUSE
DisplayName: Kubewarden Controller
ChartMetadata:
  kubeVersion: '>=1.21-0'

Example: Github Release

GitRepo: https://github.com/kubewarden/helm-charts.git
GitHubRelease: true
GitSubdirectory: charts/kubewarden-controller
Vendor: SUSE
DisplayName: Kubewarden Controller
ChartMetadata:
  kubeVersion: '>=1.21-0'

app-readme.md

app-readme.md is a brief description of the app and how to use it. It is best to keep it short since the longer README.md in your chart will be displayed in the UI as detailed description.

questions.yaml

questions.yml defines a set of questions to display on the chart's installation page. It allows users to answer them and configure the chart using the UI instead of modifying the chart's values file directly. You can find a reference for questions.yaml here.

Example

questions:
- variable: password
  default: ""
  required: true
  type: password
  label: Admin Password
  group: "Global Settings"
- variable: service.type
  default: "ClusterIP"
  type: enum
  group: "Service Settings"
  options:
    - "ClusterIP"
    - "NodePort"
    - "LoadBalancer"
  required: true
  label: Service Type
  show_subquestion_if: "NodePort"
  subquestions:
  - variable: service.nodePort
    default: ""
    description: "NodePort port number (to set explicitly, choose port between 30000-32767)"
    type: int
    min: 30000
    max: 32767
    label: Service NodePort

Other Information

Hidden Charts

Hidden charts have packages with Hidden: true in their upstream.yaml. When Hidden: true is present in a package's upstream.yaml, partner-charts-ci ensures that all of its chart versions have the catalog.cattle.io/hidden annotation set. This annotation causes the Rancher UI to not show the chart. If you want to hide a chart, use the partner-charts-ci hide subcommand. Simply setting Hidden: true in upstream.yaml will not hide existing chart versions.

Featured Charts

In the Apps > Charts view, the Rancher UI may have a set of tiles at the top featuring several charts. These are the "featured" charts. Charts that are featured have the catalog.cattle.io/featured annotation set on their latest chart version. This annotation is reserved for preferred partners that SUSE has agreed to highlight in the Apps > Charts marquee tiles. You can see and control featured charts using the partner-charts-ci feature subcommands.

Deprecating and Removing Packages

When a package and its chart versions must be removed, it is typical to deprecate it for some time in order to give users time to migrate away from it. Packages are deprecated through the use of the partner-charts-ci deprecate subcommand. Deprecating a package has several effects:

• any new chart versions from upstream are no longer integrated
• the upstream.yaml file for the package has Deprecated: true set

Once a package has been deprecated, it can be removed. This is done through the partner-charts-ci remove subcommand. Using this subcommand prevents maintainers from missing files when removing a package. It is possible to remove a package without first deprecating it by using the --force option, but please make sure you know what you're doing if you plan on doing this!