Packaging Applications and Services with Kubernetes Operators

Package applications and services for Kubernetes with the Operator framework. 

Developing Operators

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Operators give you a convenient way to package, deploy, manage and distribute applications for Kubernetes. The method allows you to package configuration so that users can deploy operators from a simple catalog without having to engage administrators. You can distribute operators beyond your organization using OperatorHub.io which is open to all contributions or the Red Hat OpenShift OperatorHub using Red Hat's certification process. 

Download Operator-SDK binary 

Operator maturity model

Conceptually, an Operator takes human operational knowledge and encodes it into software that is more easily packaged and shared with consumers. How you approach and build your Operator is up to you. Advanced Operators are designed to handle upgrades seamlessly, react to failures automatically, and not take shortcuts, such as skipping a software backup process to save time.

A Kubernetes application is both deployed on Kubernetes and managed using the Kubernetes APIs and kubectl/oc tooling. You can think of Operators as the runtime that manages this type of application on Kubernetes.

Get started building your operator resources

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Article
Dec 17, 2024

Example-CNF: Automating the deployment of DPDK-based network functions on...

Ramon Perez +1

This article presents a means of automatically deploying an open source...

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Article
Dec 13, 2024

Brief overview of Cluster Observability Operator

Christina Zhang

Red Hat officially supports the Cluster Observability Operator on OpenShift...

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Article
Nov 28, 2024

What's new in Network Observability 1.7

Steven Lee

Explore the latest features in Network Observability 1.7, an operator for Red...

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Article
Oct 28, 2024

Ephemeral OpenShift clusters in Konflux CI using the Cluster-as-a-Service operator

Alex Misstear +1

When it comes to testing, many of Red Hat's development teams require...

Hands-on operator labs

Interactive Tutorial

Operator SDK with Helm

Create a CockroachDB Operator from an existing CockroachDB Helm chart,...

Interactive Tutorial

Manage the etcd Operator

Manage etcd clusters on Kubernetes and automate resize, failover, and upgrade...

Interactive Tutorial

Install the Operator Lifecycle Manager

Install the Operator Lifecycle Manager in an OpenShift environment, access...

Technology partners: Publish on OpenShift OperatorHub

operatorhub

Red Hat Partner Connect is a program for technology partners—ISVs, SIs, and VARs—that provides software, tools, and other technical resources for your development work, and marketing resources for your marketing & sales colleagues.

Certify your Operator with Red Hat Partner Connect

When you publish, you get:

security

Seal of approval

Your Operator functionality is verified by Red Hat.

Faster

Promotion

Listed in Red Hat OpenShift OperatorHub and Red Hat Ecosystem Catalog for all customers to see and download.

RHEL Release

Continuous certification

Using Red Hat Certification Build Service APIs means continuous security compliance—great for CI/CD.

RHEL Release

Support coverage

Full Red Hat support for the foundation of Operators and their containers when used with Red Hat OpenShift.

Operator videos

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OpenShift Commons Briefing with Daniel Messer: State of Operators

Daniel Messer and Diane Mueller
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Red Hat OpenShift: Operators Framework

OpenShift now includes operator framework to help organizations easily...
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Intro: Operator Framework BoF

An Operator is a method of packaging, deploying and managing a Kubernetes...
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SRE principles and (Kubernetes) Operator practice

New articles about Operators

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Article

Red Hat Serverless Operator usage and troubleshooting in OpenShift 4

Francisco De Melo Junior

Red Hat Serverless Operator provides Knative features directly in Red Hat OpenShift. Let's start by exploring: What is serverless? Serverless refers to running back-end programs and processes in the cloud. Serverless works on an as-used basis, meaning that companies only use what they pay for. Knative is a platform-agnostic solution for running serverless deployments. Red Hat OpenShift Serverless, built on top of the Knative project for Kubernetes and its Red Hat FaaS environments. More so, Serverless computing offerings typically fall...

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Article

Brief overview of Cluster Observability Operator

Christina Zhang

Red Hat officially supports the Cluster Observability Operator on OpenShift 4.17 clusters, and this article provides a quick overview to help you determine if the COO is right for your needs.

Feature image for Red Hat OpenShift
Article

What's new in Network Observability 1.7

Steven Lee

Explore the latest features in Network Observability 1.7, an operator for Red Hat OpenShift and Kubernetes that offers insights into your network traffic flows.

Building resilient event-driven architectures with Apache Kafka
Article

Dynamic Kafka controller quorum

Federico Valeri +1

This article explores use cases for the dynamic quorum configuration in Kafka that allows KRaft clusters to scale controller nodes without downtime.

More articles about Operators

Adventures Aboard the Kluster Kruise Ship

This story uses a series of metaphors to introduce the concept of Operators, explain how they aid in the automation of clusters, and provide a high-level overview of Operator Lifecycle Management in a way that anyone can understand. Readers will meet Kate the octopus, esteemed cruise ship director, who finds herself overwhelmed with the responsibilities associated with her position.

Get a copy of the book

Interested in the operator community? OperatorHub is the community home for Kubernetes Operators. Find an existing operator, or list your own.