kubecon KubeCon Chicago 2023 Recap: Cloud-native Scale & Growth with GitOps

[weaveworks]

Welcome to our recap of KubeCon Chicago 2023, where GitOps and cloud-native tech took center stage. The Flux team attended this year’s KubeCon and presented several talks. From mastering multi-tenancy in Kubernetes with Flux to navigating the complexities of large-scale operations with Argo CD & Flux, there’s something for everyone. We’re also including links to the videos for you to watch and learn at your own pace.

We are thrilled to share two monumental achievements from this year's KubeCon that underscore our commitment and influence in the cloud-native sphere. Firstly, our team was honored with the prestigious “Small but Mighty” award, a testament to our significant impact within the cloud-native community. This recognition is not just an award; it's a symbol of our dedication, innovation, and the tangible difference we've made in this dynamic field. We have more on that below.

Equally exhilarating is the widespread adoption of GitOps, a revolutionary term and framework pioneered by Weaveworks. This year, GitOps has ‘crossed the chasm and cleared the adoption threshold.” This marks a pivotal moment in our journey – seeing our brainchild evolve into a cornerstone technology reshaping global cloud-native practices.

GitOps Goes Mainstream

Coinciding with KubeCon Chicago was the release of the CNCF's 2023 GitOps Microsurvey report titled “Learning on the Job as GitOps Goes Mainstream.” The report provided insightful revelations about the state and adoption of GitOps in the cloud-native community. It confirmed that 100% of respondents plan to embrace GitOps within the next 6 months to 2 years. Additionally, 60% of respondents have been seriously using GitOps for over a year, demonstrating its increasing significance in operating cloud-native applications and Kubernetes environments.

The survey explored the reasons behind adopting this methodology, the benefits it offers, and the challenges faced by the community, indicating a significant shift towards GitOps in the cloud-native ecosystem. Explore the results in depth and read the commentary by Alexis Richardson, who coined the term ‘GitOps’.

GitOps Automation with Flux CD Backstage Plugin

Weaveworks and the Flux CD Backstage plugin were featured in the new Backstage Marketplace launch sponsored by Spotify. Created to enhance the developer experience within Backstage, this plugin offers several features for application developers and platform teams including understanding Flux CD resources, tracking Flux CD deployments, and viewing Flux CD resources. Learn all about it here.

This latest integration is a testament to Flux CD’s large and growing GitOps ecosystem. Many people use the popular GitOps tool without knowing because it’s embedded in other tools such as GitLab, AKS and Azure Arc, Tanzu and EKS Anywhere.

Flux CD KubeCon Sessions

Orchestrating Multi-Tenancy Kubernetes Environments with Flux

Speaker: Priyanka (Pinky) Ravi, Developer Experience Developer, Weaveworks

In the realm of modern software development, where quick and seamless delivery is paramount, Flux CD has become a pivotal GitOps open-source toolkit within the Kubernetes framework, aimed at streamlining and controlling deployments. The talk presented by Priyanka Ravi at the conference delved into how Flux CD plays a vital role in managing and scaling multi-tenant Kubernetes environments, a key factor in handling intricate application networks.

The presentation offered a thorough exploration of the functionalities of Flux CD, focusing on its solutions for the complexities associated with multi-tenant environments. The audience was enriched with practical examples and insights, gaining a comprehensive perspective on leveraging Flux CD for secure, efficient, and consistent delivery of software across varied tenant workloads.

Harnessing Argo & Flux: The Quest to Scale Add-Ons Beyond 10k Clusters

Speakers: Joaquin Rodriguez, Microsoft and Priyanka "Pinky" Ravi, Weaveworks

Flamingo, the Flux Subsystem for Argo (FSA), plays an important role in the GitOps world. Flamingo's purpose is to integrate Flux CD with Argo CD, two prominent tools in the GitOps space. This integration allows for a unified and efficient management of GitOps workflows.

The session tackled the complexities of managing cluster add-ons across diverse environments such as private clouds, public clouds, and edge computing. It highlighted the challenges faced in large-scale operations, such as inefficiencies, increased costs, and security risks.

The speakers delved into how leveraging Argo CD, Flux CD, and Flamingo can effectively scale operations beyond 10,000 clusters. This scaling addresses critical aspects like enhanced scale, efficient logging, and comprehensive monitoring. The discussion also covered how Flux and Flamingo play a role in the lifecycle management of cluster add-ons at this scale, and the integration of the Argo CD API into a cluster lifecycle management solution.

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