Insights from End-to-End Automation with Kubernetes and Crossplane
This book is an essential read for cloud architects, platform engineers, infrastructure operators, and Kubernetes enthusiasts. Arun Ramakani expertly navigates the intricate world of infrastructure automation, providing readers with a comprehensive understanding of Crossplane and its integration with Kubernetes.
In the ever-evolving landscape of cloud-native infrastructure, Kubernetes has emerged as a dominant force, revolutionising the way organisations deploy and manage applications. However, the complexity of infrastructure automation has often been a bottleneck. Enter Crossplane—a powerful extension of Kubernetes designed to bring the same level of automation to infrastructure provisioning and management. In "End-to-End Automation with Kubernetes and Crossplane," Arun Ramakani guides us through building a control plane-based platform for unified infrastructure, services, and application automation.
Key Concepts
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Understanding Kubernetes-Based Infrastructure Automation:
- The book starts by contextualising Kubernetes-based infrastructure automation, highlighting its advantages and the disruptive potential it holds for IT operations.
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Crossplane Fundamentals:
- Readers are introduced to the core concepts of Crossplane, including Custom Resource Definitions (CRDs) and custom controllers. These building blocks are crucial for extending Kubernetes to manage external infrastructure resources effectively.
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Practical Examples and Hands-On Modules:
- Arun provides practical examples and hands-on modules using popular configuration management tools such as Helm, Kustomize, CNAB, Argo, Keptn, and Open Policy Agent. These examples are designed to be directly applicable in real-world scenarios, making it easier for practitioners to implement what they learn.
Summary
Part 1: The Kubernetes Disruption
Chapter 1: Introducing the New Operating Model
- This chapter delves into the journey of Kubernetes, its disruptive impact on IT operations, and the characteristics that make it a game-changer.
Chapter 2: Examining the State of Infrastructure Automation
- Arun explores the evolution of infrastructure automation, highlighting the limitations of Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and introducing Crossplane as the solution to these challenges.
Part 2: Building a Modern Infrastructure Platform
Chapter 3: Automating Infrastructure with Crossplane
- Readers learn how to set up Crossplane, understand its architecture, and use it for infrastructure automation.
Chapter 4: Composing Infrastructure with Crossplane
- This chapter focuses on composing new infrastructure abstractions using Crossplane, enabling the creation of custom Kubernetes-based cloud APIs.
Chapter 5: Exploring Infrastructure Platform Patterns
- Arun discusses key patterns required for successfully running an infrastructure platform product within an organization.
Chapter 6: More Crossplane Patterns
- Additional patterns are explored, providing readers with a comprehensive toolkit for their day-to-day work.
Chapter 7: Extending and Scaling Crossplane
- The book delves into the scalability and extensibility of Crossplane, covering multi-tenant ecosystems and building new providers.
Part 3: Configuration Management Tools and Recipes
Chapter 8: Knowing the Trade-Offs
- Arun discusses the trade-offs associated with different configuration management tools and how to choose the right one.
Chapter 9: Using Helm, Kustomize, and KubeVela
- Practical guidance on deploying applications using these popular tools.
Chapter 10: Onboarding Applications with Crossplane
- This chapter covers the automation of application onboarding, including setting up source code repositories and continuous integration workflows.
Chapter 11: Driving the Platform Adoption
- The final chapter addresses the challenges of platform adoption and provides insights into building a successful infrastructure platform.
Key Takeaways
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Unified Automation:
- The book emphasizes the importance of unified automation, integrating both infrastructure and application automation under a single control plane.
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Hands-On Guidance:
- Practical examples and hands-on modules make complex concepts accessible and actionable.
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Modern Infrastructure Engineering:
- Readers gain a deep understanding of modern infrastructure engineering principles, preparing them for the challenges of today's cloud-native environments.
Conclusion
"End-to-End Automation with Kubernetes and Crossplane" by Arun Ramakani is a must-read for anyone involved in cloud-native infrastructure. It offers a detailed, hands-on guide to building a modern infrastructure automation platform, leveraging the power of Kubernetes and Crossplane. Whether you're a cloud architect, platform engineer, or Kubernetes enthusiast, this book provides the knowledge and tools you need to excel in the rapidly evolving world of cloud-native infrastructure.