Helm Summit 2019

Are Operators replacing Helm? Why do we need both? We have heard this question many times. In this talk we settle it once and for all. Operators and Helm serve different purposes. Helm is a tool that simplifies deploying Kubernetes manifests. It focuses on templatization, reusability, and standard life-cycle actions on Kubernetes manifests. Operators on the other hand focus on managing workflow actions and day 2 operations on (often) stateful applications. In fact, Helm is a very good tool to package and deploy Operators. Special care is needed when developing Helm charts for Operators. We have developed guidelines for what things to include in Operator Helm chart to streamline the management, installation, and discovery of Operators and Custom Resources. In this talk we present these guidelines through several example Operator Helm charts.