What are the functions and features of helm or terrain

The increasing popularity of containerization has led to the need for efficient management 、 Scheduling and control Kubernetes（K8s） The needs of the cluster . The market offers a variety of and K8s Tools for environment interaction , But not many offers can compare Helm and Terraform More features .

This article is about Helm and Terraform The main function of . We analyzed the advantages of these two configuration tools , Explain that they are managing K8s Ability in setting , And help you identify the right options for your development team .

Terraform： The main function

Terraform It is an open source infrastructure, namely code (IaC) Tools , Allow teams to manage and automate infrastructure 、 Platforms and services . The tool helps build 、 Change and versioning infrastructure , So that engineers can quickly and easily ：

• Start the virtual machine and container .
• Setup server .
• Create security schemes and controls .
• Add or remove users and set permissions .
• Manage cloud resources .
• Installation and management Docker Containers .

2017 year ,Terraform The creator of the Hashicorp Announce the release of its Kubernetes provider . therefore , The tool can manage across multiple cloud providers as needed K8s colony . In the configuration of infrastructure or management Kubernetes when ,Terraform Rely on declarative language . Engineers do not need to define every step of setting up infrastructure . contrary , The developer provides the final state of the required settings , And the tool plans how to configure the environment . for example , You can for VM、K8s colony 、VPC Write a set of parameters with a specific firewall , There is no need to provide configuration instructions .

Declarative configuration files are helpful , Because the team can ：

• Easily adjust files to adapt to infrastructure changes without editing instructions .
• Keep documents clean and brief .
• Quickly edit settings .
• Just check the configuration file to know the current configuration .

Once the engineer requests configuration , command terraform plan The tool will be instructed to compare existing settings and plan how to set up the required infrastructure . And then the terraform apply Command through the cloud provider API Start the resource .Terraform yes DevOps A popular choice for the team , Because engineers can use this tool to quickly start and edit CI/CD Environment in the pipeline .

Terraform The main characteristics of

• One Kubernetes provider , You can use a single tool to manage infrastructure and deployment .
• Use declarative language .
• A kind of IaC Method , Allow engineers to describe like any other code 、 Processing and versioning infrastructure .
• You can use cloud providers API Set it up , To achieve smooth 、 Efficient and secure configuration .
• Terraform Applicable to any cloud based setting , Whether it's public 、 Internally private 、 Mixed or cloudy .
• Have an immutable infrastructure that replaces servers rather than changing them （ This method can simplify operations and reduce errors 、 Threats and configuration drift ）.
• Sure changesets Automatically apply to infrastructure to save resources and avoid mistakes .
• The advanced drift detection function always shows the difference between the current state and the required state .
• Pluggable design , So the team can customize the settings and add functions .
• This tool understands the relationship between resources , This helps schedule and keep errors to a minimum . You can also build diagrams of all resources .

Helm： The main function

Helm It's a Kubernetes Package manager , It is very suitable for deploying repeatable applications and services to clusters . This tool allows users to pass Helm Charts Manage applications , To simplify the K8s Definition of environment 、 Install and upgrade .

Helm Charts Is converted to Kubernetes File and template package of manifest file . Charts are reusable , And can include based on YAML The template of ：

• Different deployment .
• Configuration diagram .
• service .

Besides , You can define charts as dependencies or nested charts for greater flexibility . Manage charts through a single command line interface (CLI) Conduct , This function can simplify the operation . Although most charts are open to the public , But companies often write custom charts for internal use . Helm There are many benefits , Include ：

• Deploy and manage in different environments K8s detailed list .
• Package complex applications together .
• Rollback or upgrade multiple objects together .
• Quickly change the setting parameters .
• Deploy to multiple environments with a single command .

Helm And its template engine is very suitable for dependency K8s Resources CI/CD technological process . Engineers don't have to edit files for every microservice , Instead, you can define a standard blueprint and use placeholders instead of dynamic values . then , Teams can use a single command to create charts and redeploy the same application on different clusters .

Helm The main characteristics of

• Use Helm Charts、 Reusable templates to quickly configure and manage Kubernetes resources .
• Simple cluster management , You can easily handle application dependencies and deployment instances .
• Enables you to track subsequent versions .
• The ability to roll back or upgrade multiple objects together .
• Simple upgrade and uninstall process of chart .
• Allow users to manage private clouds 、 Containers on public and hybrid clouds .