Introduction
Azure Red Hat OpenShift (ARO) is a fully managed service that combines the powerful container orchestration capabilities of Kubernetes with the enterprise-grade reliability and support of Red Hat OpenShift. ARO is a joint offering by Microsoft and Red Hat, providing a simplified and streamlined experience for deploying and managing Kubernetes clusters in the Azure cloud.
Some of the key features of ARO that make it an ideal choice for Kubernetes management include:
GUI-Based Management: ARO provides a web-based console for managing and monitoring Kubernetes clusters, making it easy for administrators to deploy and manage applications without having to use command-line tools.
Automated Operations: ARO automates many common operations, such as cluster upgrades, node provisioning, and scaling, simplifying the management of Kubernetes clusters.
Hybrid Cloud Support: ARO enables organizations to manage Kubernetes clusters across multiple environments, including on-premises, public cloud, and hybrid scenarios.
Built-In DevOps Capabilities: ARO integrates with popular DevOps tools and processes, such as CI/CD pipelines, Git repo integration, and deployment automation, to streamline the delivery of applications to Kubernetes clusters.
ARO Setup and Deployment
Requirements and Prerequisites for ARO Deployment:
Azure Subscription: You will need an active Azure subscription to deploy ARO. If you do not have an Azure subscription, you can sign up for a free account here.
Azure Virtual Network (VNet): ARO requires a dedicated Azure VNet for its deployment. If you already have a VNet in your subscription, make sure it meets the following requirements:
Must have a CIDR block of at least /16
Must have at least two subnets with a CIDR block of at least /24, one for the master nodes and one for the worker nodes
Must not be peered with any other VNets
Must not have any network security groups (NSG) attached to it
If you do not have a VNet that meets these requirements, you can create a new one.
3. Azure Service Principal: ARO uses a service principal to interact with your Azure subscription. To create a service principal, follow these steps:
In your Azure Portal, go to Azure Active Directory > App registrations.
Click on + New Registration and give your app a name.
Set the Supported account types to Accounts in this organizational directory only.
Under Redirect URI, select Web and enter https://openshift.mydomain.com:443/callback as the URL. Replace mydomain.com with your domain name.
Click Register. Make a note of the Application (client) ID and Directory (tenant) ID as you will need them later.
Go to Certificates & secrets and click on + New client secret. Give your secret a description and select an expiration time. Click Add and make a note of the value as it will not be visible after you leave this page.
4. Domain Name: You will need a publicly accessible domain name for your ARO cluster. You can either use your existing domain or purchase one from a domain registrar.
5. DNS Configuration: ARO requires a DNS zone to be configured for your domain. If you already have a DNS zone set up for your domain, make sure to have access to its DNS records. If you do not have a DNS zone configured, you can create one on your domain registrar’s website.
Walkthrough of Deployment Process Using Azure Portal:
Step 1: Deploy ARO Resource
Log in to your Azure Portal and click on Create a resource.
In the search bar, type “Azure Red Hat OpenShift” and select the ARO resource from the list.
Click on Create on the ARO resource page.
Step 2: ARO Configuration
On the Basics tab, select your subscription, resource group, and region for the ARO resource.
Under Cluster details, enter a unique name for your cluster.
Under Network details, select your VNet from the dropdown menu. If you do not have an existing VNet, click on Create New and enter the required details.
Click on Configure Azure Red Hat OpenShift.
On the Configuration tab, enter your ARO service principal values — Application (client) ID, Directory (tenant) ID, and Client secret created in the prerequisites.
Under Cluster details, enter the number of master and worker nodes you want in your cluster.
Under Network details, enter your public DNS zone name and the resource group name for your DNS zone.
Under Advanced Settings, you can enable authentication with Azure Active Directory or RBAC authorization. You can also enable custom tags for your ARO cluster.
Click Review + Create to review the configuration.
If the validation is successful, click Create to start the deployment process.
Step 3: Monitor Deployment Progress
After clicking Create, you will be taken to the deployment page. The deployment process can take up to an hour.
You can monitor the progress of the deployment on the Overview tab of your ARO resource.
ARO Management and Administration
1. Managing and administering ARO clusters effectively:
Familiarize yourself with the Azure Red Hat OpenShift (ARO) console and command-line interface (CLI) to manage and administer ARO clusters.
Use ARO’s built-in monitoring and logging tools to troubleshoot issues and identify potential areas for improvement.
Keep track of your ARO cluster’s health and performance using the ARO dashboard and regularly monitor any alerts or notifications.
Establish a backup and recovery plan for your ARO clusters to ensure availability and mitigate potential data loss.
2. Cluster resources:
ARO clusters are based on Kubernetes, which manages cluster resources such as compute instances, storage resources, and network resources.
It is essential to understand the cluster resource quotas in ARO to avoid any unexpected charges or resource depletion.
You can use ARO’s resource scheduling techniques, such as node selection, node affinity, and node anti-affinity to manage and optimize resource allocation in your cluster.
3. Namespaces:
Namespaces in ARO are used to organize and isolate resources within a cluster, making it easier to manage and secure applications.
It is important to design a proper namespace structure based on your application’s requirements and resource management policies.
You can use ARO’s namespaces to deploy different versions of the same application or to separate critical applications from non-critical ones.
4. Pods:
Pods are the smallest and most basic unit of container deployment in ARO clusters.
Each pod has its own IP address and resource allocation, making it isolated from other pods in the same cluster.
You can use ARO’s pod scaling and auto-scaling features to manage resource utilization and optimize application performance.
5. Services:
Services in ARO are used to expose containers running in pods to external networks.
You can use services to create load balancers, set up external access, and manage network traffic for your applications.
ARO provides various service types, such as cluster IP, NodePort, and load balancer, to suit different networking needs.
6. Deployments:
Deployments in ARO are used to manage the rollout and updates of applications in a cluster.
You can use ARO’s deployment strategies, such as rolling, blue-green, and canary, to control how new updates are deployed to your applications.
ARO also provides features like automation, rollbacks, and health checks to ensure a smooth deployment process.
7. Best practices for scaling, monitoring, and securing ARO clusters:
Use ARO’s built-in metrics and logs monitoring features to track your cluster’s performance and detect any anomalies.
Utilize ARO’s auto-scaling options to scale your cluster resources dynamically based on workload demands.
Implement proper security measures, such as network policies, access control, and role-based access control (RBAC) to secure your ARO clusters and applications.
Regularly update your ARO clusters and installed components to patch any vulnerabilities and keep your clusters secure.
Use ARO’s disaster recovery and backup features to ensure the availability of your applications in case of any failures or outages.
ARO Integration with Azure Services
Here are some examples of how ARO can be integrated with Azure services to enhance developer productivity and improve overall application management:
Integration with Azure DevOps
ARO can be easily integrated with Azure DevOps, Microsoft’s powerful application lifecycle management tool. This integration allows developers to deploy their code from Azure DevOps pipelines directly to ARO clusters, automating the deployment process and reducing manual steps. This also enables the use of ARO environments as build targets in Azure Pipelines, providing a simplified and efficient CI/CD workflow for applications on OpenShift.
2. Leveraging Azure Container Registry
With ARO, developers can also take advantage of Azure Container Registry (ACR) to store, manage, and deploy container images. ACR is a private registry, tightly integrated with Azure and ARO, providing a secure and high-performance platform for managing container images. By integrating ARO with ACR, developers can easily pull and push images to their OpenShift applications, and ARO takes care of the underlying infrastructure and scaling capabilities.
3. Utilizing Azure Pipelines
ARO supports the use of Azure Pipelines to automate the CI/CD process, allowing teams to easily create and configure pipelines for deploying applications to ARO clusters. With ARO, it is possible to create custom pipelines for different environments, such as dev, test, and production, and deploy applications with a single click. This integration allows teams to quickly and reliably deliver new features and updates to their applications on ARO.
4. Integration with Azure Active Directory
ARO can be integrated with Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) for authentication and access control. This integration provides a secure and centralized way to manage user access to ARO clusters, using identity providers such as Azure AD accounts, Azure AD groups, and service principals. With Azure AD integration, developers can also use their existing credentials to access ARO environments, making it easier to manage and control permissions for different team members.
5. Monitoring with Azure Monitor
ARO is built on top of Azure infrastructure, allowing seamless integration with Azure Monitor for monitoring and alerting. Azure Monitor provides a unified and centralized view of the health and performance of ARO clusters, enabling teams to quickly identify and troubleshoot issues. With Azure Monitor, developers can also set up customized alerts to receive notifications for different events and metrics, ensuring the reliable and consistent operation of their applications on ARO.
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