Pulumi Workshop: Foundations to Advanced
Chapter 1 - Welcome, EKS!
Overview
In this chapter, we’ll set up a Scalable Kubernetes Service (SKS) cluster, which will serve as the foundation for our subsequent workshop chapters.
While I’ll be using typescript for this chapter, please choose the language you’re most at ease with.
Instructions
Step 1 - Configure the AWS CLI
We’re going to use the environment variables AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID and AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY to configure the AWS CLI.
Simply run the following commands to set them.
export AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=<your-access-key-id>
export AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=<your-secret-access-key>
To verify that the configuration is correct, run the following command.
aws sts get-caller-identity
Step 2 - Configure the Pulumi CLI
If you run Pulumi for the first time, you will be asked to log in. Follow the instructions on the screen to login. You may need to create an account first, don’t worry it is free.
To initialize a new Pulumi project, run pulumi new and select from all the available templates the typescript. Of
course, you can use any other language you want.
pulumi new aws-go
You will be guided through a wizard to create a new Pulumi project. You can use the following values:
project name (01-eks-cluster-setup): 01-eks-cluster-setup
project description (A minimal AWS Go Pulumi program):
Created project '01-eks-cluster-setup'
Please enter your desired stack name.
To create a stack in an organization, use the format <org-name>/<stack-name> (e.g. `acmecorp/dev`).
stack name (dev): dev
...
aws:region: The AWS region to deploy into (us-east-1): eu-central-1
The template aws-go will create a new Pulumi project with
the Pulumi AWS provider already installed. For detailed instructions,
refer to the Pulumi AWS Provider documentation.
Use config values right from the outset for the following properties:
kubernetesVersioninstanceTypedesiredCapacityminSizemaxSizeregion
Remember the techniques we discussed in the previous chapter!
To keep the creation very simple, we will use the pulumi-eks component resource. To add it to your project, run the
following command:
go get github.com/pulumi/pulumi-eks/sdk@v1.0.4
See the Pulumi EKS Component Resource documentation for more information.
Ensure you’re using the latest version of Kubernetes. To determine the exact version, execute the
command aws eks describe-addon-versions | jq -r ".addons[] | .addonVersions[] | .compatibilities[] | .clusterVersion" | sort | uniq
versions and select the most recent version.
To wrap things up, export the kubeconfig from the Cluster resource. We’ll require this later to establish a
connection to the cluster.
Step 3 - Configure Kubectl
With the pulumi stack output command, you can retrieve any output value from the stack. In this case, we are going to
retrieve the kubeconfig to use with kubectl.
pulumi stack output kubeconfig --show-secrets -s dev > kubeconfig
Step 4 - Verify the cluster
Now that we have the kubeconfig, we can verify the cluster is up and running. Not that we need this, but it is always good to verify.
kubectl --kubeconfig kubeconfig get nodes
You should see a similar output:
NAME STATUS ROLES AGE VERSION
ip-172-31-15-2.eu-central-1.compute.internal Ready <none> 34s v1.28.1-eks-43840fb
Step 5 - Understanding the Need for Component Resources!
First, let’s clean up by destroying the current stack:
pulumi destroy -s dev
Then, delete the stack using:
pulumi stack rm dev
We’ll recreate the stack, but this time we’ll utilize a component resource.
If you’ve observed, setting up an SKS cluster with all its requisite resources can be a tad intricate and isn’t immune to errors. The process demands a deep understanding, and every detail matters.
Component resources offer a solution. They serve as logical groupings of resources. Typically, components instantiate a related set of resources in their constructor, treating them as children. This abstraction conceals the nitty-gritty, ensuring a smoother experience.
For a deep dive, refer to the Pulumi Component Resource documentation.
I’ve prepared a reference implementation for you in internal/eks/eks.go. Use it as a guide or starting point.
With the new component resource in place, you’re all set to deploy the stack.
pulumi up
Congratulations! You have successfully deployed a Kubernetes cluster on AWS using Pulumi. Please leave the cluster up and running for Chapter 1 - Containerize an Application
Stretch Goals
- Are you looking to diversify your cluster? Consider adding a second node group with a distinct node type to the existing cluster.