Skip to main content
Add-ons are Helm charts that Ankra deploys to your clusters and keeps reconciled. They provide a standardized way to extend your clusters with monitoring, networking, security, and custom applications.

​
What is an Add-on?

An add-on is a packaged application or tool that extends the functionality of your Kubernetes cluster. Add-ons are distributed as Helm charts and can include anything from monitoring tools and ingress controllers to security solutions and custom integrations. An add-on could even be your own application, integrated into the Ankra ecosystem for easy deployment and management.

​
Architecture Overview

Understanding how add-ons flow from configuration to deployment helps you manage them effectively.

​
Deployment Pipeline

How it works:
  1. Stack Builder or Git: You configure add-ons with values and dependencies in the Stack Builder, or in a connected GitOps repository
  2. Ankra platform: Stores the desired state of the stack and dispatches the deploy
  3. Ankra agent: Receives the deploy inside your cluster
  4. Helm release: The agent runs helm upgrade --install with your values; the step succeeds once the release is healthy
  5. Kubernetes Resources: The rendered manifests are applied to your cluster
This is the native engine, the default for new clusters. Clusters created before it may still use the ArgoCD engine, where an ArgoCD installation in the cluster applies the chart instead; the stack you build is the same either way. See Deployment Engines.

​
Add-on Status

An add-on’s status in the dashboard shows whether its latest deploy succeeded and whether the release has drifted from the desired state. The agent reports drift to the platform, and an add-on whose settings enable self-heal is reconciled back. See Deployment Engines for how each engine detects and heals drift.

​
Resource Hierarchy

Each add-on creates a hierarchy of Kubernetes resources. Understanding this hierarchy helps with troubleshooting and resource management.

​
Typical Add-on Resource Structure

Resource types commonly created by add-ons: Navigate to any installed add-on and open its Resource Map to see this hierarchy live for your cluster.

​
Continuous Delivery Flow

1

Configuration Change

You modify add-on values in the Stack Builder, or update values in your connected Git repository.
2

Change detected

A change made in the Stack Builder is deployed when you deploy the stack. A change pushed to Git is picked up through the repository’s webhook (or periodic polling).
3

Deploy

The agent applies the difference with Helm on the native engine, or through ArgoCD on a cluster still using that engine.
4

Health Check

The deploy is not marked successful until the release’s resources are healthy.

​
Sync Settings

Each add-on’s settings control how it is kept in sync: Both engines support these; see Add-on Settings.

​
Manage Add-on Sources

An add-on source in Ankra is either a Helm repository URL or an OCI (Open Container Initiative) registry URL. These sources contain the Helm charts you want to use for deploying add-ons to your clusters. Helm charts are a standard way to package Kubernetes applications, making it easy to manage dependencies and versioning for complex workloads. By connecting both public and private Helm repositories or OCI registries, you can access a wide range of Kubernetes add-ons. This lets you integrate open-source tools, vendor solutions, or your own custom charts - all from a single interface. Managing sources centrally ensures your team always has access to the latest and most secure versions of your preferred add-ons. Setup steps live in one place: see Registries for connecting a source, and Create a Registry for hosting your own charts on GHCR.

​
Install Add-ons

Add-ons are installed through Stacks, next to the manifests they depend on, so they deploy in the right order as one unit.
1

Navigate to Stacks

Go to the Stacks section in your cluster and click + Create (or edit an existing stack).
2

Add an Add-on

In the Stack Builder, click Add Add-on. Browse or search for charts from your connected registries.
3

Configure Values

Select the chart version and configure the values. Pin an exact chart version in production to avoid unexpected upgrades. You can use the AI Assistant (⌘+J) to help customize the configuration.
4

Deploy

For a new stack, click Create Stack to save and deploy it, installing the add-on on your cluster.

​
Encrypting Sensitive Values with SOPS

When an add-on’s values carry a password, an API key or a webhook URL and the cluster is connected to Git, list those key names under Encrypted Keys (SOPS) in the add-on’s configuration, for example adminPassword. Ankra encrypts their values with SOPS before it writes the values file to Git, keeps the keys readable for diffs, and decrypts them when it deploys. SOPS needs a one-time setup for the organisation - see SOPS.

​
Operational Learnings with AGENTS.md

Every add-on can carry an AGENTS.md - a markdown document of operational learnings (upgrade gotchas, safe rollout order, values that must stay pinned) that teammates and Ankra’s AI build up over time. Edit it from the AGENTS.md tab on the add-on in the Stack Builder; editing it never triggers a redeploy. See Teach Your Agents with AGENTS.md.

​
Viewing Installed Add-ons

Once deployed, you can monitor and manage add-ons from the Add-ons page.

​
Add-ons List

Navigate to your cluster → Add-ons to see all installed add-ons with:
  • Name and Version: The Helm chart name and deployed version
  • Status: Current sync and health status
  • Namespace: Where the add-on is deployed
  • Last Updated: When the add-on was last modified

​
Add-on Details

Click any add-on to view detailed information:

​
Resource Map

The Resource Map provides a visual representation of all resources deployed by an add-on:
  • Hierarchical View: See parent-child relationships (e.g., Deployment → ReplicaSet → Pod)
  • Quick Navigation: Click any resource to view its details
  • Status Indicators: Identify unhealthy or pending resources at a glance
  • Resource Types: View all Kubernetes resource kinds in one place
Use the Resource Map when troubleshooting to quickly identify which resources are failing and their dependencies.

​
Updating Add-ons

​
Changing Values

  1. Navigate to your stack in the Stack Builder
  2. Click the add-on you want to modify
  3. Update the Helm values as needed
  4. Save and deploy the stack

​
Upgrading Chart Versions

  1. Edit the stack containing the add-on
  2. Click the add-on and select a new chart version
  3. Review any breaking changes in the chart changelog
  4. Save and deploy to upgrade
Major version upgrades may include breaking changes. Review the chart’s release notes and test in a non-production environment first.

​
Rollback

If an upgrade causes issues:
  1. Edit the stack and revert to the previous chart version
  2. Or use GitOps: revert the commit in your Git repository
  3. Ankra deploys the previous state again - from the stack when you deploy it, or from Git on its next sync
Add-on settings and Helm values are also readable and updatable through Ankra’s AI and MCP clients, alongside sync, rollback, and uninstall - so routine add-on operations can run straight from chat or your editor. See the MCP Tool Reference.

​
Explore the Add-ons API

Want to automate add-on management or integrate with your CI/CD workflows? Check out the API Reference for endpoints to list, install, and manage add-ons programmatically.

Stacks

Build stacks with multiple add-ons.

Add-on Catalog

Browse available Helm charts.

GitOps

Understand the GitOps workflow.

SOPS Encryption

Encrypt sensitive add-on values.