Mirroring images for an air-gapped cluster

In production systems, it is common to have a cluster that does not have internet access. In these cases, you can install the IBM App Connect Operator and Red Hat OpenShift in an air-gapped environment, which is also referred to as an offline, restricted, or disconnected environment. Air-gapped installations require you to mimic a typical online installation by using images in your own registry.

In an air-gapped environment, you can install the IBM App Connect Operator by using one of the following devices:

• A bastion host that can connect to the internet and to your cluster
• A portable compute device or portable storage device that allows images to be copied into the air-gapped environment

The following diagram provides an overview of air-gapped installation scenarios for a bastion host, portable compute device, and portable storage device. You can store the product code and images in a file system (such as a portable compute device or portable storage device), or in a bastion host, and then transfer them to a local air-gapped network. If you are using a file system, you do not need a bastion host to install in your air-gapped environment.

All of these scenarios use container-based software, which is provided as a Container Application Software for Enterprises (CASE) bundle, to mirror content from a source to a target. CASE is a specification that defines metadata and structure for packaging, managing, and unpacking containerized applications.

The IBM App Connect CASE bundle includes a CASE that contains metadata about the IBM App Connect Operator, including information about the container images that are required to install the product. The CASE bundle also provides scripts, which you can use to mirror the Operator images to an internal registry within your air-gapped environment, and to install the images from this registry.