Installing the operators by using the CLI

Install the IBM Cloud Pak® for Integration operators by using the CLI. Installing the operators allows you to deploy instances later in the installation process.

A cluster administrator needs to install the operators. For more information, see Roles and permissions.

Before you begin

Before you install the operators:

  1. Review Guidelines for installing operators.

  2. Specify the namespace where you want to install the operator. Run:

    export NAMESPACE=<namespace_name>

    For the placeholder <namespace_name>, if you are installing:

    • in all namespaces mode, enter openshift-operators.

    • in a specific namespace mode, enter a custom name.

  3. If the installation mode that you want is a specific namespace on the cluster, create a new project for installing the operator:

    oc new-project <project_name>

    For example:

    oc new-project integration

Additional information about installing the CLI is available in the Red Hat OpenShift topic Getting started with the OpenShift CLI.

Procedure

Installing operators

  1. Switch to the namespace where you want to install the operator (openshift-operators if you are installing in all namespaces, or a custom name if you are installing in a specific namespace):

    oc project ${NAMESPACE}

  2. (Only if your preferred installation mode is a specific namespace on the cluster) Create an OperatorGroup similar to the following example.

    . Create a YAML file similar to the following example:

    apiVersion: operators.coreos.com/v1
kind: OperatorGroup
metadata:
  name: ibm-integration-operatorgroup
spec:
  targetNamespaces:
  - <namespace>

    Replace the following placeholders:

    • For <namespace>, use the namespace you want to install the workload in.

    b. Save to a file called operator-group.yaml.

    c. Run the following command: oc apply -f operator-group.yaml

  3. Create a Subscription for the IBM Cloud Pak for Integration operator.

    a. Create a YAML file similar to the following example:

    apiVersion: operators.coreos.com/v1alpha1
kind: Subscription
metadata:
  name: ibm-integration-platform-navigator
spec:
  channel: <current_channel>
  name: ibm-integration-platform-navigator
  source: <catalog_source_name>
  sourceNamespace: openshift-marketplace

    Replace the following placeholders:

    b. Save to a file called subscription.yaml.

    c. Run the following command:

    oc apply -f subscription.yaml

  4. Create a subscription for each capability that you want to deploy.

    a. Create a YAML file similar to the following example:

    apiVersion: operators.coreos.com/v1alpha1
  kind: Subscription
  metadata:
    name: <operator_name>
  spec:
    channel: <current_channel>
    name: <operator_name>
    source: <catalog_source_name>
    sourceNamespace: openshift-marketplace

    Replace the following placeholders, as indicated:

    b. Save to a file called subscription.yaml.

    c. Run the following command:

    oc apply -f subscription.yaml

Validating installation of an operator

To validate that an operator is installed, run the following command:

oc get csv

The command returns a list similar to the following example. Successfully installed operators have the value Succeeded in the PHASE column.

NAME                                          DISPLAY                                              VERSION   PHASE
ibm-automation-core.v1.3.5                    IBM Automation foundation Core                       1.3.5     Succeeded
ibm-integration-platform-navigator.v5.3.0     IBM Cloud Pak for Integration                        5.3.0     Succeeded
ibm-mq.v1.6.0                                 IBM MQ                                               1.6.0     Succeeded

When the operator is successfully installed (PHASE value of Succeeded), you can deploy instances of the capability that the operator manages.

Note: After you install the operators, consider the resources (sizing) for foundational services. For more information, see Hardware requirements and recommendations for foundational services.

Restricting automatic updates with an approval strategy

Controlling updates by using dedicated and declarative catalog sources is the only way to ensure that the cluster never upgrades. To use this method, follow the procedure in the "Adding specific catalog sources for each operator" section of Adding catalog sources to a cluster.

However, if you know you will always want automatic upgrades of operators, and you do not require declarative installs, you can use the IBM Operator catalog for installations.

Important: The built-in approval strategies for operators do not allow users to control what upgrades to apply. These strategies allow users to control only when to apply all available upgrades in a namespace. Therefore, if your use case requires that you control what upgrades to apply, use the procedure for "Adding specific catalog sources for each operator" as already described.

There are two approval strategies that provide an extra control mechanism, automatic and manual.

  • Do not use the manual strategy, since users cannot control what upgrades to apply; this strategy forces all possible upgrades to be done at the same time. It can also block an upgrade. If your use case requires that you control what upgrades to apply, follow the procedure for "Adding specific catalog sources for each operator" as already described.

  • The automatic strategy is the default strategy. As new operator versions are made available on the subscription channel (each time the catalog source is updated), they are installed automatically, but only on fix packs. Minor version changes always require user input to change subscription channels.

Operators available to install

The following table describes the operators that are available to install. You can install any combination of operators, and any dependencies are pulled in automatically. Each value in the "Literal name" column can be used as a value of metadata.name and spec.name in step 2 of Installing operators.

Important: Not all operators are supported on every environment. For more information, see "Supported environments for operators" in Guidelines for installing operators.

Installing the IBM Cloud Pak for Integration operator enables deployment of the Platform UI, which facilitates the deployment and management of the other capabilities.

Operator name Literal name Capabilities
IBM Cloud Pak for Integration ibm-integration-platform-navigator Provides a dashboard and central services for other Cloud Pak for Integration capabilities. Is installed for most Cloud Pak for Integration installations.
IBM Automation foundation assets ibm-integration-asset-repository Stores, manages, retrieves, and searches for integration assets for use within the IBM Cloud Pak for Integration and its capabilities.
IBM Cloud Pak for Integration Operations Dashboard ibm-integration-operations-dashboard Integration tracing across instances to allow troubleshooting and investigation of errors and latency issues.
IBM API Connect ibm-apiconnect Provides the API management and Event Endpoint Management capabilities. You can deploy one instance of each API Connect into a particular namespace (project). If you need to deploy more instances, you must deploy them into different namespaces.
IBM App Connect ibm-appconnect Provides application integration capabilities and a means to easily create and export flows that run in an App Connect instance.
IBM Aspera HSTS aspera-hsts-operator Provides the High-speed Transfer Server capability.
IBM DataPower Gateway datapower-operator Provides the gateway capability.
IBM Event Streams ibm-eventstreams Provides the Event Streams capability.
IBM MQ ibm-mq Provides the messaging capability.
IBM Instana Agent Provides IBM Instana for proactive monitoring of cluster-based metrics and operators in Cloud Pak for Integration.  
Note: The operator that installs all Cloud Pak for Integration operators (ibm-cp-integration), which was available in previous releases of Cloud Pak for Integration, is no longer part of the product. Do not install it. If this operator is already installed, uninstall it using the procedure in Uninstalling the operators and catalog sources.