managing-k8s-flux-deep

name	managing-k8s-flux-deep
description	Use when working with K8S Flux Deep — flux CD deep-dive management for Kubernetes GitOps delivery. Covers GitRepository sources, Kustomization reconciliation, HelmRelease status, HelmRepository health, ImagePolicy automation, notification providers, and multi-tenancy configurations. Use when debugging reconciliation failures, analyzing Flux source health, reviewing Helm release drift, or auditing image automation pipelines.
connection_type	k8s
preload	false

Flux CD Deep-Dive Skill

Advanced analysis of Flux CD GitOps sources, reconciliation, and deployment pipelines.

MANDATORY: Discovery-First Pattern

Always check Flux installation and source health before inspecting reconciliation.

Phase 1: Discovery

#!/bin/bash

echo "=== Flux Components ==="
kubectl get deployment -n flux-system -o custom-columns='NAME:.metadata.name,READY:.status.readyReplicas,IMAGE:.spec.template.spec.containers[0].image' 2>/dev/null

echo ""
echo "=== Flux Version ==="
kubectl get deployment source-controller -n flux-system -o jsonpath='{.spec.template.spec.containers[0].image}' 2>/dev/null
echo ""

echo ""
echo "=== GitRepositories ==="
kubectl get gitrepositories --all-namespaces -o custom-columns='NAMESPACE:.metadata.namespace,NAME:.metadata.name,READY:.status.conditions[?(@.type=="Ready")].status,REVISION:.status.artifact.revision,AGE:.metadata.creationTimestamp' 2>/dev/null | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== HelmRepositories ==="
kubectl get helmrepositories --all-namespaces -o custom-columns='NAMESPACE:.metadata.namespace,NAME:.metadata.name,READY:.status.conditions[?(@.type=="Ready")].status,URL:.spec.url' 2>/dev/null | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== OCIRepositories ==="
kubectl get ocirepositories --all-namespaces -o custom-columns='NAMESPACE:.metadata.namespace,NAME:.metadata.name,READY:.status.conditions[?(@.type=="Ready")].status' 2>/dev/null | head -10

echo ""
echo "=== Kustomizations ==="
kubectl get kustomizations --all-namespaces -o custom-columns='NAMESPACE:.metadata.namespace,NAME:.metadata.name,READY:.status.conditions[?(@.type=="Ready")].status,REVISION:.status.lastAppliedRevision' 2>/dev/null | head -15

Phase 2: Analysis

#!/bin/bash

echo "=== HelmReleases ==="
kubectl get helmreleases --all-namespaces -o custom-columns='NAMESPACE:.metadata.namespace,NAME:.metadata.name,READY:.status.conditions[?(@.type=="Ready")].status,CHART:.spec.chart.spec.chart,VERSION:.spec.chart.spec.version' 2>/dev/null | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== Failed Reconciliations ==="
kubectl get kustomizations,helmreleases --all-namespaces -o json 2>/dev/null | jq -r '
  .items[] |
  select(.status.conditions[]? | select(.type == "Ready" and .status != "True")) |
  "\(.kind)/\(.metadata.name)\t\(.status.conditions[] | select(.type == "Ready") | .reason): \(.message // "")[0:80]"
' | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== Source Errors ==="
kubectl get gitrepositories,helmrepositories --all-namespaces -o json 2>/dev/null | jq -r '
  .items[] |
  select(.status.conditions[]? | select(.type == "Ready" and .status != "True")) |
  "\(.kind)/\(.metadata.name)\t\(.status.conditions[] | select(.type == "Ready") | .message // "unknown")[0:80]"
' | head -10

echo ""
echo "=== Image Policies ==="
kubectl get imagepolicies --all-namespaces -o custom-columns='NAMESPACE:.metadata.namespace,NAME:.metadata.name,LATEST:.status.latestImage' 2>/dev/null | head -10

echo ""
echo "=== Image Update Automations ==="
kubectl get imageupdateautomations --all-namespaces -o custom-columns='NAMESPACE:.metadata.namespace,NAME:.metadata.name,LAST_RUN:.status.lastAutomationRunTime' 2>/dev/null | head -10

echo ""
echo "=== Notification Providers ==="
kubectl get providers --all-namespaces -o custom-columns='NAMESPACE:.metadata.namespace,NAME:.metadata.name,TYPE:.spec.type' 2>/dev/null |  -10

 
 
kubectl get alerts --all-namespaces -o custom-columns= 2>/dev/null |  -10

 
 
kubectl get kustomizations,helmreleases --all-namespaces -o json 2>/dev/null | jq -r 

 
 
kubectl logs deployment/source-controller -n flux-system --=15 2>/dev/null | grep -i  |  -5

Output Format

• Target ≤50 lines per output
• Use -o custom-columns for CRD resource listings
• Show Ready status and last applied revision for quick health check
• Group HelmReleases by namespace for organized view
• Never dump full Kustomization patches -- show source ref and status only

Anti-Hallucination Rules

1. NEVER assume resource names — always discover via CLI/API in Phase 1 before referencing in Phase 2.
2. NEVER fabricate metric names or dimensions — verify against the service documentation or --help output.
3. NEVER mix CLI commands between service versions — confirm which version/API you are targeting.
4. ALWAYS use the discovery → verify → analyze chain — every resource referenced must have been discovered first.
5. ALWAYS handle empty results gracefully — an empty response is valid data, not an error to retry.

Counter-Rationalizations

Shortcut	Counter	Why
"I'll skip discovery and check known resources"	Always run Phase 1 discovery first	Resource names change, new resources appear — assumed names cause errors
"The user only asked for a quick check"	Follow the full discovery → analysis flow	Quick checks miss critical issues; structured analysis catches silent failures
"Default configuration is probably fine"	Audit configuration explicitly	Defaults often leave logging, security, and optimization features disabled
"Metrics aren't needed for this"	Always check relevant metrics when available	API/CLI responses show current state; metrics reveal trends and intermittent issues
"I don't have access to that"	Try the command and report the actual error	Assumed permission failures prevent useful investigation; actual errors are informative

Common Pitfalls

• Dependency ordering: Kustomizations support dependsOn -- circular dependencies cause deadlocks
• Suspend flag: spec.suspend: true stops reconciliation -- check before assuming failures
• Source interval: spec.interval controls how often sources are checked -- too frequent causes rate limits
• HelmRelease remediation: spec.install.remediation and spec.upgrade.remediation control retry behavior
• Drift detection: Enable spec.force on Kustomizations to correct drift -- but may cause disruption
• Multi-tenancy: Use spec.serviceAccountName on Kustomizations for RBAC scoping per tenant
• Image automation: Requires image-reflector and image-automation controllers -- not installed by default
• Prune: spec.prune: true on Kustomizations deletes resources removed from Git -- use with caution
• Health checks: Custom health checks in Kustomizations can delay Ready status -- check spec.healthChecks