OpenShift is a cloud-based platform that allows developers to build, deploy, and manage applications in a flexible and scalable way. It's a Platform as a Service (PaaS) that provides a managed environment for developing and running applications.
With OpenShift, developers can use a variety of programming languages, including Java, Python, and Ruby, to build and deploy applications. This means that developers can focus on writing code without worrying about the underlying infrastructure.
OpenShift provides a range of tools and services to help developers manage their applications, including source code management, continuous integration, and continuous deployment. This makes it easier for developers to collaborate and manage their applications throughout the development lifecycle.
What Is OpenShift
OpenShift is a cloud platform as a service (PaaS) that allows developers to build, deploy, and manage applications in a scalable and secure environment. It's developed by Red Hat.
Developers can use OpenShift to deploy applications written in a variety of languages, including Java, Python, and Ruby. This flexibility makes it a popular choice for companies with diverse tech stacks.
OpenShift provides a range of tools and services to help developers manage their applications, including source code management, continuous integration and delivery, and monitoring and logging.
What Is
OpenShift is a container application platform that allows developers to build, deploy, and manage applications in a flexible and scalable way. It's a game-changer for businesses that need to quickly adapt to changing market conditions.
OpenShift is built on top of Kubernetes, a container orchestration system that automates the deployment, scaling, and management of containers. This means that OpenShift can handle complex tasks like load balancing, self-healing, and resource management with ease.
Developers can use OpenShift to deploy applications in a variety of environments, from on-premises data centers to public cloud providers like Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure. This flexibility makes it easy to move applications between environments and scale as needed.
OpenShift also provides a robust set of tools and services for developers, including source-to-image (S2I) builds, which automate the process of building and deploying applications from source code. This saves time and reduces the risk of human error.
What Is OpenShift
OpenShift is a cloud-based platform that allows developers to build, deploy, and manage applications in a scalable and secure environment.
It was originally developed by Red Hat and acquired by IBM in 2018.
OpenShift supports a wide range of programming languages and frameworks, including Java, Python, and Ruby.
Developers can easily create and manage containers using the OpenShift Container Platform.
OpenShift provides a robust security framework that includes features like network policies and image scanning.
It also offers a range of tools for monitoring and logging applications, including Prometheus and Grafana.
Key Features
The OpenShift platform as a service offers a robust set of features that make it an ideal choice for developers and businesses alike. OpenShift 4.0 defaults to the Container Runtime Interface — Open Container Initiative (CRI-OCI), which can handle a greater number of container nodes at scale.
OpenShift is built on top of Docker, the de facto standard for developers, and leverages Kubernetes for orchestration. This allows for the efficient use of system resources and the ability to ship software faster.
OpenShift makes it possible to create and deploy cloud-native microservices at scale, using a microservices architecture that combines loosely-coupled functions to create high-performing applications.
The flexible, cloud-based nature of OpenShift gives companies complete control over the scale and management of their application infrastructure. This removes concerns around storage, security, and lifecycle management, allowing businesses to focus on application development, support, and evolution.
OpenShift includes a set of pre-created, easy-to-use templates that offer a simple click interface and can be easily customized to meet your needs. It also works with popular continuous integration tools such as Jenkins.
Here are some of the key features of OpenShift:
- Run cloud-native microservices at scale
- Scale and manage infrastructure
- Access a wide ecosystem of partners with open-source and cloud-native technologies
Solution Overview
The OpenShift Platform as a Service (PaaS) solution is a powerful tool that helps you capitalize on the benefits of containers. It's built on top of Red Hat OpenShift, an enterprise-grade open source container platform that uses Kubernetes orchestration and Docker containers.
Red Hat OpenShift is a robust platform that's widely used in the industry, and by incorporating it into your PaaS solution, you can take advantage of its scalability and flexibility. You'll also get access to ORockCloud, a secure and high-performance environment that's compliant with FedRAMP regulations.
ORockCloud is a critical component of the PaaS solution, providing a secure and reliable infrastructure for hosting your containerized applications and workloads. It's managed by US citizens operating in ORock's US-based NOC and SOC, ensuring that your data is handled with the utmost care.
The PaaS solution also includes Platform Management Services, which simplifies the setup, deployment, management, and maintenance of OpenShift and the ORockCloud infrastructure. This means you can focus on developing and deploying your applications, without worrying about the underlying infrastructure.
Here are the key components of the OpenShift PaaS solution:
- Red Hat OpenShift – An enterprise-grade open source container platform built on Kubernetes Orchestration Engine and Docker containers
- ORockCloud – A secure, high-performance, FedRAMP-compliant environment to host the OpenShift platform and your containerized applications and workloads
- Platform Management Services – Simplified setup, deployment, management, and maintenance of OpenShift and the ORockCloud infrastructure
The PaaS solution operates within ORock's FedRAMP Moderate boundary, ensuring that your applications meet government requirements for running in a FedRAMP authorized cloud. With a flat-rate billing model and no egress or ingress charges, you can enjoy predictable costs and avoid vendor lock-in.
White-Glove Support Services
With ORock's White-Glove Support Services, you can eliminate the need to install and maintain the OpenShift platform yourself.
ORock's US-based NOC and SOC simplify the complexity of container adoption, providing the underlying services required to install, deploy, harden, and operate the OpenShift container platform to meet your specifications.
You'll have access to pre-sales IT resources to evaluate your needs, and ORock will engage with your engineers in detailed architecture reviews to determine the best platform fit for your specific needs.
ORock works hand-in-hand with you to guide you through the migration process and ensure your environments are up and running.
US citizens based on US soil manage every aspect of platform security, patches, maintenance, and monitoring from the networks and data center components up to the OS and Runtime tier.
This means your staff only needs to focus on the application and data tiers, allowing you to redirect resources to application development and maintenance.
DevOps and CI/CD
OpenShift empowers easy integration with leading CI/CD platforms, AI-powered performance monitoring solutions, and user-demand analysis tools.
High-performing DevOps teams have 46 times more frequent code deployments and 440 times faster lead time from commitment to deployment.
By taking better control of their Kubernetes environments, OpenShift can help organizations reach their full DevOps potential, avoiding common pitfalls and reducing project timelines.
DevOps and CI/CD
DevOps and CI/CD have fundamentally changed the way we design, develop, and deploy software. High-performing DevOps teams have 46 times more frequent code deployments.
Continuous integration and continuous development pipelines can help organizations avoid common pitfalls and reduce project timelines. Research shows that DevOps teams with these pipelines have faster lead times from commitment to deployment.
OpenShift empowers easy integration with leading CI/CD platforms, AI-powered performance monitoring solutions, and user-demand analysis tools. This integration can help organizations reach their full DevOps potential.
By taking better control of their Kubernetes environments, OpenShift can help organizations streamline their workflows and get to production faster. OpenShift Pipelines and builds can automate deployment and life-cycle management.
High-performing DevOps teams have 440 times faster lead time from commitment to deployment. This is a significant improvement over traditional development methods.
Best Practices
Limit container runtime privileges to prevent containers from gaining unauthorized access to resources. This is crucial for maintaining the security and integrity of your OpenShift environment.
Projects and namespaces can help keep your OpenShift environment organized and manageable. They are a top-level organizational unit that can be subdivided further into namespaces.
Limiting container runtime privileges is a best practice that can help improve security and prevent unauthorized access to resources. By doing so, you can ensure that containers only have the privileges they need to run.
Use the OpenShift Container Security Operator to automatically apply security policies to your containers and help identify and remediate security vulnerabilities. This can be a game-changer for maintaining the security of your OpenShift environment.
Projects and namespaces are essential for organizing your OpenShift resources. Projects are the top-level organizational unit, and namespaces are a way to subdivide projects further.
Use a load balancer to distribute traffic to your applications. This can help ensure that your applications are scalable and can handle increased traffic.
Securing etcd is crucial for maintaining the security of your OpenShift cluster. Etcd is a key-value store that stores important data about your OpenShift cluster, and it's essential to secure it to prevent unauthorized access to this data.
Here are some additional best practices to keep in mind:
- Use the latest version of OpenShift to ensure you have the latest security patches and features.
- Use a separate build image and runtime image to improve the security and maintainability of your applications.
- Stick to the restricted security context constraint where possible to improve the security of your containers.
- Protect the communication between application components using TLS to ensure secure communication.
- Back up your OpenShift environment regularly to ensure that you can recover in case of a disaster.
Architecture and Installation
The OpenShift platform offers a unique architecture compared to vanilla Kubernetes. OpenShift's build-related artifacts are considered first-class Kubernetes resources, allowing for standard Kubernetes operations to be applied.
This means that you can directly interact with build-related resources using the OpenShift client, "oc", which offers a superset of the standard capabilities in the Kubernetes client, "kubectl". The OpenShift-native pod builds technology, Source-to-Image (S2I), is available out of the box, although it's being phased out in favor of Tekton.
OpenShift also includes some key features that simplify application deployment and management, such as ImageStreams and Templates. ImageStreams are a sequence of pointers to images that can be associated with deployments, while Templates are a packaging mechanism for application components.
Here are some key differences between OpenShift and Kubernetes:
- The out-of-the-box install of OpenShift comes with an image repository.
- ImageStreams and Templates simplify application deployment and management.
- The "new-app" command can be used to initiate an application deployment and applies the app label to all resources created.
- OpenShift supports various platforms, including AWS, IBM Cloud, vSphere, and bare metal deployments.
- OpenShift's implementation of Deployment is logic-based, whereas Kubernetes uses controller-based Deployment objects.
OpenShift tightly controls the operating systems used, with the control plane components requiring Red Hat CoreOS. This enables easy upgrades and patches of the control plane nodes.
Self-Managed Editions
In the Self-Managed Editions, you'll find a more streamlined approach to architecture and installation. This edition is designed for small to medium-sized projects.
The Self-Managed Editions require a minimum of 5 nodes, which can be a mix of physical and virtual machines. This allows for greater flexibility in deployment.
With this edition, you'll have full control over the configuration and management of your nodes. This means you can customize the architecture to fit your specific needs.
The Self-Managed Editions support a wide range of databases, including PostgreSQL, MySQL, and MongoDB. This gives you the freedom to choose the best database for your project.
You'll need to ensure that your nodes meet the minimum hardware requirements, which include 4 GB of RAM and 2 CPUs. This will help ensure smooth performance.
By choosing the Self-Managed Editions, you'll save on costs associated with managed services. This can be a significant advantage for smaller projects or those on a tight budget.
Architecture
OpenShift offers a superset of standard Kubernetes capabilities through its client program, "oc", which allows for direct interaction with build-related resources using sub-commands like "new-build" or "start-build".
The main difference between OpenShift and vanilla Kubernetes lies in the concept of build-related artifacts, which are considered first-class Kubernetes resources in OpenShift.
OpenShift's build technology, Source-to-Image (S2I), is available out of the box, although it's being phased out in favor of Tekton, a cloud-native way of building and deploying to Kubernetes.
Some key differences between OpenShift and Kubernetes include:
OpenShift tightly controls the operating systems used, requiring the control plane components to run Red Hat CoreOS, which enables minimal effort for upgrades and patches.
Installation Options
Oracle offers an automated path for provisioning the cluster infrastructure that uses the Red Hat Assisted Installer, which we recommend for most users.
The automated path is a convenient option that saves time and effort.
Oracle also supports the use of Red Hat's Agent-based Installer for users who want to set up the cluster manually or using other automation tools, or for those working in a disconnected environment.
This option provides more control and flexibility for users who require it.
We recommend the automated path for most users due to its ease of use and efficiency.
Okd
OKD is an open source application container platform built around Docker container packaging and Kubernetes container cluster management. It provides an open source application container platform.
OKD's source code is available under the Apache License (Version 2.0) on GitHub. This means that developers can access and use the code freely.
OKD provides an open source alternative to proprietary container platforms. Its open source nature allows for community-driven development and customization.
The OKD project is hosted on GitHub, which is a popular platform for open source development. This is where you can find the source code and contribute to the project.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is OpenShift a PaaS or CaaS?
OpenShift offers both Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Container as a Service (CaaS) functionality, providing a flexible cloud computing model. It combines the benefits of PaaS and CaaS to deliver a robust and scalable platform.
Sources
- https://orocktech.com/solutions/secure-containers/red-hat-openshift-platform/
- https://www.redhat.com/en/technologies/cloud-computing/openshift
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenShift
- https://www.dynatrace.com/news/blog/what-is-openshift-2/
- https://docs.oracle.com/en-us/iaas/Content/openshift-on-oci/overview.htm
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