The VMware Tanzu Service Mesh team is showing previews of upcoming multi-cloud operations capabilities focused on improving productivity for developers and operation teams. Here's a sneak peek of the features that were showcased this week at VMware Explore 2022 Europe.
Multi-cloud automated Kubernetes cluster discovery and onboarding for service mesh
Managing the service mesh lifecycle might seem like a simple task, but when it comes to working in multiple clouds and at scale, that simple task can quickly become cumbersome. Tanzu Service Mesh Advanced can provide full lifecycle management of the service mesh on Kubernetes across all clouds, including upgrades, rollbacks, and removals, reducing the end-to-end operational cost.
We plan to add the ability to automatically discover Kubernetes clusters in Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (Amazon EKS), Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE), and VMware Tanzu Kubernetes Grid, as well as the ability to simultaneously install service mesh into multiple clusters at once. This capability could be done through the Tanzu Service Mesh Advanced user interface or with a declarative manifest for automated onboarding based on predefined criteria.
Select from the wizard to automatically onboard clusters (preview of a feature that's in development)
Select the cluster(s) from the list (preview of a feature that's in development)
Extending to virtual machines for app modernization initiatives
Tanzu Service Mesh Advanced can connect workloads across any cloud or infrastructure, abstracting and automating the plumbing needed for secure connectivity. We are working to add the ability to connect Kubernetes-based cloud native apps to virtual machines (VMs) on all major clouds using the service mesh. At VMware Explore 2022 Europe, we demoed connectivity to vSphere 7+ VMs.
This implementation could provide an “easy button” for VM discovery and connectivity, by integrating to the same mechanisms the Kubernetes pods are using for discovery and connectivity through the global namespace. This solution enables a smooth experience for cloud native application developers to reach into applications running on virtual machines for app modernization initiatives.
Select the cloud provider to VMware vSphere to add VMs (preview of a feature that's in development)
Topology view of services, including the VMs in the global namespace environment (preview of a feature that's in development)
Integration with Tanzu Application Platform
VMware Tanzu Application Platform is a modular, application-aware platform that provides a rich set of developer tooling and a pre-paved path to production to build and deploy software on any compliant public cloud or on-premises Kubernetes clusters.
Tanzu Application Platform would allow customers to utilize Tanzu Service Mesh Advanced for application connectivity and security for Kubernetes deployments on Tanzu Application Platform–run clusters. This means that when the Tanzu Application Platform supply chain deploys application microservices into Kubernetes clusters, customers will then be able to create a Tanzu Service Mesh Advanced global namespace and apply secure connectivity policies for these services, whether within a Kubernetes cluster or across multiple clusters and clouds. Customers would then be able to apply any Tanzu Service Mesh Advanced policies, from service-level objectives to API security and microsegmentation, on Tanzu Application Platform–deployed services. This integration will allow Tanzu Service Mesh Advanced to provide rich connectivity and security services to Tanzu Application Platform applications.
Operate Tanzu Service Mesh Advanced application policies with GitOps workflows
Git workflows and CI/CD pipelines enhance the developer experience for managing application connectivity and security policies. An upcoming GitOps feature in Tanzu Service Mesh Advanced could provide compatibility with an operating model for declaratively building cloud native applications that relies on Git deployment and management workflows. With this new capability, application declarations would be versioned in Git, providing a single source of truth. Development teams could also benefit from increased velocity and improved overall application reliability and security. In addition, Tanzu Service Mesh Advanced would also provide a new CLI tool called Tanzu Service Mesh CLI, allowing app teams to update their Tanzu Service Mesh manifest directly in the Git repository.
Check out the Tanzu Service Mesh sessions at VMware Explore 2022 Europe:
- Connect, Secure, Scale and Operate Modern Apps Anywhere [NETB2528EUR]
- Day in The Life of a Cross Functional Security War Room [SECB2988EUR]
