Helm: Download Chart & Save Locally

Helm, a powerful package manager for Kubernetes applications, simplifies the deployment and management of complex applications. One key aspect of Helm is its ability to manage charts, which are packages of pre-configured Kubernetes resources. In this guide, we will explore the process of downloading Helm charts and saving them locally, providing you with the flexibility to deploy applications even in offline environments.

Why Download and Save Charts Locally?

Downloading and saving Helm charts locally is beneficial for several reasons. It allows you to:

1. Ensure Availability: By saving charts locally, you can guarantee access to specific versions of charts, even if the internet connection is unreliable or unavailable.

2. Offline Environments: In environments without internet access, such as air-gapped or secure networks, having local copies of charts is essential for seamless deployment.

3. Version Control: Local storage allows you to maintain a version-controlled repository of Helm charts, ensuring consistency across deployments.

Now, let's dive into the process of downloading Helm charts and saving them locally.

Step 1: Install Helm

Before we begin, ensure that Helm is installed on your system. If you haven't installed Helm yet, you can do so by following these commands:

# Add the Helm repository
helm repo add stable https://charts.helm.sh/stable

# Update the list of available charts
helm repo update

# Install Helm
sudo snap install helm --classic

Step 2: Search for the Desired Chart

To download a Helm chart, you need to know its name and repository. Use the following command to search for charts available in the Helm repository:

helm search repo <chart-name>

Replace <chart-name> with the name of the chart you are looking for.

Step 3: Download the Helm Chart

Once you've identified the chart you want, use the helm pull command to download it. For example:

helm pull stable/<chart-name> --version <chart-version> --untar

Replace <chart-name> with the name of the chart and <chart-version> with the desired version.

Step 4: Save the Helm Chart Locally

After downloading the chart, move it to your preferred local directory. This step ensures that the chart is stored locally and can be accessed without an internet connection.

mkdir ~/local-charts
mv <chart-name> ~/local-charts/

More Examples:

• To download the latest version of a chart without specifying a version:

  helm pull stable/<chart-name> --untar
  

• To download a specific version of a chart:

  helm pull stable/<chart-name> --version <chart-version> --untar
  

Now you have successfully downloaded and saved Helm charts locally, enhancing your ability to deploy applications in various scenarios.