Helm Chart Expert Skill

Purpose

Guide for creating production-ready Helm charts and conducting comprehensive chart reviews. Core workflow covers essential patterns with references to detailed examples for complex scenarios.

Quick Start Checklist

New Chart Creation

# 1. Create chart structure
helm create mychart

# 2. Validate structure
helm lint ./mychart

# 3. Test rendering
helm template ./mychart --debug

# 4. Dry run
helm install test ./mychart --dry-run --debug

Quick Template Check

# Render without installing
helm template myrelease ./mychart -f values-dev.yaml

# Debug with values
helm install myrelease ./mychart --dry-run --debug

# Diff before upgrade (requires helm-diff plugin)
helm diff upgrade myrelease ./mychart

When to Load Additional References

The quick reference above covers essential chart creation patterns. Load detailed references when:

For detailed chart templates and examples:

Read `~/.claude/skills/helm-chart-expert/references/TEMPLATES.md`

Use when: Creating new charts, need Chart.yaml/values.yaml/deployment examples, implementing all Kubernetes resources

For ArgoCD integration patterns:

Read `~/.claude/skills/helm-chart-expert/references/ARGOCD-PATTERNS.md`

Use when: Integrating with ArgoCD, multi-environment deployments, ApplicationSets, sync waves, GitOps workflows

For production deployment patterns:

Read `~/.claude/skills/helm-chart-expert/references/PRODUCTION-PATTERNS.md`

Use when: Secrets management, testing strategies, blue-green/canary deployments, monitoring setup, upgrade strategies

For troubleshooting and advanced techniques:

Read `~/.claude/skills/helm-chart-expert/references/TROUBLESHOOTING.md`

Use when: Debugging chart issues, nil pointer errors, advanced templating, dynamic resource generation, performance optimization

Chart Review Checklist

Security Review

[ ] No hardcoded secrets in values.yaml or templates
[ ] Image tags are specific (no latest)
[ ] Security contexts are defined and restrictive
[ ] RBAC is properly configured with least privilege
[ ] Network policies are defined where applicable
[ ] Pod Security Standards are enforced
[ ] Resource limits are set for all containers

Structure Review

[ ] Chart.yaml has all required fields
[ ] Version follows SemVer2 format
[ ] Dependencies use version ranges (~)
[ ] One resource per file in templates/
[ ] Template helpers are properly namespaced
[ ] File naming follows conventions (lowercase, dashes)

Values Review

[ ] All values are documented with clear comments
[ ] Naming is consistent (camelCase)
[ ] Types are explicit (strings are quoted)
[ ] Flat structure preferred where possible
[ ] Defaults are secure and production-ready
[ ] Environment-specific values are separated

Template Review

[ ] Labels are consistent and follow k8s recommendations
[ ] Nil checks for nested values
[ ] Whitespace is properly managed ({{- and -}})
[ ] Helper functions are used for repeated logic
[ ] Conditionals are properly structured
[ ] Resources can be disabled via values

Testing Review

[ ] helm lint passes without errors
[ ] helm template renders correctly
[ ] Dry run succeeds
[ ] Unit tests exist and pass
[ ] Integration tests for critical paths
[ ] Helm test hooks are defined

Documentation Review

[ ] README.md exists with usage examples
[ ] CHANGELOG.md tracks versions
[ ] values.yaml is fully documented
[ ] Examples for common scenarios
[ ] Upgrade notes for breaking changes
[ ] Dependencies are documented

Final Review Checklist

Before Release

[ ] All tests pass (lint, unit, integration)
[ ] Security scanning completed
[ ] Documentation updated
[ ] CHANGELOG updated
[ ] Version bumped appropriately
[ ] Tested in staging environment
[ ] Rollback procedure documented
[ ] Resource quotas validated
[ ] Network policies tested
[ ] Monitoring/alerting configured

After Release

[ ] Smoke tests pass
[ ] Metrics flowing
[ ] Logs accessible
[ ] Alerts configured
[ ] Documentation published
[ ] Team notified

Integration with Other Skills

Works With:

security-scan - Scan rendered Helm templates for hardcoded secrets
quality-check - Lint YAML files for formatting issues
Manual invocation for Helm-specific work

Invokes:

None (standalone reference skill)

Invoked By:

User (manual invocation when working with Helm)

Example Usage

# Manual invocation
/skill helm-chart-expert

# User requests
User: "Help me create a production-ready Helm chart"
User: "Review this Helm chart for security issues"
User: "Show me how to integrate with ArgoCD"
User: "How do I handle secrets in Helm?"

References

Maintained by: DevOps team Review Schedule: Quarterly Last Updated: 2025-01-12

Related Agent

For comprehensive Helm/Kubernetes guidance that coordinates this and other Helm skills, use the helm-kubernetes-expert agent.