Basic Configuration of Gateway API with NGINX Gateway Fabric and HTTPRouteTemplate for Runtime Fabric

Step 1: Install Gateway API CRDs

Install the standard Gateway API CRDs.

kubectl apply --server-side -f \
https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/gateway-api/releases/download/v1.4.1/standard-install.yaml

Reference:

• https://gateway-api.sigs.k8s.io/guides/getting-started/#installing-gateway-api

Step 2: Install a Gateway Controller (NGINX Gateway Fabric)

Install the NGINX Gateway Fabric controller using Helm.

helm install ngf oci://ghcr.io/nginx/charts/nginx-gateway-fabric \
  --create-namespace \
  -n nginx-gateway

References:

• https://docs.nginx.com/nginx-gateway-fabric/install/helm/

• https://gateway-api.sigs.k8s.io/implementations/

Step 3: Create TLS Secret for the Gateway

Create a Kubernetes TLS secret containing the certificate and key.

kubectl create secret tls aq-muley-tls \
  -n nginx-gateway \
  --cert=/path/to/cert.pem \
  --key=/path/to/key.pem

Step 4: Define the Gateway Resource

Create a Gateway with an HTTPS listener and TLS termination.

gateway.yaml

apiVersion: gateway.networking.k8s.io/v1
kind: Gateway
metadata:
  name: cluster-gateway
  namespace: nginx-gateway
spec:
  gatewayClassName: nginx
  listeners:
    - name: https
      protocol: HTTPS
      port: 443
      hostname: gateway.aq.muley.io
      allowedRoutes:
        namespaces:
          from: All
      tls:
        mode: Terminate
        certificateRefs:
          - kind: Secret
            name: aq-muley-tls

Apply:

kubectl apply -f gateway.yaml

Step 5: Resolve Gateway External Address

Retrieve the Gateway address and resolve it to an IP.

Example:

$ kubectl get gateway cluster-gateway -n nginx-gateway

cluster-gateway   nginx   abcd.us-west-2.elb.amazonaws.com   True         1h

Resolve:

nslookup <elb-hostname> 8.8.8.8

Use this IP for validation or DNS mapping.

Step 6: Define HTTPRouteTemplate for Runtime Fabric

Create an HTTPRouteTemplate

Reference documentation: https://docs.mulesoft.com/runtime-fabric/latest/configure-ingress-http-resource#example-for-kubernetes-gateway-api

http_template_gateway.yaml

apiVersion: rtf.mulesoft.com/v1
kind: HTTPRouteTemplate
metadata:
  name: example-template-gateway
  namespace: rtf
spec:
  baseEndpoints:
    - https://gateway.aq.muley.io
  resources:
    - |
      apiVersion: gateway.networking.k8s.io/v1
      kind: HTTPRoute
      metadata:
        name: {{ .ResourceName }}
        namespace: {{ .Namespace }}
      spec:
        parentRefs:
          - kind: Gateway
            name: cluster-gateway
            namespace: nginx-gateway
        hostnames:
          - {{ .Host }}
        rules:
          - matches:
              - path:
                  type: PathPrefix
                  value: {{ .Path }}
            filters:
              - type: URLRewrite
                urlRewrite:
                  path:
                    type: ReplacePrefixMatch
                    replacePrefixMatch: /
            backendRefs:
              - kind: Service
                name: {{ .Service.Name }}
                port: {{ .Service.Port }}

Apply:

kubectl apply -f http_template_gateway.yaml

On Runtime Manager: 

Step 7: Deploy an application using the endpoint configured with HTTPRouteTemplate for Runtime Fabric

After deployment, check for the HTTPRoute resource creation:

$ kubectl get httproutes.gateway.networking.k8s.io \
  -n <app-namespace>

$ kubectl describe httproute <route-name> -n <app-namespace>

Validate:

$ kubectl get httproutes.gateway.networking.k8s.io -n b55de03e-f012-4f04-88bb-eeeed4b169df| grep demo
gatewayapidemo-2948462308    ["gateway.aq.muley.io"]   3m23s

Step 8: Test End-to-End Traffic

Test using curl

$ curl  https://gateway.aq.muley.io/gateway-api-demo/hello --resolve gateway.aq.muley.io:443:44.235.248.204
{ "payload": ""
}%

References

• Gateway API:

  • https://gateway-api.sigs.k8s.io/

  • https://gateway-api.sigs.k8s.io/guides/getting-started/

• NGINX Gateway Fabric:

  • https://docs.nginx.com/nginx-gateway-fabric/

• Ingress Migration:

  • https://gateway-api.sigs.k8s.io/guides/getting-started/migrating-from-ingress/

  • https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/ingress2gateway