Smingate Infrastructure Challenge

Introduction

Welcome to the Smingate infrastructure challenge! A new team needs your expertise to containerize their .NET Web API and a PostgreSQL database, both running in Kubernetes. Additionally, they require you to automate the build, test, and deploy process using your CI/CD skills. The application will be deployed in different environments in the future, so it's important to use Helm templating to keep it easily extendable without duplicating manifests.

Task Description

Containerize the .NET Application

• Create a Dockerfile to containerize the existing .NET Web API (Asset.API).

Deploy PostgreSQL Using Helm

• Deploy a PostgreSQL database using a Helm chart.
• The PostgreSQL instance should have a database called asset with a user asset_admin and password admin.
• Deploy the PostgreSQL instance in the database namespace.

Create Helm Manifests for .NET Web API

• Use Helm templating to create YAML manifests for the .NET Web API (Asset.API).
• Ensure the application is exposed and reachable on your local machine using an ingress.
• The API should be reachable on http://asset-api.local/api.

Testing the API

• After deployment, add a new asset to the database using the POST endpoint.
• Confirm the new asset has been added to the database by retrieving it using the GET endpoint.

Set Up CI/CD Pipeline

• Create a gitlab-ci.yml file for basic CI/CD steps:
  • Build: Build the Docker image for the .NET Web API.
  • Test: Run unit tests for the application.
  • Deploy: Deploy the application to Kubernetes using Helm, ensuring the correct image version is used.

Prerequisites

Before starting the task, ensure you have the following set up on your local machine:

• Docker: To build and run Docker images.
• Minikube: To create a local Kubernetes cluster.
• Kubectl: To interact with the Kubernetes cluster.
• Helm: To manage Kubernetes applications with Helm charts.
• .NET SDK: To build and run the .NET Web API.
• Git: To clone repositories and manage version control.
• GitHub Account: To store and manage your code repository.
• Postman (optional): To test the API endpoints.

Setup Instructions

1. Install Docker: Follow the installation guide on the Docker website.
2. Create a Docker Hub Account: Follow the signup process on the Docker Hub website.
3. Install Minikube: Follow the installation guide on the Minikube website.
4. Install Kubectl: Follow the installation guide on the Kubernetes website.
5. Install Helm: Follow the installation guide on the Helm website.
6. Install .NET SDK: Follow the installation guide on the .NET website.
7. Install VS Code (optional): Follow the installation guide on the VS Code website
8. Start Minikube: Run minikube start to create a local Kubernetes cluster.

Requirements

• Ensure that the solution is easily extendable to different environments without duplicating manifests.
• Use best practices for containerization, deployment, and CI/CD.

Good luck, and we look forward to seeing your solution!