Contour

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Coverage Matrix

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Contour Overview

Contour is a Kubernetes ingress controller that uses Envoy as the data plane, allowing dynamic routing and real-time updates. It introduces the HTTPProxy CRD for advanced capabilities, including path rewrites, TLS configuration, and delegation. Contour separates the control plane (Contour) from the data plane (Envoy) so configuration changes do not require restarts. It is a CNCF Incubating project that stresses performance, multi-tenancy, and security. Recent releases add deeper Gateway API support and refined CRDs, making it easier to modernize ingress traffic management.

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Chkk Coverage

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Curated Release Notes

Chkk tracks and summarizes official Contour releases, highlighting critical changes, deprecations, and feature updates. It saves time by providing an actionable overview of new config requirements, resource shifts, or potential security implications. Contextual flags help you quickly identify if older CRDs like IngressRoute are no longer supported. The release notes also warn you if Envoy defaults have changed, potentially altering routing or TLS behavior. This means you won’t have to read every upstream release detail to spot what impacts your clusters.

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Preflight & Postflight Checks

Chkk runs automated checks before and after a Contour upgrade to confirm version compatibility, CRD alignment, and resource health. Preflight checks validate cluster readiness, required CRDs, and any deprecated objects, while postflight confirms that the new Contour and Envoy instances are functioning correctly. This approach proactively catches common problems, such as invalid certificate setups or leftover outdated configurations. It also monitors logs, traffic, and workload states, ensuring your routes remain healthy. As a result, you can upgrade with confidence knowing each stage was validated.

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Version Recommendations

Chkk continuously monitors Contour’s lifecycle to warn you of any EOL versions or upcoming support drops. It suggests stable, compatible releases that align with your Kubernetes environment and security requirements, referencing official support timelines. You can rely on its guidance to upgrade at the right time without skipping critical patches. The platform pinpoints known issues or deprecated CRDs, helping you focus your efforts on necessary migrations. This balance of proactive alerts and curated recommendations streamlines upgrade planning.

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Upgrade Templates

Chkk provides in-place or blue-green upgrade templates, each detailing best-practice steps to reduce downtime. These templates walk you through CRD updates, rolling out new Contour pods, and verifying Envoy connections. In-place upgrades preserve the existing deployment, while blue-green deploys a new version in parallel, letting you switch traffic when ready. Both approaches include rollback paths in case of unexpected errors or misconfigurations. By following these structured plans, you minimize disruptions to external traffic during Contour upgrades.

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Preverification

Chkk offers a dry-run “digital twin” of your Contour upgrade in an isolated environment. This simulated deployment uncovers resource conflicts, CRD migration issues, or Envoy filter mismatches before affecting production. If anomalies are detected—like broken routes or high resource usage—you can adjust configurations early. This proactive rehearsal helps reduce rollbacks and downtime. Ultimately, it provides an extra layer of certainty when deploying new Contour versions in production.

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Supported Packages

Chkk works with common Contour deployment methods, including Helm charts, Kustomize, and raw Kubernetes manifests. It detects which approach you’re using and tailors upgrade commands, patch files, or Helm steps accordingly. Private registries and custom builds are also supported, with checks to ensure images are tagged and available. This flexibility means you won’t have to change your existing workflows or repository structure. The result is a consistent upgrade experience regardless of how Contour is managed.

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Common Operational Considerations

• Sequential Upgrades: Avoid skipping minor versions to ensure CRD changes and config migrations run smoothly. This reduces unexpected incompatibilities and makes rollback safer if issues arise.
• DaemonSet Resource Usage: Envoy typically runs as a DaemonSet with hostPorts on each node, so plan rolling updates carefully. Conflicts can arise if the new version tries to bind ports before the old Envoy pod is terminated.
• CRD Deprecation: Watch for deprecated or removed objects like IngressRoute, and migrate them to HTTPProxy. Keeping CRDs up to date avoids validation failures and controller errors in new Contour releases.
• Envoy/Contour Certificates: Ensure TLS certificates for Contour-Envoy communication and ingress workloads remain valid and updated. A mismatch can break traffic or block new pods from registering properly.
• Monitoring & Metrics: Contour and Envoy both provide metrics that should be scraped by Prometheus or equivalent. Monitor these for signs of configuration errors, traffic anomalies, or resource saturation after upgrades.
• Ingress Class: If you run multiple ingress controllers or parallel Contour versions, use distinct ingress classes or namespaces. This prevents conflicting status updates and helps isolate troubleshooting when testing new releases.

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Additional Resources

• Contour Documentation
• Contour Releases