/RKE2-air-gap-setup

RKE2 Air-Gapped Environment Setup

This document provides step-by-step instructions to set up an RKE2 (Rancher Kubernetes Engine 2) cluster in an air-gapped environment. Follow the steps carefully to ensure a smooth installation.

Prerequisites

  • All nodes (Master and Worker) must have access to the required RKE2 artifacts.
  • Ensure connectivity between Master and Worker nodes for the cluster setup.

Step 1: Add Dummy Route

(Perform this step on every Worker and Master node)

Run the following commands to create a dummy route:

ip link add dummy0 type dummy
ip link set dummy0 up
ip addr add 203.0.113.254/31 dev dummy0
ip route add default via 203.0.113.255 dev dummy0 metric 1000

Step 2: Check and Set SELinux to Disabled

(Perform this step on every Worker and Master node)

Install policycoreutils:

sudo apt install policycoreutils -y

Verify SELinux status:

sestatus

Step 3: RKE2 Installation on Kubernetes Master Nodes

(Perform these steps on Master nodes)

  • Prepare Directories and Download Artifacts:
mkdir -p /var/lib/rancher/rke2/agent/images/ && cd /var/lib/rancher/rke2/agent/images/

Go to the RKE2 release page and copy the desired version and update it below.

export MYRKE2_VERSION=v1.29.10%2Brke2r1
wget https://github.com/rancher/rke2/releases/download/$MYRKE2_VERSION/rke2-images.linux-amd64.tar.zst
wget https://github.com/rancher/rke2/releases/download/$MYRKE2_VERSION/rke2-images-core.linux-amd64.tar.zst
wget https://github.com/rancher/rke2/releases/download/$MYRKE2_VERSION/rke2-images-canal.linux-amd64.tar.zst
mkdir /root/rke2-artifacts && cd /root/rke2-artifacts/
wget https://github.com/rancher/rke2/releases/download/$MYRKE2_VERSION/rke2.linux-amd64.tar.gz
wget https://github.com/rancher/rke2/releases/download/$MYRKE2_VERSION/sha256sum-amd64.txt
curl -sfL https://get.rke2.io --output install.sh
cp /var/lib/rancher/rke2/agent/images/rke2-images.linux-amd64.tar.zst /root/rke2-artifacts/
  • Create the Configuration File: Create /etc/rancher/rke2/config.yaml and add the following content. Replace <MASTER_NODE_IP> with the Master node's IP:
write-kubeconfig-mode: "0644"
tls-san:
  - "<MASTER_NODE_IP>"
  • Install and Start RKE2 Server:
export INSTALL_RKE2_ARTIFACT_PATH=/root/rke2-artifacts
chmod +x install.sh
./install.sh
sudo systemctl enable rke2-server.service
sudo systemctl start rke2-server.service
  • View Logs To monitor the RKE2 server logs, run the following in another terminal:
journalctl -fxu rke2-server.service

Step 4: RKE2 Installation on Kubernetes Worker Nodes

(Perform these steps on Worker nodes)

  • Prepare Directories and Download Artifacts:
mkdir -p /var/lib/rancher/rke2/agent/images/ && cd /var/lib/rancher/rke2/agent/images/

Use the same RKE2 version as the Master node

export MYRKE2_VERSION=v1.29.10%2Brke2r1
wget https://github.com/rancher/rke2/releases/download/$MYRKE2_VERSION/rke2-images.linux-amd64.tar.zst
wget https://github.com/rancher/rke2/releases/download/$MYRKE2_VERSION/rke2-images-core.linux-amd64.tar.zst
wget https://github.com/rancher/rke2/releases/download/$MYRKE2_VERSION/rke2-images-canal.linux-amd64.tar.zst

mkdir /root/rke2-artifacts && cd /root/rke2-artifacts/
wget https://github.com/rancher/rke2/releases/download/$MYRKE2_VERSION/rke2.linux-amd64.tar.gz
wget https://github.com/rancher/rke2/releases/download/$MYRKE2_VERSION/sha256sum-amd64.txt
curl -sfL https://get.rke2.io --output install.sh

cp /var/lib/rancher/rke2/agent/images/rke2-images.linux-amd64.tar.zst /root/rke2-artifacts/
  • Create the Configuration File: Create /etc/rancher/rke2/config.yaml and add the following content. Replace <MASTER_NODE_IP> with the Master node's IP and <MASTER_NODE_TOKEN> with the token found at /var/lib/rancher/rke2/server/node-token on the Master node:
server: https://<MASTER_NODE_IP>:9345
token: <MASTER_NODE_TOKEN>
  • Install and Start RKE2 Agent:
export INSTALL_RKE2_ARTIFACT_PATH=/root/rke2-artifacts
chmod +x install.sh
export INSTALL_RKE2_TYPE="agent"
./install.sh agent

sudo systemctl enable rke2-agent.service
sudo systemctl start rke2-agent.service
  • View Logs: To monitor the RKE2 agent logs, run the following in another terminal:
journalctl -fxu rke2-agent.service

Adding Additional Nodes

Repeat Step 4 to add more Worker nodes to the cluster.