Build Your Bundle

A UDS Bundle is a single deployable artifact that captures your environment’s configuration alongside all packages and images. You’ll create two files: a uds-bundle.yaml that defines what to deploy and how to configure it, and a uds-config.yaml that supplies runtime values (credentials, certificates, domain names).

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Choose a Core Flavor

UDS Core is published in multiple flavors that differ in the source registry for container images:

Flavor	Image Source	Use Case
upstream	Public registries (Docker Hub, GHCR)	Default; utilizes common upstream container images
registry1	IronBank / Registry One	DoD environments requiring hardened, Iron Bank-sourced images
unicorn	Defense Unicorns private registry	FIPS-compliant hardened images; reserved for Defense Unicorns customers

Choose the flavor that matches your environment’s registry access and compliance requirements. The bundle ref encodes the flavor:

Bundle ref format

0.X.Y-upstream    # upstream flavor
0.X.Y-registry1   # registry1 flavor
0.X.Y-unicorn     # unicorn flavor

---

Base Bundle Structure

Start with a minimal uds-bundle.yaml. You’ll add overrides to this in the sections below.

uds-bundle.yaml

kind: UDSBundle
metadata:
  name: my-uds-core
  description: Production UDS Core deployment
  version: 0.1.0

packages:
    # Enables Zarf in your cluster
  - name: init
    repository: ghcr.io/zarf-dev/packages/init
    ref: v0.73.0

  - name: core
    repository: ghcr.io/defenseunicorns/packages/uds/core
    ref: 0.62.0-upstream

Note

Check the UDS Core releases page for the latest version to use.

Unlike the local demo bundle, the production bundle does not include a uds-k3d package—your cluster already exists and is managed separately.

---

Configure Object Storage

Loki

The example below uses access keys, which work with AWS S3, MinIO, and any S3-compatible provider. For Azure and GCP, the override structure differs — see the Loki cloud deployment guides for provider-specific examples.

Note

For EKS deployments, IRSA (IAM Roles for Service Accounts) is preferred over access keys. See the Loki AWS deployment guide for the IRSA configuration.

uds-bundle.yaml

packages:
  - name: core
    overrides:
      loki:
        loki:
          variables:
            - name: LOKI_CHUNKS_BUCKET
              description: "Object storage bucket for Loki chunks"
              path: loki.storage.bucketNames.chunks
            - name: LOKI_ADMIN_BUCKET
              description: "Object storage bucket for Loki admin"
              path: loki.storage.bucketNames.admin
            - name: LOKI_S3_REGION
              description: "Object storage region"
              path: loki.storage.s3.region
            - name: LOKI_ACCESS_KEY_ID
              description: "Object storage access key ID"
              path: loki.storage.s3.accessKeyId
              sensitive: true
            - name: LOKI_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY
              description: "Object storage secret access key"
              path: loki.storage.s3.secretAccessKey
              sensitive: true
          values:
            - path: loki.storage.type
              value: "s3"
            - path: loki.storage.s3.endpoint
              value: ""  # leave empty for AWS; set for MinIO or other S3-compatible providers

uds-config.yaml

variables:
  core:
    loki_chunks_bucket: "your-loki-chunks-bucket"
    loki_admin_bucket: "your-loki-admin-bucket"
    loki_s3_region: "us-east-1"
    loki_access_key_id: "your-access-key-id"
    loki_secret_access_key: "your-secret-access-key"

Velero

The example below uses AWS S3. For other providers (Azure, GCP), the override structure and credentials format will differ — see Velero’s supported providers for provider-specific configuration.

uds-bundle.yaml

packages:
  - name: core
    overrides:
      velero:
        velero:
          variables:
            - name: VELERO_CLOUD_CREDENTIALS
              description: "Velero cloud credentials file content"
              path: credentials.secretContents.cloud
              sensitive: true
          values:
            - path: "configuration.backupStorageLocation"
              value:
                - name: default
                  provider: aws
                  bucket: "<your-velero-bucket>"
                  config:
                    region: "<your-region>"
                    s3ForcePathStyle: true
                    s3Url: "<your-s3-endpoint>"
                  credential:
                    name: "velero-bucket-credentials"
                    key: "cloud"

uds-config.yaml

variables:
  core:
    velero_cloud_credentials: |
      [default]
      aws_access_key_id=your-access-key-id
      aws_secret_access_key=your-secret-access-key

---

Configure TLS

Expose the TLS certificate and key for each gateway as bundle variables so they can be supplied at deploy time without hardcoding them in the bundle.

uds-bundle.yaml

packages:
  - name: core
    overrides:
      istio-admin-gateway:
        uds-istio-config:
          variables:
            - name: ADMIN_TLS_CERT
              description: "Base64-encoded TLS cert chain for admin gateway"
              path: tls.cert
            - name: ADMIN_TLS_KEY
              description: "Base64-encoded TLS key for admin gateway"
              path: tls.key
              sensitive: true
      istio-tenant-gateway:
        uds-istio-config:
          variables:
            - name: TENANT_TLS_CERT
              description: "Base64-encoded TLS cert chain for tenant gateway"
              path: tls.cert
            - name: TENANT_TLS_KEY
              description: "Base64-encoded TLS key for tenant gateway"
              path: tls.key
              sensitive: true

uds-config.yaml

variables:
  core:
    admin_tls_cert: "LS0t..."   # base64-encoded full cert chain
    admin_tls_key: "LS0t..."    # base64-encoded private key
    tenant_tls_cert: "LS0t..."
    tenant_tls_key: "LS0t..."

---

Configure Keycloak Database

Disable Keycloak’s embedded dev-mode database and connect it to your external database. The connection details are passed as variables.

uds-bundle.yaml

packages:
  - name: core
    overrides:
      keycloak:
        keycloak:
          values:
            - path: devMode
              value: false
          variables:
            - name: KEYCLOAK_DB_HOST
              path: postgresql.host
            - name: KEYCLOAK_DB_USERNAME
              path: postgresql.username
            - name: KEYCLOAK_DB_DATABASE
              path: postgresql.database
            - name: KEYCLOAK_DB_PASSWORD
              path: postgresql.password
              sensitive: true

uds-config.yaml

variables:
  core:
    keycloak_db_host: "your-db-host"          # hostname or IP of your database server
    keycloak_db_username: "keycloak"           # database user created in provision-services step
    keycloak_db_database: "keycloak"           # database name created in provision-services step
    keycloak_db_password: "your-db-password"   # password for the database user

---

Optional Components

Some UDS Core components are disabled by default and must be explicitly enabled:

Metrics Server

Enable if your distribution does not include a metrics server (e.g., a bare RKE2 cluster without built-in metrics):

uds-bundle.yaml

packages:
  - name: core
    optionalComponents:
      - metrics-server

Note

Do not enable metrics-server if your distribution already provides one. Running two metrics servers in the same cluster causes conflicts.

---

Complete Configuration

With all overrides combined, here are the final files:

uds-bundle.yaml

kind: UDSBundle
metadata:
  name: my-uds-core
  description: Production UDS Core deployment
  version: 0.1.0

packages:
  - name: init
    repository: ghcr.io/zarf-dev/packages/init
    ref: v0.73.0

  - name: core
    repository: ghcr.io/defenseunicorns/packages/uds/core
    ref: 0.62.0-upstream
    overrides:
      loki:
        loki:
          variables:
            - name: LOKI_CHUNKS_BUCKET
              description: "Object storage bucket for Loki chunks"
              path: loki.storage.bucketNames.chunks
            - name: LOKI_ADMIN_BUCKET
              description: "Object storage bucket for Loki admin"
              path: loki.storage.bucketNames.admin
            - name: LOKI_S3_REGION
              description: "Object storage region"
              path: loki.storage.s3.region
            - name: LOKI_ACCESS_KEY_ID
              description: "Object storage access key ID"
              path: loki.storage.s3.accessKeyId
              sensitive: true
            - name: LOKI_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY
              description: "Object storage secret access key"
              path: loki.storage.s3.secretAccessKey
              sensitive: true
          values:
            - path: loki.storage.type
              value: "s3"
            - path: loki.storage.s3.endpoint
              value: ""
      velero:
        velero:
          variables:
            - name: VELERO_CLOUD_CREDENTIALS
              description: "Velero cloud credentials file content"
              path: credentials.secretContents.cloud
              sensitive: true
          values:
            - path: "configuration.backupStorageLocation"
              value:
                - name: default
                  provider: aws
                  bucket: "<your-velero-bucket>"
                  config:
                    region: "<your-region>"
                    s3ForcePathStyle: true
                    s3Url: "<your-s3-endpoint>"
                  credential:
                    name: "velero-bucket-credentials"
                    key: "cloud"
      istio-admin-gateway:
        uds-istio-config:
          variables:
            - name: ADMIN_TLS_CERT
              description: "Base64-encoded TLS cert chain for admin gateway"
              path: tls.cert
            - name: ADMIN_TLS_KEY
              description: "Base64-encoded TLS key for admin gateway"
              path: tls.key
              sensitive: true
      istio-tenant-gateway:
        uds-istio-config:
          variables:
            - name: TENANT_TLS_CERT
              description: "Base64-encoded TLS cert chain for tenant gateway"
              path: tls.cert
            - name: TENANT_TLS_KEY
              description: "Base64-encoded TLS key for tenant gateway"
              path: tls.key
              sensitive: true
      keycloak:
        keycloak:
          values:
            - path: devMode
              value: false
          variables:
            - name: KEYCLOAK_DB_HOST
              path: postgresql.host
            - name: KEYCLOAK_DB_USERNAME
              path: postgresql.username
            - name: KEYCLOAK_DB_DATABASE
              path: postgresql.database
            - name: KEYCLOAK_DB_PASSWORD
              path: postgresql.password
              sensitive: true

uds-config.yaml

shared:
  domain: "yourdomain.com"

variables:
  core:
    # TLS (base64-encoded full cert chains)
    admin_tls_cert: "LS0t..."
    admin_tls_key: "LS0t..."
    tenant_tls_cert: "LS0t..."
    tenant_tls_key: "LS0t..."
    # Loki object storage
    loki_chunks_bucket: "your-loki-chunks-bucket"
    loki_admin_bucket: "your-loki-admin-bucket"
    loki_s3_region: "us-east-1"
    loki_access_key_id: "your-access-key-id"
    loki_secret_access_key: "your-secret-access-key"
    # Velero backup storage
    velero_cloud_credentials: |
      [default]
      aws_access_key_id=your-access-key-id
      aws_secret_access_key=your-secret-access-key
    # Keycloak database
    keycloak_db_host: "your-db-host"          # hostname or IP of your database server
    keycloak_db_username: "keycloak"           # database user created in provision-services step
    keycloak_db_database: "keycloak"           # database name created in provision-services step
    keycloak_db_password: "your-db-password"   # password for the database user

Note

The shared section values (domain) are automatically available to all packages in the bundle. No bundle YAML overrides are needed for domain configuration—they flow through automatically.

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Build the Bundle

1. Create the bundle

   uds create --confirm

   This command pulls all referenced packages and their images, then packages them into a single archive. Depending on network speed and package sizes, this can take several minutes on first run.

   The output is a file named:

   Output

   uds-bundle-<name>-<arch>-<version>.tar.zst

2. Inspect the bundle (optional)

   uds inspect uds-bundle-my-uds-core-*.tar.zst

   This lists the packages included in the bundle and their versions, letting you confirm the contents before deploying.

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Note

The resulting bundle is self-contained (all images embedded, no internet needed at deploy time), versioned and reproducible, and transferable to airgapped environments or artifact registries.