Alauda Container Platform

Installing and Accessing the New Web Console

TOC

IntroductionFramework pluginsPrerequisitesInstallation overviewStep 1: Download the plugin packagesStep 2: Upload the packages to the platformStep 3: Install Web Console Base on the global clusterStep 4: Install Web Console CollectorAccessing the new web consoleInstalling migrated feature pluginsUninstalling the new web console

Introduction

This page explains how to install the framework plugins required by the new web console and how to access the new web console afterwards. After completing this flow, an entry called Preview Next-Gen Console appears in the existing web console and opens the new web console in a separate browser tab.

The new web console is in Preview during this release. Only a small set of feature plugins has been migrated so far; for any specific feature, refer to that plugin's own documentation.

Framework plugins

Two cluster plugins make up the new web console framework. Both must be installed manually through Marketplace; neither is installed automatically.

Plugin (Marketplace display name)Where to installRole
Alauda Container Platform Web Console Baseglobal cluster onlyHosts the new web console frontend and the cross-cluster aggregation backend. Cluster affinity restricts this plugin to the global cluster.
Alauda Container Platform Web Console Collectorglobal cluster plus every workload cluster whose plugin UIs should appear in the new web consoleExposes the cluster-local plugin resources to the Web Console Base for aggregation. A cluster whose plugin UIs need to be visible in the new web console must run this plugin.

The Web Console Base plugin must also be installed on the global cluster for the Preview Next-Gen Console entry to appear in the existing web console.

Why install the Collector on the global cluster

The global cluster also hosts user-installed plugins. To expose those plugins to the new web console, install the Web Console Collector on global in addition to the Web Console Base.

Prerequisites

Before starting the installation, ensure the following requirements are met:

  • The global cluster runs an version that ships the new web console preview.
  • You have access to the Customer Portal to download cluster plugin packages, or you have obtained the plugin packages through technical support.
  • The violet command-line tool is available. See Violet for installation and usage instructions.
  • You have administrator permission to install cluster plugins through Marketplace.
  • For each workload cluster whose plugin UIs you want to expose in the new web console, the workload cluster is already managed by the global cluster.

Installation overview

The installation flow has four steps:

  1. Download the Web Console Base and Web Console Collector plugin packages.
  2. Upload both packages to the platform.
  3. Install Web Console Base on the global cluster.
  4. Install Web Console Collector on the global cluster and on every workload cluster whose plugin UIs should appear in the new web console.

Step 1: Download the plugin packages

  1. Visit the Customer Portal.
  2. Locate the cluster plugin packages with the following display names and download them:
    • Alauda Container Platform Web Console Base
    • Alauda Container Platform Web Console Collector
  3. If you do not have access to the Customer Portal, contact technical support to obtain both packages.

For general guidance on downloading plugin packages, see Downloading a Plugin Package.

Step 2: Upload the packages to the platform

Use the violet tool to publish both downloaded packages to the platform. For general guidance on uploading plugin packages, see Uploading a Plugin Package.

After upload completes, verify that both plugins are available:

  1. Sign in to the existing web console and switch to the Administrator view.
  2. Navigate to Marketplace > Cluster Plugins.
  3. Confirm that both Alauda Container Platform Web Console Base and Alauda Container Platform Web Console Collector are listed.

Step 3: Install Web Console Base on the global cluster

  1. In the Administrator view, navigate to Marketplace > Cluster Plugins.
  2. Locate Alauda Container Platform Web Console Base.
  3. Click Install and select the global cluster as the target cluster.
  4. Wait for the plugin to reach a ready state.
Cluster affinity

Web Console Base can only be installed on the global cluster. The plugin declares a cluster affinity that restricts it to clusters labeled is-global: "true".

For the generic cluster plugin installation flow, see Cluster Plugin.

Step 4: Install Web Console Collector

Install Web Console Collector on each cluster whose plugin UIs need to be visible in the new web console. At minimum, install it on the global cluster.

For each target cluster:

  1. In the Administrator view, navigate to Marketplace > Cluster Plugins.
  2. Locate Alauda Container Platform Web Console Collector.
  3. Click Install and select the target cluster.
  4. Wait for the plugin to reach a ready state.
  5. Repeat the previous steps for each additional workload cluster that needs to expose its plugin UIs.
Which clusters need the Collector

Install the Web Console Collector on every cluster whose plugin UIs need to be visible in the new web console. A workload cluster that does not have the Web Console Collector will not have its plugin UIs aggregated into the new web console.

Accessing the new web console

After the Web Console Base plugin is installed and ready on the global cluster:

  1. Sign in to the existing web console.
  2. Switch to the Container Platform view or the Administrator view.
  3. In the top navigation bar, click Preview Next-Gen Console.
  4. The new web console opens in a separate browser tab.

The new web console is served at the platform URL with the path /console-acp-new/.

Which views show the entry

The Preview Next-Gen Console entry appears in the Container Platform view and the Administrator view. It is visible to any signed-in user who has access to these views. The entry does not appear in other views.

When the entry does not appear

If the Preview Next-Gen Console entry is missing from the top navigation bar:

  • Confirm that Web Console Base is installed on the global cluster and shows a ready state.
  • Refresh the existing web console page after the plugin finishes installing.
  • Confirm that you are in the Container Platform view or the Administrator view. The entry does not appear in other views.

Installing migrated feature plugins

The framework plugins above only provide the navigation, aggregation, and runtime needed by the new web console. Each migrated feature is delivered as its own plugin and must be installed separately.

To install a migrated feature plugin:

  1. Identify the feature plugin you want to use, and refer to that plugin's own product documentation.
  2. Follow the plugin-specific installation instructions, which generally follow the standard cluster plugin install flow described in Cluster Plugin.
  3. Install the plugin on the target clusters required by the plugin's own documentation.
  4. Confirm that the Web Console Collector is installed on each cluster where the feature plugin is installed, so the feature plugin's UI is aggregated into the new web console.

The set of migrated feature plugins available in the new web console grows across releases. Refer to each plugin's own documentation for current availability.

Uninstalling the new web console

The new web console can be removed at any time by uninstalling the framework plugins through Marketplace. No additional cleanup is required.

  1. To remove the new web console entirely:
    • Uninstall Web Console Base from the global cluster.
    • Uninstall Web Console Collector from every cluster where it is installed.
  2. To remove the new web console only from a specific workload cluster:
    • Uninstall Web Console Collector from that workload cluster. Plugin UIs from that cluster will no longer be aggregated into the new web console.

After Web Console Base is uninstalled from the global cluster, the Preview Next-Gen Console entry in the existing web console disappears automatically. No further action is needed.

Migrated feature plugins are independent of the framework plugins. Uninstall each feature plugin separately, following its own documentation.