Helm

Helm is an open-source package manager for Kubernetes, enabling users to define, install, and upgrade even the most complex Kubernetes applications using a packaging format called 'charts'. It streamlines the deployment and management of cloud-native applications on Kubernetes clusters by…

Key facts

First appeared: 2016
Category: devops_tool
Problem solved: Helm was created to solve the complexity of deploying, managing, and updating applications on Kubernetes. Prior to Helm, users had to manually manage numerous raw Kubernetes YAML manifests for application components, configurations, and environment-specific settings, which was error-prone, difficult to maintain, and lacked a standardized way to package and share applications.
Platforms: Linux, macOS, Windows

Related technologies

Kustomize
Argo CD (often used with Helm)
Flux CD (often used with Helm)
Carvel YTT
Kubernetes
Docker
YAML
Git
CI/CD Pipelines (e.g., Jenkins, GitLab CI, Argo CD, Flux CD)
Cloud Providers (e.g., AWS EKS, GCP GKE, Azure AKS)

Notable users

Google
Microsoft
Amazon
Red Hat
Many open-source projects (e.g., Prometheus, Grafana, cert-manager)
Numerous enterprises globally using Kubernetes for production deployments