Install using Helm

Deploy KubeSense using Helm for full control over configuration. KubeSense has two component groups — server (data processing, storage, UI) and sensor (eBPF data collection). You can deploy them together or separately. See Deployment Context for details.

Add Helm Repo

helm repo add kubesense https://helm.kubesense.ai
helm repo update

Create Access Token

helm upgrade -i access-token -n kubesense kubesense/access-token --set KEY_ID="<KEY>" --set KEY_SECRET="<SECRET>"

In-Cluster Deployment

Deploy both server and sensor in the same cluster:

helm upgrade -i kubesense kubesense/kubesense \
    --create-namespace \
    -n kubesense \
    --set global.cluster_name="k8s-cluster" \
    --set global.dashboardHostName="<INGRESS_HOSTNAME_FOR_UI>"

Parameter	Description
`cluster_name`	Unique name for this cluster. Used to identify the cluster in multi-cluster setups.
`dashboardHostName`	External hostname or Ingress DNS for the KubeSense UI.

Custom Values File

For complex deployments, use a custom-values.yaml instead of --set flags:

Example custom-values.yaml

cat << EOF > custom-values.yaml
global:
  cluster_name: k8s-cluster # cluster_name of your choice
  dashboardHostName: kubesense.example.com
  redis:
    password: custom_redis_password # {optional} if not specified will autogenerate
  clickhouse:
    password: custom_clickhouse_password # {optional} if not specified will autogenerate
  mysql:
    password: custom_mysql_password # {optional} if not specified will autogenerate
EOF

helm upgrade -i kubesense kubesense/kubesense --create-namespace -n kubesense -f custom-values.yaml

Deploying Server & Sensor Separately

Deploy Server

helm upgrade -i kubesense kubesense/kubesense-server \
    --create-namespace \
    -n kubesense \
    --set global.cluster_name="k8s-cluster" \
    --set global.dashboardHostName="kubesense.example.com"

Deploy Sensor

When deploying the sensor in a separate cluster from the server, configure the server endpoint IPs so the sensor can forward data.

Networking: See Networking & Firewall for required ports and firewall rules.

Parameter	Description
`kubecolIps`	IP(s) of the KubeSense Server's kubecol endpoint. Accepts comma-separated list for HA setups.
`vmAgentIp`	IP of the VictoriaMetrics agent that collects infrastructure metrics (CPU, memory, etc.).
`kubeAggregatorIp`	IP of the KubeSense Aggregator that processes logs and events from sensors.

helm upgrade -i kubesensor kubesense/kubesensor \
    --create-namespace \
    -n kubesense \
    --set global.cluster_name="k8s-cluster" \
    --set global.dashboardHostName="kubesense.example.com" \
    --set global.kubecolIps="{192.168.1.100}" \
    --set global.vmAgentIp="192.168.1.200" \
    --set global.kubeAggregatorIp="192.168.1.150"

Example sensor custom-values.yaml

cat << EOF > custom-values.yaml
global:
  cluster_name: k8s-cluster # cluster_name of your choice
  dashboardHostName: kubesense.example.com
  kubecolIps:
  - 10.0.0.1
  kubeAggregatorIp: <KUBEAGGREGATOR_IP> # eg. kubesense-kubeAggregator
  vmAgentIp: <VMAGENT_IP> # eg. kubesense-victoria-metrics-agent
  vmAgentHttpPort: 30060
  nodePort:
    kubecolCollector: 32133
    kubecolGrpc: 32033
    kubeAggregatorGrpcPort: 30051
    kubeAggregatorLogPort: 30052
EOF

helm upgrade -i kubesensor kubesense/kubesensor --create-namespace -n kubesense -f custom-values.yaml