Camunda 8.3 to 8.4 Helm chart upgrade

note

When upgrading to a new version of the Camunda 8 Helm charts, we recommend updating to the latest patch release of the next major version of the chart.

For example, if the current Helm chart version is 10.x.x, and the latest next major version is 11.0.1, the recommended upgrade is to 11.0.1 (not 11.0.0).

Upgrading between minor versions of the Camunda Helm chart may require configuration changes. To upgrade between patch versions or when no configuration changes are required, see the helm upgrade instructions.

Upgrade requirements

For a smooth upgrade experience, we recommend determining both your Helm chart and Helm CLI versions prior to starting your upgrade.

Helm chart version

As of the Camunda 8.4 release, the Camunda 8 Helm chart version is independent from the application version (for example, the Camunda 8.4 release uses the Helm chart version 9.0.0). The Helm chart is updated with each application release.

Review the Camunda 8 Helm chart version matrix to determine the application and Helm chart versions of your installation.

You can also view all chart versions and application versions via the Helm CLI:

helm repo update
helm search repo camunda/camunda-platform --versions

Helm CLI version

Use the recommended Helm CLI version for your Helm chart when upgrading. The Helm CLI version for each chart can be found on the chart version matrix.

Update your configuration

Configuration adjustments may be required when upgrading to a new version of the Helm chart. Before beginning your upgrade, ensure you have implemented any changes required by your new version.

Helm chart 9.3.0

Enabling Console

When enabling Console for the first time, you may see the following error:

Something went wrong We're sorry! The following errors were thrown in the backend. 401 jwt audience invalid. expected: console-api

The default user does not automatically get access to the Console role.

To add the Console role:

1. Log in to Identity.
2. Click on the Users tab.
3. Select your user.
4. Click Assigned roles.
5. Select Console to grant full access to Console.
6. Click Add.

You should now be able to log into Console.

Helm chart 9.0.0

For full change log, view the Camunda Helm chart v9.0.0 release notes.

Helm chart

As of the 8.4 release cycle, the Camunda 8 Helm chart version is decoupled from the version of the application. The Helm chart release still follows the applications release cycle, but it has an independent version. (e.g., in the application release cycle 8.4, the chart version is 9.0.0).

For more details about the applications version included in the Helm chart, review the full version matrix.

Identity

Potential breaking changes

By default this change isn't breaking change unless custom changes made outside Helm chart related to OIDC configuration.

Cross-components Keycloak-specific configurations has been replaced for a more generic OIDC configuration; Hence, components can use other OIDC-compliant OAuth 2.0 identity providers.

Accordingly, some unused environment variables have been removed from Web Modeler because of the implementation of custom OIDC support. The naming has also been adjusted to use the newer scheme.

For more details, check Connect to an OpenID Connect provider.

Keycloak

The embedded Keycloak Helm chart has been upgraded from 16.1.7 to 17.3.6 (only the Keycloak Helm chart has been upgrade, the actual Keycloak version still on 22.0.5).

Elasticsearch

Elasticsearch image has been upgraded from 8.8.2 to 8.9.2.

Upgrade Camunda

If you have installed the Camunda 8 Helm charts before with default values, Identity and the related authentication mechanism are enabled. If you have disabled Identity, see how to upgrade Camunda with Identity disabled.

Identity enabled

Extract secrets

If not specified on installation, the Helm chart generates random secrets for all components (including Keycloak). To upgrade successfully, these secrets must be extracted and provided during your upgrade.

To extract the secrets, use the following code snippet, replacing camunda with your actual Helm release name:

# Uncomment if Console is enabled.
# export CONSOLE_SECRET=$(kubectl get secret "camunda-console-identity-secret" -o jsonpath="{.data.console-secret}" | base64 --decode)
export TASKLIST_SECRET=$(kubectl get secret "camunda-tasklist-identity-secret" -o jsonpath="{.data.tasklist-secret}" | base64 --decode)
export OPTIMIZE_SECRET=$(kubectl get secret "camunda-optimize-identity-secret" -o jsonpath="{.data.optimize-secret}" | base64 --decode)
export OPERATE_SECRET=$(kubectl get secret "camunda-operate-identity-secret" -o jsonpath="{.data.operate-secret}" | base64 --decode)
export CONNECTORS_SECRET=$(kubectl get secret "camunda-connectors-identity-secret" -o jsonpath="{.data.connectors-secret}" | base64 --decode)
export ZEEBE_SECRET=$(kubectl get secret "camunda-zeebe-identity-secret" -o jsonpath="{.data.zeebe-secret}" | base64 --decode)
export KEYCLOAK_ADMIN_SECRET=$(kubectl get secret "camunda-keycloak" -o jsonpath="{.data.admin-password}" | base64 --decode)
export KEYCLOAK_MANAGEMENT_SECRET=$(kubectl get secret "camunda-keycloak" -o jsonpath="{.data.management-password}" | base64 --decode)
export POSTGRESQL_SECRET=$(kubectl get secret "camunda-postgresql" -o jsonpath="{.data.postgres-password}" | base64 --decode)

Run helm upgrade

After exporting all secrets into environment variables, run the following upgrade command:

helm repo update
helm upgrade camunda camunda/camunda-platform \
  # Uncomment if Console is enabled.
  # --set global.identity.auth.console.existingSecret=$CONSOLE_SECRET \
  --set global.identity.auth.tasklist.existingSecret=$TASKLIST_SECRET \
  --set global.identity.auth.optimize.existingSecret=$OPTIMIZE_SECRET \
  --set global.identity.auth.operate.existingSecret=$OPERATE_SECRET \
  --set global.identity.auth.connectors.existingSecret=$CONNECTORS_SECRET \
  --set global.identity.auth.zeebe.existingSecret=$ZEEBE_SECRET \
  --set identityKeycloak.auth.adminPassword=$KEYCLOAK_ADMIN_SECRET \
  --set identityKeycloak.auth.managementPassword=$KEYCLOAK_MANAGEMENT_SECRET \
  --set identityKeycloak.postgresql.auth.password=$POSTGRESQL_SECRET

If you have set secret values on installation, you must specify them again on the upgrade either via --set, as demonstrated above, or by passing in a values file using the -f flag.

note

For more details on the Keycloak upgrade path, see the Keycloak upgrade guide.

Identity disabled

If you have disabled Camunda Identity and the related authentication mechanism, Camunda can be upgraded with the following command:

helm repo update
helm upgrade camunda

Upgrade failed

The following upgrade error is related to secrets extraction:

Error: UPGRADE FAILED: execution error at (camunda-platform/charts/identity/templates/tasklist-secret.yaml:10:22):
PASSWORDS ERROR: You must provide your current passwords when upgrading the release.
                 Note that even after reinstallation, old credentials may be needed as they may be kept in persistent volume claims.
                 Further information can be obtained at https://docs.bitnami.com/general/how-to/troubleshoot-helm-chart-issues/#credential-errors-while-upgrading-chart-releases

    'global.identity.auth.tasklist.existingSecret' must not be empty, please add '--set global.identity.auth.tasklist.existingSecret=$TASKLIST_SECRET' to the command. To get the current value:

        export TASKLIST_SECRET=$(kubectl get secret --namespace "camunda" "camunda-platform-test-tasklist-identity-secret" -o jsonpath="{.data.tasklist-secret}" | base64 --decode)

When the Helm chart is removed or upgraded, persistent volume claims (PVCs) for secret storage are not removed nor recreated. To prevent Helm from recreating secrets that have already been generated, the Bitnami library chart used by Camunda blocks the upgrade path, resulting in the above error.

To complete your upgrade, extract your secrets, then provide them as environment variables during the upgrade process.