Quick Start¶

Get the Dataspace Ecosystem up and running locally using Kubernetes (Kind).

Prerequisites¶

Before starting, ensure you have installed:

• JDK 17 or later
• Terraform
• Docker or Podman
• Kind (Kubernetes in Docker)
• kubectl
• cURL or Postman

See Prerequisites for installation instructions.

Overview¶

This guide walks you through:

1. Creating a local Kubernetes cluster
2. Building and loading container images
3. Deploying the dataspace with Terraform
4. Running end-to-end tests

Step 1: Create a Local Kubernetes Cluster¶

# Create the Kind cluster from the source directory
kind create cluster --name dse-cluster --config system-tests/kind.config.yaml

Install Ingress Controller¶

Install the NGINX Ingress Controller to access services from your host:

kubectl apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/kubernetes/ingress-nginx/main/deploy/static/provider/kind/deploy.yaml

Wait for the Ingress Controller to be ready:

kubectl wait --namespace ingress-nginx \
  --for=condition=ready pod \
  --selector=app.kubernetes.io/component=controller \
  --timeout=90s

kubectl patch deployment ingress-nginx-controller -n ingress-nginx \
  --type='json' \
  -p='[{"op": "replace", "path": "/spec/template/spec/containers/0/resources", "value": {"limits": {"cpu": "500m", "memory": "512Mi"}, "requests": {"cpu": "100m", "memory": "90Mi"}}}]'

kubectl rollout restart deployment/ingress-nginx-controller -n ingress-nginx

Step 2: Build Container Images¶

# Build all images
./gradlew clean shadowJar dockerize

# Load images into Kind cluster
kind load docker-image \
  control-plane-postgresql-hashicorpvault:latest \
  data-plane-postgresql-hashicorpvault:latest \
  federated-catalog-postgresql-hashicorpvault:latest \
  identity-hub-postgresql-hashicorpvault:latest \
  issuer-service-postgresql-hashicorpvault:latest \
  telemetry-service-postgresql-hashicorpvault:latest \
  telemetry-agent-postgresql-hashicorpvault:latest \
  backend-service-provider:latest \
  telemetry-storage-postgresql-hashicorpvault:latest \
  telemetry-csv-manager-postgresql-hashicorpvault:latest \
  --name dse-cluster

# Build all images with Podman
./gradlew clean podmanize

# Build and load to Kind in one step
./gradlew clean loadToKind

Step 3: Deploy the Dataspace¶

Deploy all components using Terraform:

# Initialize Terraform
terraform -chdir=system-tests init

# Deploy the dataspace
terraform -chdir=system-tests apply -auto-approve -var="environment=local"

This deploys:

• Authority components: Federated Catalog, Issuer Service, Identity Hub, Participant Registry
• Participants' connectors: Control Plane, Data Plane, Identity Hub, Telemetry Agent
• Supporting services: PostgreSQL, HashiCorp Vault, Telemetry Storage

Step 4: Verify Deployment¶

Check that all Pods are running:

kubectl get pods -A

All pods should show Running status.

Step 5: Run End-to-End Tests¶

Before running tests, set up port forwarding:

# In a separate terminal (keep it open)
kubectl port-forward eventhubs-0 52717:5672 &
kubectl port-forward postgresql-0 57521:5432 &

Run the tests:

./gradlew :system-tests:runner:test -DincludeTags="EndToEndTest"

Cleanup¶

Destroy the Dataspace¶

terraform -chdir=system-tests destroy -auto-approve -var="environment=local"

Delete the Kind Cluster¶

kind delete cluster --name dse-cluster

Clean Build Artifacts¶

./gradlew clean

Deploy a Single Connector (Optional)¶

To deploy just one participant connector without the full dataspace:

Prerequisites¶

Either deploy the full dataspace first, or deploy only the database:

cd system-tests
terraform apply -target=module.postgres -auto-approve

Configuration¶

1. Rename standalone-providers.tf.disabled to standalone-providers.tf

2. Create terraform.tfvars in the participant folder:

# Participant Configuration
participant_name = "your-participant-name"

# Container Images
control_plane_image   = "control-plane-postgresql-hashicorpvault"
data_plane_image      = "data-plane-postgresql-hashicorpvault"
identity_hub_image    = "identity-hub-postgresql-hashicorpvault"
telemetry_agent_image = "telemetry-agent-postgresql-hashicorpvault"

# Kubernetes Configuration
kube_context     = "kind-dse-cluster"
kube_config_path = "~/.kube/config"
environment      = "selfhosted"
charts_path      = "../../../charts"

1. Deploy the connector:

cd system-tests/modules/participant
terraform init
terraform apply -auto-approve

Troubleshooting¶

Pod Issues¶

# Check pod status
kubectl get pods -A

# View pod logs
kubectl logs <pod-name> -n <namespace>

# Describe pod for events
kubectl describe pod <pod-name> -n <namespace>

Ingress Issues¶

# Check ingress status
kubectl get ingress -A

# Verify ingress controller
kubectl get pods -n ingress-nginx

Image Loading Issues¶

# Verify images are loaded in Kind
docker exec -it dse-cluster-control-plane crictl images

Port Forwarding Issues¶

# Kill existing port forwards
pkill -f "kubectl port-forward"

# Restart port forwarding
kubectl port-forward eventhubs-0 52717:5672 &
kubectl port-forward postgresql-0 57521:5432 &

Next Steps¶

• Read about Configuration options
• Explore the Architecture
• Check the API Reference
• Review the system-tests readme for advanced options