IBM C1000-130 - IBM Cloud Pak for Integration V2021.2 Administration

When installing an IBM Cloud Pak for Integration (CP4I) operator in an OpenShift cluster, issues like hanging installations often occur due to problems with the Operator Lifecycle Manager (OLM). The best approach for debugging a stalled installation is to systematically check the key Operator OLM objects in the following order:

Subscription:

The Subscription (Subscription CR) manages the operator installation and upgrades.

Check if the subscription is in the correct state (kubectl get subscription -n ).

Look for events that might indicate why the operator is stuck.

InstallPlan:

The InstallPlan determines the installation process for the operator.

If an InstallPlan is pending, it might indicate that dependencies or permissions are missing.

Use kubectl get installplan -n to check its status.

ClusterServiceVersion (CSV):

The ClusterServiceVersion (CSV) represents the installed operator and its status.

If the CSV is in a "Pending" or "Failed" state, logs will provide insights into what is wrong.

Use kubectl get csv -n to check its status.

Option A (Log Aggregator in openshift-operators and then Subscription) – Incorrect:

While logging is useful, the first step should be checking the OLM objects like Subscription, InstallPlan, and CSV.

Option B (InstallPlan and pod logs from the hanging operator) – Incorrect:

The InstallPlan is useful, but checking Subscription and CSV as well is necessary for a complete diagnosis.

Checking pod logs is a later step, not the first thing to do.

Option D (ibm-operator-catalog CatalogSource and ClusterServiceVersion) – Incorrect:

The CatalogSource is used to fetch the operator package, but it is not the first thing to check.

Checking Subscription, InstallPlan, and CSV first provides a more direct way to diagnose the issue.

IBM Cloud Pak for Integration Operator Troubleshooting

OpenShift Operator Lifecycle Manager (OLM) Guide

Debugging Operator Installation Issues in OpenShift

Why the other options are incorrect:IBM Cloud Pak for Integration (CP4I) v2021.2 Administration References:

Upgrading from version 3.4.x and 3.5.x to version 3.6.x

Before you upgrade the foundational services installer version, make sure that the installer catalog source image has the correct tag.

If, during installation, you had set the catalog source image tag as latest, you do not need to manually change the tag.

If, during installation, you had set the catalog source image tag to a specific version, you must update the tag with the version that you want to upgrade to. Or, you can change the tag to latest to automatically complete future upgrades to the most current version.

To update the tag, complete the following actions.

To update the catalog source image tag, run the following command.

oc edit catalogsource opencloud-operators -n openshift-marketplace

Update the image tag.

Change image tag to the specific version of 3.6.x. The 3.6.3 tag is used as an example here:

spec:

displayName: IBMCS Operators

image: 'docker.io/ibmcom/ibm-common-service-catalog:3.6.3'

publisher: IBM

sourceType: grpc

updateStrategy:

registryPoll:

interval: 45m

Change the image tag to latest to automatically upgrade to the most current version.

spec:

displayName: IBMCS Operators

image: 'icr.io/cpopen/ibm-common-service-catalog:latest'

publisher: IBM

sourceType: grpc

updateStrategy:

registryPoll:

interval: 45m

To check whether the image tag is successfully updated, run the following command:

oc get catalogsource opencloud-operators -n openshift-marketplace -o jsonpath='{.spec.image}{"\n"}{.status.connectionState.lastObservedState}'

The following sample output has the image tag and its status:

icr.io/cpopen/ibm-common-service-catalog:latest

READY%

https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/cpfs?topic=online-upgrading-foundational-services-from-operator-release

In IBM Cloud Pak for Integration (CP4I), the Integration Runtimes page in the Platform Navigator provides an overview of available and deployable runtime components, such as IBM MQ, DataPower, API Connect, and Aspera.

When users see the message:

"Some runtimes cannot be created yet"

It typically indicates that one or more required operators have not been deployed. Each integration runtime requires its respective operator to be installed and running in order to create and manage instances of that runtime.

If the Aspera, DataPower, or MQ operators are missing, then their corresponding runtimes will not be available in the Platform Navigator.

The Platform Navigator relies on these operators to manage the lifecycle of integration components.

Even if users have the necessary permissions, without the required operators, the integration runtimes cannot be provisioned.

B. The platform navigator operator has not been installed cluster-wide

The Platform Navigator does not need to be installed cluster-wide for runtimes to be available.

If the Platform Navigator was missing, users would not even be able to access the Integration Runtimes page.

C. The ibm-entitlement-key has not been added in the same namespace as the platform navigator

The IBM entitlement key is required for pulling images from IBM’s container registry but does not affect the visibility of Integration Runtimes.

If the entitlement key were missing, installation of operators might fail, but this does not directly cause the displayed message.

D. The API Connect operator has not been deployed

While API Connect is a component of CP4I, its operator is not required for all integration runtimes.

The error message suggests multiple runtimes are unavailable, which means the issue is more likely related to multiple missing operators, such as Aspera, DataPower, or MQ.

Key Reasons for This Issue:Why Other Options Are Incorrect:IBM Cloud Pak for Integration (CP4I) v2021.2 Administration References:

IBM Cloud Pak for Integration - Installing and Managing Operators

IBM Platform Navigator and Integration Runtimes

IBM MQ, DataPower, and Aspera Operators in CP4I