Grafana and Prometheus Setup in Kubernetes Using Helm

This README provides step-by-step instructions for setting up Grafana and Prometheus for monitoring in a Kubernetes cluster using Helm.

Prerequisites

1. Kubernetes Cluster: A running Kubernetes cluster. You can use Minikube, a managed cluster, or any other Kubernetes provider.
2. Helm: Installed and configured in your environment. Follow Helm’s installation guide (opens in a new tab) if needed.
3. kubectl: Installed and configured for your Kubernetes cluster. Refer to the kubectl installation guide (opens in a new tab) for setup instructions.

Step 1: Create a Namespace

First, create a namespace for monitoring resources:

kubectl create namespace monitoring

Step 2: Add Helm Repositories

Add the required Helm chart repositories for Prometheus and Grafana:

helm repo add prometheus-community https://prometheus-community.github.io/helm-charts
helm repo add grafana https://grafana.github.io/helm-charts
helm repo update

Step 3: Install Prometheus

Install Prometheus using Helm:

helm install prometheus prometheus-community/prometheus -n monitoring

The Prometheus server can be accessed via port 80 using the following DNS name from within your cluster:

http://prometheus-server.monitoring.svc.cluster.local

Step 4: Install Grafana

Install Grafana using Helm:

helm install grafana grafana/grafana -n monitoring

Accessing Grafana

1. Get your 'admin' user password by running the following command:

   kubectl get secret --namespace monitoring grafana -o jsonpath="{.data.admin-password}" | base64 --decode ; echo

   The default password will be displayed. For example:

   PASS : aIwX6UK5LLkHQWKmGGQvCtME0BA93YKaH4T91tZt

2. You can access Grafana at:

grafana.monitoring.svc.cluster.local

Step 5: Expose Services to Localhost

To access Prometheus and Grafana from your local machine, use port-forwarding: (or you can use LB or ingress )

kubectl port-forward service/prometheus-server --namespace monitoring 8090:80
kubectl port-forward service/grafana --namespace monitoring 3000:80
kubectl patch svc grafana -n monitoring -p '{"spec": {"type": "NodePort"}}'

Now you can access:

• Prometheus: http://localhost:8090
• Grafana: http://localhost:3000

Step 6: Configure Prometheus as a Data Source in Grafana

1. Open Grafana (http://localhost:3000) and log in.
2. Go to Configuration > Data Sources.
3. Click Add Data Source and select Prometheus.
4. Set the URL to http://prometheus-server.monitoring.svc.cluster.local:80.
5. Click Save & Test to verify the data source is working.

Step 7: Import Dashboards

You can enhance your Grafana setup by importing pre-configured dashboards. Here are some popular Kubernetes dashboards:

Dashboard IDs

Refer to the following dashboards from dotdc/grafana-dashboards-kubernetes (opens in a new tab):

Cleanup (Optional)

To uninstall Prometheus and Grafana, run the following commands:

helm uninstall prometheus -n monitoring
helm uninstall grafana -n monitoring
kubectl delete namespace monitoring

Troubleshooting

• Grafana or Prometheus Not Accessible: Ensure port-forwarding is set up correctly or check the service type for external access.
• Data Not Showing in Grafana: Confirm that the Prometheus data source URL is correct in Grafana.

Additional Resources

• Helm Charts for Prometheus (opens in a new tab)
• Helm Charts for Grafana (opens in a new tab)
• Prometheus Documentation (opens in a new tab)
• Grafana Documentation (opens in a new tab)

This README provides a foundational setup for Grafana and Prometheus, which you can further customize based on your monitoring needs.