F5 BIG-IP Container Ingress Services

What F5 BIG-IP Container Ingress Services is

F5 BIG-IP Container Ingress Services (CIS) connects Kubernetes and Red Hat OpenShift environments to F5 BIG-IP, updating network services as container applications change. CIS watches Kubernetes resources and adjusts BIG-IP configuration; teams can manage BIG-IP through Kubernetes or OpenShift command-line tools and APIs. It supports forwarding traffic from BIG-IP to Kubernetes clusters through NodePort or ClusterIP and can use F5 AS3 declarations. Traffic management includes HTTP and URI routing, load balancing, scaling, health monitoring, and Blue/Green or A/B handling of application versions. F5 documents support for Kubernetes Ingress resources and OpenShift Routes, plus IngressLink to coordinate CIS with NGINX Ingress Controller. Listed overlay integrations include OpenShift SDN, Flannel, and Calico. BIG-IP data streams can export application and network statistics to third-party visibility and analytics tools, including Splunk. CIS is a control-plane component: F5 says traffic is not affected during a CIS outage, and a replacement replica can collect cluster state and reapply it to BIG-IP. Installation can be done with Helm or manually, and releases are available from Docker Hub and Red Hat Container Registry. The open-source software is free, but use requires a compatible licensed BIG-IP system, a Kubernetes or OpenShift cluster, and AS3 installed on BIG-IP. CIS requires administrative privileges on the BIG-IP iControl REST partition; the Kubernetes guide recommends a dedicated partition.

Who it suits

CIS suits network architects, network operations teams, AppDev and DevOps teams, and system infrastructure teams managing container applications with BIG-IP. It is intended for environments using Kubernetes or Red Hat OpenShift alongside a compatible licensed BIG-IP system.

Limits

The free open-source software requires a compatible, licensed BIG-IP system, a Kubernetes or OpenShift cluster, and AS3 installed on BIG-IP. F5's current compatibility table lists tested Kubernetes v1.13–v1.35, OpenShift v3.11–v4.21.0, BIG-IP v12–v17, and AS3 v3.13–v3.56; F5 does not verify versions outside those ranges.

Getting started

1. Confirm that you have a compatible, licensed BIG-IP system, a Kubernetes or OpenShift cluster, and AS3 installed on BIG-IP.
2. Choose a Helm-based or manual installation method from F5's documentation.
3. Get a CIS release from Docker Hub or Red Hat Container Registry.
4. Configure the required BIG-IP iControl REST access; F5's Kubernetes guide recommends a dedicated partition.
5. Manage BIG-IP through Kubernetes or OpenShift CLI/API tools.

Verdict

Choose CIS if your Kubernetes or OpenShift environment needs to update F5 BIG-IP services as container applications change. It is free open-source software, but it depends on a compatible licensed BIG-IP system, a cluster, and AS3; check F5's verified compatibility versions before adopting it.