DEV Community

Mohammad Waseem
Mohammad Waseem

Posted on

Using Kubernetes and Open Source Tools to Bypass Gated Content in DevOps

#opensource #kubernetes #devops

Overcoming Gated Content Barriers with Kubernetes and Open Source Solutions

In modern DevOps environments, accessing gated content—such as protected APIs, internal repositories, or restricted web resources—is often necessary for automation, testing, and continuous deployment workflows. However, relying on traditional access methods can introduce tight coupling to specific environments or proprietary solutions, reducing agility and increasing costs.

This post explores how a DevOps specialist can leverage Kubernetes, combined with open-source tools, to bypass such gated content securely and efficiently. The key idea is to create a controlled, scalable environment where requests to gated resources are intercepted, authenticated, and rerouted, effectively allowing access without direct credential exposure.

Approach Overview

The strategy involves deploying a Kubernetes cluster equipped with a set of open-source components:

  • Kong Gateway: Acts as an API gateway and reverse proxy.
  • Cert-Manager: Manages SSL/TLS certificates for secure communications.
  • ExternalDNS: Simplifies DNS management for scalable environments.
  • OAuth2 Proxy: Handles authentication and authorization.

Optional, but highly recommended, is deploying a Customized Proxy Module (like NGINX with Lua scripting) to handle request manipulation.

Implementation Steps

1. Setup Kubernetes Cluster

Create a Kubernetes environment suitable for your scale—this could be managed (EKS, GKE, AKS) or self-hosted.

# Example: Using kind for local testing
docker run -it --rm -p 6443:6443 kindest/node:v1.25.0
# Deploy a cluster with kind
kind create cluster --name gated-proxy
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

2. Deploy Kong Gateway

Kong will serve as the central proxy, intercepting outbound requests to the gated content.

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: kong
spec:
  replicas: 2
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: kong
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: kong
    spec:
      containers:
      - name: kong
        image: kong:3.0
        env:
        - name: KONG_DATABASE
          value: "off"
        - name: KONG_DECLARATIVE_CONFIG
          value: /kong/kong.yml
        ports:
        - containerPort: 8000
        volumeMounts:
        - name: kong-yml
          mountPath: /kong
      volumes:
      - name: kong-yml
        configMap:
          name: kong-config
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Configure kong.yml to route requests to the target gated resource, adding authentication layers if required.

3. Secure Communications with Cert-Manager

Deploy Cert-Manager to provision TLS certificates for secure communication channels.

kubectl apply -f https://github.com/jetstack/cert-manager/releases/download/v1.8.0/cert-manager.yaml
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Configure cert issuance to match your DNS infrastructure.

4. Implement Authentication with OAuth2 Proxy

Mount OAuth2 Proxy in front of Kong to authenticate requests.

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: oauth2-proxy
spec:
  replicas: 1
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: oauth2-proxy
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: oauth2-proxy
    spec:
      containers:
      - name: oauth2-proxy
        image: quay.io/oauth2-proxy/oauth2-proxy:latest
        args:
        - --provider=oidc
        - --client-id=YOUR_CLIENT_ID
        - --client-secret=YOUR_CLIENT_SECRET
        - --redirect-url=https://your-domain.com/oauth2/callback
        ports:
        - containerPort: 4180
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Configure Kong to require OAuth tokens for upstream access.

5. Automation and Scaling

Use Helm charts to manage deployments and scaling policies.

helm repo add kong https://charts.konghq.com
helm install my-kong kong/kong --set ingressController.installCRDs=false
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Security and Best Practices

  • Always secure your ingress points with SSL/TLS.
  • Manage OAuth credentials securely with Kubernetes secrets.
  • Regularly update all components to patch vulnerabilities.
  • Log and monitor all request flows for auditing.

Final Thoughts

Implementing such a system allows DevOps teams to automate resource access, streamline integrations, and reduce dependency on manual credential handling or SaaS solutions. Using Kubernetes and open-source tools provides a flexible, scalable, and cost-effective method to bypass gated content while maintaining control and security.

This approach underscores the power of combining cloud-native architecture with open standards to solve complex access challenges in DevOps pipelines. Be sure to adapt configurations to your specific environment and compliance requirements.

Feel free to experiment with different open-source proxies or incorporating new security layers to improve this framework further.

🛠️ QA Tip

I rely on TempoMail USA to keep my test environments clean.

Top comments (0)