helm

Create a helm chart

$ helm create [chart_name]

$ helm repo add [repository_name]

$ helm repo [[ls|list]]

$ helm repo [[up|update]]

$ helm repo [[rm|remove]] [repository_name]

$ helm install [name] [repository_name]/[chart_name]

$ helm get [chart_release_name]

$ helm [[dep|dependency]] [[up|update]]

helm [command] [flags] [args]

--debug
    enable verbose debug output

--help, -h
    help for helm

--kube-context string
    name of the kubeconfig context to use

--kubeconfig string
    path to kubeconfig file

--kube-insecure-skip-tls-verify
    skip TLS verification for API server

--namespace, -n string
    namespace scope (default: default)

--repository-cache string
    path to chart cache directory

--repository-config string
    path to repositories.yaml

--stateconfig string
    path to Helm state file

--tunnel string
    tunnel server URL for proxying

Helm is the official package manager for Kubernetes. It simplifies deploying and managing complex applications on Kubernetes clusters using Helm Charts, which are reusable packages of Kubernetes manifests templated with values.

A chart bundles all resources needed for an application, including deployments, services, configmaps, and more. Helm enables:
• Versioned chart releases with rollback support
• Dependency management between charts
• Templating for customization via values.yaml
• Repository hosting and discovery (e.g., Artifact Hub)
• Lifecycle management: install, upgrade, uninstall, list releases

Helm v3 (current) is fully client-side, eliminating the insecure Tiller server from v2. It integrates seamlessly with kubectl and supports hooks for pre/post actions. Ideal for DevOps workflows, CI/CD pipelines, and multi-environment deployments.

Requires a Kubernetes cluster and kubeconfig. Charts can be created with helm create and shared publicly or privately.

Requires running Kubernetes cluster and valid kubeconfig. Not compatible with Helm v2 without migration. Large charts may hit API limits. Client-side only in v3; no server deployment needed.

install: deploy chart
upgrade: update release
uninstall: remove release
list: show releases
repo: manage repositories
search: find charts
template: render manifests

Add with helm repo add (e.g., stable). Update via helm repo update. Search with helm search repo.

Developed by DeisLabs in 2015 as part of Deis Workflow. Donated to CNCF in 2018, graduated incubating stage. Helm v3 (2019) removed Tiller for security, added OCI support, CRD improvements. Now at v3.15+, widely used in production Kubernetes environments.

kubectl(1), kustomize(1)