MetalLB Installation

This guide covers installing MetalLB in your Kubernetes cluster.

Prerequisites

Kubernetes cluster (v1.13.0 or later)
kubectl configured to access your cluster
No existing load balancer provider installed

Installation Methods

Using kubectl

Install MetalLB

# Apply the MetalLB manifest
kubectl apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/metallb/metallb/v0.13.12/config/manifests/metallb-native.yaml

Verify Installation

# Check if MetalLB is running
kubectl get pods -n metallb-system

# Expected output:
# NAME                          READY   STATUS    RESTARTS   AGE
# controller-7d4b5b5b5b-xxxxx   1/1     Running   0          1m
# speaker-xxxxx                 1/1     Running   0          1m

Using Helm

Add MetalLB Helm Repository

helm repo add metallb https://metallb.github.io/metallb
helm repo update

Install MetalLB

# Install MetalLB
helm install metallb metallb/metallb

# Or with custom values
helm install metallb metallb/metallb \
  --namespace metallb-system \
  --create-namespace \
  --set speaker.frr.enabled=true

Using Kustomize

Create kustomization.yaml

apiVersion: kustomize.config.k8s.io/v1beta1
kind: Kustomization

resources:
  - https://raw.githubusercontent.com/metallb/metallb/v0.13.12/config/manifests/metallb-native.yaml

patchesStrategicMerge:
  - metallb-config.yaml

Apply with Kustomize

kubectl apply -k .

Post-Installation Configuration

1. Create IP Address Pool

apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: IPAddressPool
metadata:
  name: first-pool
  namespace: metallb-system
spec:
  addresses:
  - 192.168.1.240-192.168.1.250

2. Create L2Advertisement

apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: L2Advertisement
metadata:
  name: example
  namespace: metallb-system
spec:
  ipAddressPools:
  - first-pool

3. Apply Configuration

kubectl apply -f metallb-config.yaml

Verification

Check MetalLB Status

# Check controller logs
kubectl logs -n metallb-system controller-xxxxx

# Check speaker logs
kubectl logs -n metallb-system speaker-xxxxx

# Check IP address pools
kubectl get ipaddresspools -n metallb-system

# Check L2 advertisements
kubectl get l2advertisements -n metallb-system

Test LoadBalancer Service

apiVersion: v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: test-service
spec:
  selector:
    app: test
  ports:
  - port: 80
    targetPort: 8080
  type: LoadBalancer

# Apply test service
kubectl apply -f test-service.yaml

# Check service status
kubectl get service test-service

# Expected output should show an EXTERNAL-IP assigned

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

No IP assigned to LoadBalancer service
Check if IP address pool is configured
Verify L2Advertisement or BGPAdvertisement is created
Check speaker logs for errors
Speaker pods not starting
Check node labels and taints
Verify RBAC permissions
Check for port conflicts
Controller not responding
Check controller logs
Verify webhook configuration
Check RBAC permissions

Debug Commands

# Check MetalLB events
kubectl get events -n metallb-system

# Describe IP address pool
kubectl describe ipaddresspool first-pool -n metallb-system

# Check speaker configuration
kubectl describe node <node-name>

Uninstallation

Remove MetalLB

# Delete MetalLB resources
kubectl delete -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/metallb/metallb/v0.13.12/config/manifests/metallb-native.yaml

# Or if using Helm
helm uninstall metallb

Clean Up

# Remove any remaining MetalLB resources
kubectl delete namespace metallb-system

# Clean up any remaining IP addresses
kubectl delete ipaddresspools --all-namespaces --all
kubectl delete l2advertisements --all-namespaces --all
kubectl delete bgpadvertisements --all-namespaces --all