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In this guide, you’ll learn how to integrate the kustomize edit set image command into your CI/CD pipeline. By the end, you’ll understand how to automatically update your Kubernetes manifests with a new image tag whenever a build completes successfully.

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Table of Contents

  1. CI/CD Pipeline Overview
  2. 1. Triggering the Pipeline
  3. 2. Installing Dependencies & Running Tests
  4. 3. Building & Tagging the Container Image
  5. 4. Updating Manifests with kustomize edit
  6. 5. Deploying to Kubernetes
  7. References

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CI/CD Pipeline Overview

This is a typical flow for deploying code changes:
StageDescriptionExample Command
Push CodeDeveloper pushes to GitHubgit push origin main
BuildInstall deps & run testsgo mod download / go test ./...
Tag & PushBuild Docker image with commit hash, push to registrydocker build -t myrepo/api:$GIT_COMMIT_HASH .
docker push myrepo/api:$GIT_COMMIT_HASH
UpdateUse Kustomize to set the new image in manifestskustomize edit set image api=myrepo/api:$GIT_COMMIT_HASH
DeployApply the updated overlay to production clusterkubectl apply -k overlays/production
Using a Git commit hash (or semantic version) as your Docker image tag ensures traceability between your code and the container you deploy.

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1. Triggering the Pipeline

Any push to the main branch starts the CI/CD process. For example: 
git push origin main
Your CI system (GitHub Actions, Jenkins, GitLab CI, etc.) detects the new commit and enters the build stage.

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2. Installing Dependencies & Running Tests

In the build stage, install dependencies and execute tests: 
# Download Go modules
go mod download

# Execute all tests
go test ./...
If all tests pass, the pipeline moves on to building the Docker image.

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3. Building & Tagging the Container Image

Most CI systems provide an environment variable for the commit SHA. For instance: 
# Provided by CI environment
GIT_COMMIT_HASH=abcdef123

# Build and tag the image
docker build -t myrepo/api:$GIT_COMMIT_HASH .
docker push myrepo/api:$GIT_COMMIT_HASH
Here, myrepo/api:abcdef123 uniquely identifies the image corresponding to this commit.

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4. Updating Manifests with kustomize edit

In the CD stage, adjust your Kustomize overlay so the manifest points to the new image tag: 
kustomize edit set image api=myrepo/api:$GIT_COMMIT_HASH
This command modifies the images section of your kustomization.yaml: 
images:
- name: api
  newName: myrepo/api
  newTag: abcdef123
Ensure your kustomization.yaml is under version control so you can track these automated updates. Avoid committing sensitive credentials or hardcoded tags.

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5. Deploying to Kubernetes

With your overlay updated, deploy the change to production: 
kubectl apply -k overlays/production
Kubernetes will detect the new image tag, pull myrepo/api:abcdef123, and perform a rolling update.

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References

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