Deploying applications to Kubernetes often requires writing and maintaining multiple Helm charts, even when applications share similar deployment patterns. This leads to duplicated configuration, increased maintenance costs, and inconsistent deployment practices across teams.
nxs-universal-chart addresses this problem by providing a single, flexible Helm chart that can be used to deploy virtually any application to Kubernetes, OpenShift, or other platforms compatible with the native Kubernetes API.
This article explains what nxs-universal-chart is, how it works, where it is useful in practice, how to install it, and answers common questions.
What is nxs-universal-chart?
nxs-universal-chart is a generic and highly configurable Helm chart designed to deploy arbitrary applications into Kubernetes-based environments. Instead of creating a custom Helm chart for each service, teams can reuse this universal chart and customize behavior entirely through values files.
The chart supports most common Kubernetes resources and deployment patterns out of the box, including:
- Deployments, StatefulSets, and Jobs
- Services and Ingresses
- ConfigMaps and Secrets
- Autoscaling (HPA)
- Resource limits and requests
- Node affinity, tolerations, and security contexts
GitHub repository:
https://github.com/nixys/nxs-universal-chart
Why Use nxs-universal-chart?
In many organizations, application deployments follow the same structural pattern but differ in configuration details such as images, ports, environment variables, and scaling rules. Maintaining separate Helm charts for each service becomes inefficient over time.
nxs-universal-chart provides:
- A single Helm chart for multiple applications
- Consistent deployment standards
- Reduced chart maintenance overhead
- Faster onboarding for new services
- Compatibility with Kubernetes and OpenShift
It is especially useful for platform teams and DevOps engineers managing large numbers of services.
Practical Use Cases
1. Standardized Microservice Deployments
In a typical microservices architecture, dozens or even hundreds of services are deployed in a similar way. With nxs-universal-chart, each service can be deployed using the same chart while customizing behavior through Helm values. This allows teams to standardize deployment practices while still supporting service-specific requirements such as ports, environment variables, and resource limits.
2. CI/CD-Friendly Application Delivery
nxs-universal-chart fits naturally into CI/CD pipelines. Since all configuration is externalized into values files, pipelines can deploy the same application to multiple environments (development, staging, production) using environment-specific values. This reduces configuration drift and makes deployments more predictable and repeatable.
3. Kubernetes and OpenShift Compatibility
The chart is designed to work not only with vanilla Kubernetes clusters but also with OpenShift and other Kubernetes-compatible orchestrators. This makes it a practical choice for organizations running hybrid or multi-platform container environments.
4. Rapid Prototyping and Environment Cloning
Because no custom chart development is required, new environments can be spun up quickly. Teams can easily clone existing environments or deploy temporary preview environments by reusing the same chart with modified values.
Installation Guide
Below is a basic installation flow using Helm.
Prerequisites
- Kubernetes or OpenShift cluster
- Helm 3 installed
- Access to a container registry with application images
Step 1: Add the Chart Repository or Clone the Source
You can clone the repository directly:
Step 2: Configure Values
Create a values.yaml file describing your application, for example:
repository: nginx
tag: latest
service:
enabled: true
ports:
- port: 80
targetPort: 80
replicaCount: 2
All deployment behavior is controlled via this configuration.
Step 3: Install the Application
Install the chart using Helm:
Helm will render and apply the necessary Kubernetes resources based on the provided values.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- Is nxs-universal-chart suitable for production?
Yes. The chart is designed to support production-grade features such as resource limits, autoscaling, health checks, and security settings. Production readiness depends primarily on how well values are configured. - Can it replace custom Helm charts entirely?
In many cases, yes. For standard application deployments, nxs-universal-chart can fully replace custom charts. However, very complex or highly specialized workloads may still require custom templates. - Does it support Stateful applications?
Yes. The chart supports StatefulSets, making it suitable for stateful workloads when combined with proper storage configuration. - How flexible is the chart?
Most common Kubernetes configuration options are exposed through values, allowing extensive customization without modifying the chart itself.
Conclusion
nxs-universal-chart is a practical solution for teams looking to simplify and standardize application deployments on Kubernetes and OpenShift. By using a single, highly configurable Helm chart, organizations can reduce duplication, improve consistency, and accelerate delivery across multiple environments.
If your team manages many similar services or wants to reduce the operational overhead of maintaining multiple Helm charts, nxs-universal-chart is a strong and flexible choice.
Official repository:
https://github.com/nixys/nxs-universal-chart