openyurtio/raven

Raven is a Kubernetes networking component that provides layer 3 and layer 7 network connectivity among pods across different physical regions.

Raven addresses the challenge of enabling seamless pod-to-pod communication in edge computing environments where clusters span multiple physical locations. The problem arises in edge-cloud and edge-edge scenarios where standard Kubernetes networking assumes all nodes are in a single region. Raven solves this by introducing a controller-agent architecture: a Raven Controller Manager acts as a standard Kubernetes controller that elects gateway nodes for each edge region based on node conditions, while Raven Agent runs as a node daemon that dynamically configures routing information and VPN connections on each node according to its role, whether as a normal node or gateway node.

Raven is designed for organizations running OpenYurt clusters that need to connect pods across geographically distributed edge locations and cloud infrastructure. It suits projects where edge nodes are separated by network boundaries that prevent direct pod-to-pod communication, and where treating the entire distributed infrastructure as a single logical cluster is desirable. The tool is specifically built as a component of OpenYurt rather than as a standalone solution, so adoption assumes an OpenYurt deployment.

The project maintains active communication channels including a mailing list, Slack workspace, and Dingtalk group for community engagement. The repository includes a tutorial documenting how to get started with Raven Agent and welcomes contributions through issues and pull requests, with a dedicated contributing document provided for potential contributors.