--- title: "Deploy VAST COSI Driver" slug: "deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7" updated: 2026-11-04T00:42:09Z published: 2026-11-04T00:42:09Z canonical: "docs.vastdata.com/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7" --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.vastdata.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Deploy VAST COSI Driver Use the following method to deploy VAST COSI Driver: - [Helm chart-based deployment](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#deploy-vast-cosi-driver-with-helm-chart) ## VAST COSI Driver Requirements Ensure that your environment meets the following requirements: - A Kubernetes cluster is up and running. - A VAST cluster is up and running. - All nodes of the Kubernetes cluster are networked with the VAST cluster. - At least one node can communicate with the VAST cluster management virtual IP. - A host is available with a [Helm](https://helm.sh/) client installed, preferably in the VMS network. ### Supported Versions - Kubernetes 1.25 - 1.36 - VAST Cluster 4.7.0-SP6 or later with the *Trash Folder Access* feature enabled - To [operate](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#provision-buckets-on-multiple-vast-cluster-tenants) on multiple VAST cluster tenants: VAST Cluster 5.3.3 or later - To [use](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#use-externally-managed-bucket-access-keys) externally managed bucket access keys: VAST Cluster 5.4.0 or later - Helm 3.x.x ### Required Permissions VAST COSI Driver requires root (sysadmin) privileges. ## Deploy VAST COSI Driver with Helm Chart Before you begin, ensure that your environment meets the [requirements](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#vast-cosi-driver-requirements). VAST COSI Driver is deployed using [Helm](https://helm.sh) charts. A *Helm chart* is an installation template that can be reused to install multiple instances of the software being deployed. Each instance is referred to as a *release*. Helm charts are available from *Helm repositories*. Steps to deploy VAST COSI Driver include: 1. (Optional) [Install](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#install-crds-for-cosi) CustomResourceDefinitions for COSI. 2. [Install](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#install-crds-for-vast-snapshots) CustomResourceDefinitions for snapshots. > **Note:** This step is required if the driver's Helm chart configuration file (`values.yaml`) has `secretName` and `Endpoint` specified as global options (on top of `values.yaml`). This step is optional only when `secretName` and `secretNamespace` are specified within one or more bucket classes (or under `bucketClassDefaults`). 3. (Optional) [Create](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#create-kubernetes-namespace-for-vast-cosi-driver) a Kubernetes namespace for VAST COSI Driver. > **Note:** This step is required if you are going to deploy VAST COSI Driver in a Kubernetes namespace other than `default`. Otherwise, skip this step. 4. [Configure](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#configure-vast-cluster-for-vast-cosi-driver) the VAST cluster. 5. [Create](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#create-kubernetes-secret-for-vast-cosi-driver) a Kubernetes secret with VMS user credentials or API token for VAST COSI Driver. 6. [Add](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#add-helm-repository-for-vast-cosi-driver) the Helm repository that contains the VAST COSI Driver chart. 7. [Create](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#create-helm-chart-configuration-file-for-vast-cosi-driver) a Helm chart configuration file for VAST COSI Driver. 8. [Install](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#install-vast-cosi-driver-helm-chart) the Helm chart for VAST COSI Driver. 9. (Optional) [Verify](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#verify-vast-cosi-driver-deployment) the deployment by launching a test application. ### Install CRDs for COSI Run the following commands to install the Custom Resource Definitions (CRDs) for COSI: ``` kubectl create -k github.com/kubernetes-sigs/container-object-storage-interface-api kubectl create -k github.com/kubernetes-sigs/container-object-storage-interface-controller ``` ### Install CRDs for VAST Snapshots CRDs for VAST snapshots are a prerequisite for using VAST snapshots. The CRDs are required if your deployment includes one or more snapshot classes. The driver's logic for creating snapshot classes varies depending on whether you specify the Kubernetes secret as a global or a bucket class-specific option: - If the driver's Helm chart configuration file (`values.yaml`) has `secretName` and `Endpoint` specified as global options (on top of `values.yaml`), the driver follows legacy logic and creates one snapshot class named `vastdata-snapshot` to be used for all PVCs. This configuration requires that you install the CRDs for VAST snapshots during driver deployment. - When `secretName` and `secretNamespace` are specified within one or more bucket classes (or under `bucketClassDefaults`), the driver creates snapshot classes only when they are defined explicitly. This means that in this case, you need to install the CRDs for VAST snapshots only when you have an explicit `snapshotClass` definition in place. Run the following commands to install the CRDs for snapshots: ``` kubectl apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/kubernetes-csi/external-snapshotter/v6.0.1/client/config/crd/snapshot.storage.k8s.io_volumesnapshotclasses.yaml kubectl apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/kubernetes-csi/external-snapshotter/v6.0.1/client/config/crd/snapshot.storage.k8s.io_volumesnapshotcontents.yaml kubectl apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/kubernetes-csi/external-snapshotter/v6.0.1/client/config/crd/snapshot.storage.k8s.io_volumesnapshots.yaml kubectl apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/kubernetes-csi/external-snapshotter/v6.0.1/deploy/kubernetes/snapshot-controller/rbac-snapshot-controller.yaml kubectl apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/kubernetes-csi/external-snapshotter/v6.0.1/deploy/kubernetes/snapshot-controller/setup-snapshot-controller.yaml ``` ### Create Kubernetes Namespace for VAST COSI Driver By default, VAST COSI Driver is deployed to the `default` namespace on the Kubernetes cluster. If you want to use a different Kubernetes namespace for VAST COSI Driver, create it prior to deployment by running the following command: ``` kubectl create ns ``` ### Configure VAST Cluster for VAST COSI Driver Complete the following steps to make your VAST cluster ready for integration with Kubernetes through the use of VAST COSI Driver: - (Optionally) With VAST Cluster 5.3.3 or later, if you are going to [provision](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#provision-buckets-on-multiple-vast-cluster-tenants) storage on a particular VAST tenant, [create](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#create-tenant-for-bucket-provisioning) a tenant that will host the buckets. - [Set up](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#set-up-virtual-ip-pools) virtual IP pools to be used by VAST COSI Driver. - [Configure](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#configure-view-policies) a view policy to be used for views created by VAST COSI Driver. - [Set up](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#set-up-vms-user) a VMS manager user to be used by VAST COSI Driver. - [Enable](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#enable-trash-folder-access) trash folder access on the VAST cluster. - (Optional) [Upload](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#upload-casigned-ssl-certificate-to-vast-cluster) your CA-signed SSL certificate to the VAST cluster. - (Optional): [Configure](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#configure-qos-policy) a QoS policy to be associated with views created by VAST COSI Driver. - (Optional): If you are going to manually [set](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#set-bucket-owner) bucket owners for the buckets being provisioned, [configure](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#configure-authentication-providers) authentication providers on the VAST cluster. #### Create Tenant for Bucket Provisioning If you run the driver with VAST Cluster 5.3.3 or later, it is recommended to set up a dedicated VAST cluster tenant for dynamic bucket provisioning to allow for control plane isolation of privileges that would prevent the service account used by the driver from acting outside the scope of dynamic provisioning. For more information about support of multiple VAST tenants by the driver, see [Provision Buckets on Multiple VAST Cluster Tenants](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#provision-buckets-on-multiple-vast-cluster-tenants). To create a tenant in VAST Web UI, log in and choose **Element Store** -> **Tenants** in the main navigation menu. Click **Create Tenant** and follow the tenant creation guidelines in *VAST Cluster Administrator's Guide*. #### Set Up Virtual IP Pools VAST COSI Driver distributes the load among virtual IPs in one or more VAST virtual IP pools. The virtual IP pool is specified in the Kubernetes [bucket class](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#define-bucket-class) defined in the VAST COSI Driver chart configuration file. The virtual IP pool specified for a bucket class is used when processing read and write operations requested by the application that is using that particular bucket class. Ensure that the virtual IP pool set for a bucket class belongs to the same VAST cluster tenant as the [view policy](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#configure-view-policies) specified for that bucket class. In the VAST COSI Driver chart configuration file, the virtual IP pool can be specified by its name (`vipPool`) or FQDN (`vipPoolFQDN`). If you are going to use the FQDN, ensure that the VAST cluster has DNS configured, and the virtual IP pool has *Virtual IP Pool Domain Name* defined in its settings. To view and manage virtual IP pools in VAST Web UI, log in and choose **Network Access** -> **Virtual IP Pools** in the main navigation menu. For more information about virtual IP pools, see *VAST Cluster Administrator's Guide*. #### Configure View Policies VAST COSI Driver automatically creates a VAST cluster view for each bucket claim being provisioned. These views are controlled using view policies. The view policy is specified in the Kubernetes [bucket class](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#define-bucket-class) defined in the VAST COSI Driver chart configuration file. The view policy specified for a bucket class is used when processing read and write operations requested by the application that is using that particular bucket class. Ensure that the view policy set for a bucket class belongs to the same VAST cluster tenant as the [virtual IP pool](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#set-up-virtual-ip-pools) specified for that bucket class. To view and manage existing view policies in VAST Web UI, log in and choose **Element Store** -> **View Policies**. For more information about view policies, see *VAST Cluster Administrator's Guide*. #### Set Up VMS User Set up a VMS user for VAST COSI Driver to communicate with the VAST Management Service (VMS) via VAST REST API. Before you start, decide on the following: - *Cluster Admin* or *Tenant Admin* The VMS user can be either a *Cluster Admin* or a *Tenant Admin*. - If you are going to provision buckets on the cluster's default VAST tenant, the VMS user must be be a *Cluster Admin*. - To [provision](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#provision-buckets-on-multiple-vast-cluster-tenants) buckets on a non-default tenant, the user must be a *Tenant Admin* for that tenant. - Authenticate with username/password or API token If you are going to [use](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#create-secret-with-vms-api-token-recommended) VMS API tokens for authentication of the connection between the driver and the VAST cluster, ensure that the VMS user has one or more API tokens generated. To set up a VMS user for VAST COSI Driver: 1. Create a new role (in VAST Web UI: **Administrators** -> **Roles** -> **Create Role**) that grants the **Create**, **View**, **Edit** and **Delete** permissions in the **Logical** realm. > **Note:** Do not use the `csi` role provided with the cluster. 2. Create a new VMS manager user for VAST COSI Driver (in VAST Web UI: **Administrators** -> **Managers** -> **Create Manager**) and assign the newly created role to this user. > **Note:** Alternatively, assign the newly created role to the `admin` user provided with the cluster. With VAST Cluster 5.3.3 or later, if you are going to [provision](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#provision-buckets-on-multiple-vast-cluster-tenants) storage on a particular VAST tenant, set the **User type** to **Tenant Admin** and select the desired tenant from the dropdown list. This is the tenant you'll need to specify in the driver's Kubernetes secret. 3. If you want to have the user authenticated with a VMS API token instead of a password, generate the token as follows: - If the user is a *Cluster Admin*, run the `apitoken create` command of VAST CLI. - If the user is a *Tenant Admin*, with VAST Cluster 5.3.3 or later: 1. Install `vastpy` and `vastpy-cli` tools with the following command (which installs both tools): ``` pip install vastpy ``` 2. Run the following command to generate the VMS API token: ``` vastpy-cli --user \ --password '' \ --tenant-name \ post apitokens owner= name= ``` For example: ``` vastpy-cli --user admina \ --password 'P@ssw0rd' \ --tenant-name ten-a \ post apitokens owner=admina name=new‑token9898 ``` #### Enable Trash Folder Access Trash folder access is required to allow for COSI cleanup. To enable trash folder access in VAST Web UI, log in and choose **Settings** -> **Cluster**. In the **General** tab of cluster settings, toggle the **Trash folder access** option on. #### Upload CA-Signed SSL Certificate to VAST Cluster If you want to use a Certificate Authority-signed SSL certificate to secure the connection to the VAST cluster, follow the SSL certificate upload procedure in the *VAST Cluster Administrator's Guide* to upload your SSL certificate to the VAST cluster. For more information about configuring SSL encryption for VAST COSI Driver, see [Configure SSL Encryption for VAST COSI Driver](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#configure-ssl-encryption-for-vast-cosi-driver). #### Configure QoS Policy You can optionally set up a Quality of Service (QoS) policy to be associated with the views that VAST COSI Driver creates. A QoS policy is specified per Kubernetes storage or bucket class configured for the VAST driver. To view and manage QoS policies via VAST Web UI, log in and choose **Element Store** -> **QoS Policies**. For more information about QoS policies, see *VAST Cluster Administrator's Guide*. #### Configure Authentication Providers on VAST Cluster If you are going to manually [set](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#set-bucket-owner) bucket owners for the buckets being provisioned, configure the authentication providers from which to retrieve the bucket owner accounts so that the users can be queried from the VMS. For guidelines on managing authentication providers in the VMS, see the *VAST Cluster's Administrator's Guide*. ### Create Kubernetes Secret for VAST COSI Driver Create a Kubernetes [secret](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/configuration/secret/) to keep [VMS user](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#set-up-vms-user) credentials or API token that VAST COSI Driver will use to communicate with the VAST cluster. You need to supply the name of the secret when [creating](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#create-helm-chart-configuration-file-for-vast-cosi-driver) the VAST COSI Driver's Helm chart configuration file. If the Kubernetes secret is specified as a global setting in the driver's Helm chart configuration file, it will be used for all bucket classes defined for the driver. If it is specified within a bucket class definition, it applies to the bucket class only (and overrides the global secret, if it exists). Do either of the following: Choose one of the following: - [Create](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#create-secret-with-vms-api-token-recommended) a secret with a VMS API token, or - [Create](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#create-secret-with-vms-user-credentials) a secret with VMS user credentials. Using VMS API tokens is recommended over supplying VMS user credentials; however, secrets with VMS API tokens do not support the `tenant` parameter which is required for provisioning storage on multiple VAST cluster tenants. #### Create Secret with VMS API Token (Recommended) > **Note:** VMS API tokens are supported with VAST Cluster 5.3 or later. To create a Kubernetes secret with the VMS user's API token: 1. Create a YAML file with the following content: ``` apiVersion: v1 kind: Secret metadata: name: type: Opaque data: endpoint: tenant: token: sslCert: ``` Where: - (Required) `name` is the name of the Kubernetes secret. - (Required) `endpoint` sets the hostname FQDN or IP address of the VMS URL of the VAST cluster where you want to provision buckets. - (Optional) `tenant` lets you connect to a particular [VAST cluster tenant](/develop/docs/provision-object-storage-with-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#provision-buckets-on-multiple-vast-cluster-tenants). Supplying a tenant requires that the VMS user has a user type of *Tenant Admin* for the specified tenant (in VAST Web UI: **Administrators** -> **Managers** -> open manager details -> **User type**: **Tenant Admin**). - (Required) `token` is the VMS API token of the VMS user to connect to the VAST cluster. The token must be Base64-encoded. - (Optional) `sslCert` is only required if you are using [SSL encryption](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#configure-ssl-encryption-for-vast-cosi-driver) with a self-signed SSL certificate. It specifies the path to the SSL certificate. 2. Apply the YAML file: ``` kubectl apply -f ``` > **Note:** If you are creating the secret in a namespace that is different from the namespace used to install the driver's Helm chart, specify the secret's namespace on the command: `-n <secret's namespace>`. Alternatively, you can create a secret with the following command: ``` kubectl create secret generic \ --from-literal=endpoint='vms.example.com' \ --from-literal=tenant='' \ --from-literal=token='' \ --from-file=ssl_cert='' \ -n ``` For example: ``` kubectl create secret generic vast-mgmt \ --from-literal=endpoint='vms.example.com' \ --from-literal=tenant='Operations' \ --from-literal=token='xxxxxxxxxххххххххххххххххххххххххххххххх' \ --from-file=ssl_cert='VastCerts/RootCA.crt' \ -n secret_namespace ``` #### Create Secret with VMS User Credentials To create a Kubernetes secret with VMS user credentials: 1. Create a YAML file with the following content: ``` apiVersion: v1 kind: Secret metadata: name: type: Opaque data: endpoint: tenant: username: password: sslCert: ``` Where: - (Required) `name` is the name of the Kubernetes secret. - (Required) `endpoint` sets the hostname FQDN or IP address of the VMS URL of the VAST cluster where you want to provision block volumes. - (Optional) `tenant` lets you connect to a particular VAST cluster tenant. Supplying a tenant requires that the VMS user has a user type of *Tenant Admin* for the specified tenant (in VAST Web UI: **Administrators** -> **Managers** -> open manager details -> **User type**: **Tenant Admin**). The tenant specified in the secret must be the same as the tenant associated with the [view policy](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#configure-view-policies) assigned to the bucket. - (Required) `username` is the username of the VMS user to connect to the VAST cluster. The username must be Base64-encoded. - (Required) `password` is the password for the VMS user connecting to the VAST cluster. The password must be Base64-encoded. - (Optional) `sslCert` is only required if you are using [SSL encryption](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#configure-ssl-encryption-for-vast-cosi-driver) with a self-signed SSL certificate. It specifies the path to the SSL certificate. 2. Apply the YAML file: ``` kubectl apply -f ``` > **Note:** If you are creating the secret in a namespace that is different from the namespace used to install the driver's Helm chart, specify the secret's namespace on the command: `-n <secret's namespace>`. Alternatively, you can create a secret with the following command: ``` kubectl create secret generic \ --from-literal=endpoint='vms.example.com' \ --from-literal=tenant='' \ --from-literal=username='' \ --from-literal=password='' \ --from-file=ssl_cert='' \ -n ``` For example: ``` kubectl create secret generic vast-mgmt \ --from-literal=endpoint='vms.example.com' \ --from-literal=tenant='Operations' \ --from-literal=username='user1' \ --from-literal=password='xxxxxxxxx' \ --from-file=ssl_cert='VastCerts/RootCA.crt' \ ``` ### Create Helm Chart Configuration File for VAST COSI Driver The driver's Helm chart configuration file lets you override default installation settings provided in the chart with parameters that are specific to your environment. The configuration file is a YAML file typically named `values.yaml`, although you can use any arbitrary name for it. - [Create](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#create-configuration-file) a configuration file - [Verify](/develop/docs/deploy-vast-cosi-driver-2-7#verify-configuration-file) the configuration file #### Create Configuration File Create a YAML file as follows: > **Note:** For a detailed reference for parameters and values, see [here](https://github.com/vast-data/vast-csi/blob/v2.7/charts/vastcosi/values.yaml). ``` secretName: "" endpoint: "" verifySsl: true|false sslCertsSecretName: "" bucketClassDefaults: