Skip to main content

Plug & Play

Providers extend an OpenControlPlane environment with additional functionality. There are three distinct types, each operating at a different scope. All provider types are open for community contributions - if you have a use case not yet covered, we'd love to hear from you.

Overview of provider types in OpenControlPlane

Service Providers​

ServiceProvider

Service Providers add functionality to individual ControlPlanes — examples include cloud provider APIs, GitOps tooling, policies, or backup and restore.

  • Platform Owners install and configure which service providers are available in the environment.
  • End users choose which of those providers to activate for their own ControlPlane.

CRD Reference: ServiceProvider · Available services

Developer guide: Build a Service Provider

Platform Services​

PlatformService

Platform Services add functionality to the OpenControlPlane environment as a whole — not to individual ControlPlanes. Examples include network services (Gateway API, Ingress), audit logs, billing, and system-wide policies.

  • Platform Owners install and configure platform services; they apply to the entire system.
  • End users benefit from platform services automatically - there is nothing to activate or configure.

CRD Reference: PlatformService

Operator guide: Configure platform services

Cluster Providers​

ClusterProvider

Cluster Providers handle the dynamic creation, modification, and deletion of Kubernetes clusters. They abstract away specific cluster technologies (e.g., Gardener and Kubernetes-in-Docker) behind a homogeneous interface.

  • Platform Owners select and configure the cluster provider that matches their target infrastructure.
  • End users are not exposed to this layer - cluster lifecycle is handled transparently when a ControlPlane is created or deleted.

CRD Reference: ClusterProvider

Developer guide: Build a Cluster Provider