Send mTLS Requests Using Istio Egress Gateway in SAP BTP, Kyma Runtime

1. Export the kubeconfig file of the cluster that will contain the target workload:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   export KUBECONFIG={target-workload-cluster-config}

2. Export the name of your domain (for example, nginx.example.com), the domain of the client cluster (for example, client.example.com), and the namespace you wnat to use. You will use these values throughout the whole tutorial.

   Shell/Bash Copy

   export DOMAIN={your-workload-host}
   export CLIENT={client-cluster-domain}
   export NAMESPACE={your-namespace}

3. Generate the root certificate:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   openssl req -x509 -sha256 -nodes -days 365 -newkey rsa:2048 -subj "/O=example Inc./CN=$DOMAIN" -keyout egress.key -out egress.crt

4. Generate the host certificate:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   openssl req -out "$DOMAIN".csr -newkey rsa:2048 -nodes -keyout "$DOMAIN".key -subj "/CN="$DOMAIN"/O=some organization"
   openssl x509 -req -sha256 -days 365 -CA egress.crt -CAkey egress.key -set_serial 0 -in "$DOMAIN".csr -out "$DOMAIN".crt

5. Generate the client certificate:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   openssl req -out "$CLIENT".csr -newkey rsa:2048 -nodes -keyout "$CLIENT".key -subj "/CN="$CLIENT"/O=client organization"
   openssl x509 -req -sha256 -days 365 -CA egress.crt -CAkey egress.key -set_serial 1 -in "$CLIENT".csr -out "$CLIENT".crt

Use the same kubeconfig file you’ve already exported.

1. Create an HTTPBin Deployment:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl create ns $NAMESPACE
   kubectl label namespace $NAMESPACE istio-injection=enabled --overwrite
   kubectl -n $NAMESPACE create -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/istio/istio/master/samples/httpbin/httpbin.yaml

2. Create a Secret containing your generated certificates and key:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl create secret generic -n istio-system kyma-mtls-certs --from-file=cacert=egress.crt --from-file=key=$DOMAIN.key --from-file=cert=$DOMAIN.crt

3. Create a Gateway with mTLS configuration:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   cat <<EOF | kubectl apply -f -
   apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1alpha3
   kind: Gateway
   metadata:
     name: kyma-mtls-gateway
     namespace: $NAMESPACE
   spec:
     selector:
       app: istio-ingressgateway
       istio: ingressgateway
     servers:
       - port:
           number: 443
           name: mtls
           protocol: HTTPS
         tls:
           mode: MUTUAL
           credentialName: kyma-mtls-certs
         hosts:
           - $DOMAIN
   EOF

4. Create an APIRule exposing your workload:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   cat <<EOF | kubectl apply -f -
   apiVersion: gateway.kyma-project.io/v2alpha1
   kind: APIRule
   metadata:
     name: httpbin
     namespace: $NAMESPACE
   spec:
     hosts:
       - $DOMAIN
     service:
       name: httpbin
       namespace: $NAMESPACE
       port: 8000
     gateway: $NAMESPACE/kyma-mtls-gateway
     rules:
       - path: /*
         methods: ["GET"]
         noAuth: true
   EOF

5. Send a request to your workload without a certificate and key:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   curl -ik -X GET https://$DOMAIN/headers

   You get an SSL error similar to this one: curl: (56) LibreSSL SSL_read: LibreSSL/3.3.6: error:1404C45C:SSL routines:ST_OK:reason(1116), errno 0

6. Send a request with the certificate and key:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   curl --cert $CLIENT.crt --key $CLIENT.key --cacert egress.crt -ik -X GET https://$DOMAIN/headers

   You get the 200 response code from the workload containing headers. One of them should be "X-Forwarded-Client-Cert": ["xxx"].

1. Export the kubeconfig file of another cluster:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   export KUBECONFIG={egress-cluster-config}

2. Create a new namespace for the sample application:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl create ns $NAMESPACE
   kubectl label namespace $NAMESPACE istio-injection=enabled --overwrite

3. Create a Secret with the client certificate and key:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl create secret -n istio-system generic client-credential --from-file=tls.key=$CLIENT.key \
    --from-file=tls.crt=$CLIENT.crt --from-file=ca.crt=egress.crt

4. Enable the egress Gateway in the Istio custom resource:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl apply -f - <<EOF
   apiVersion: operator.kyma-project.io/v1alpha2
   kind: Istio
   metadata:
     name: default
     namespace: kyma-system
     labels:
       app.kubernetes.io/name: default
   spec:
     components:
       egressGateway:
         enabled: true
   EOF

5. Enable additional sidecar logs to see the egress Gateway being used in requests:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl apply -f - <<EOF
   apiVersion: telemetry.istio.io/v1
   kind: Telemetry
   metadata:
     name: mesh-default
     namespace: istio-system
   spec:
     accessLogging:
       - providers:
         - name: envoy
   EOF

6. Apply the curl Deployment to send the requests:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl apply -f - <<EOF
   apiVersion: v1
   kind: ServiceAccount
   metadata:
     name: curl
     namespace: ${NAMESPACE}
   ---
   apiVersion: v1
   kind: Service
   metadata:
     name: curl
     namespace: ${NAMESPACE}
     labels:
       app: curl
       service: curl
   spec:
     ports:
     - port: 443
       name: https
     selector:
       app: curl
   ---
   apiVersion: apps/v1
   kind: Deployment
   metadata:
     name: curl
     namespace: ${NAMESPACE}
   spec:
     replicas: 1
     selector:
       matchLabels:
         app: curl
     template:
       metadata:
         labels:
           app: curl
       spec:
         terminationGracePeriodSeconds: 0
         serviceAccountName: curl
         containers:
         - name: curl
           image: curlimages/curl
           command: ["/bin/sleep", "infinity"]
           imagePullPolicy: IfNotPresent
           volumeMounts:
           - mountPath: /etc/curl/tls
             name: secret-volume
         volumes:
         - name: secret-volume
           secret:
             secretName: curl-secret
             optional: true
   EOF

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7. Export the name of the curl Pod:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   export SOURCE_POD=$(kubectl get pod -n "$NAMESPACE" -l app=curl -o jsonpath={.items..metadata.name})

8. Define a ServiceEntry which adds the kyma-project.io hostname to the mesh:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl apply -f - <<EOF
   apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1
   kind: ServiceEntry
   metadata:
     name: httpbin
     namespace: $NAMESPACE
   spec:
     hosts:
     - $DOMAIN
     ports:
     - number: 80
       name: http
       protocol: HTTP
     - number: 443
       name: https
       protocol: HTTPS
     resolution: DNS
   EOF

9. Create an egress Gateway, DestinationRule, and VirtualService to direct traffic:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl apply -f - <<EOF
   apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1
   kind: Gateway
   metadata:
    name: istio-egressgateway
    namespace: ${NAMESPACE}
   spec:
    selector:
      istio: egressgateway
    servers:
    - port:
        number: 80
        name: http
        protocol: HTTP
      hosts:
      - $DOMAIN
   ---
   apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1
   kind: DestinationRule
   metadata:
    name: egressgateway-for-httpbin
    namespace: ${NAMESPACE}
   spec:
    host: istio-egressgateway.istio-system.svc.cluster.local
    subsets:
    - name: httpbin
   ---
   apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1
   kind: VirtualService
   metadata:
    name: direct-httpbin-through-egress-gateway
    namespace: ${NAMESPACE}
   spec:
    hosts:
    - $DOMAIN
   gateways:
   - istio-egressgateway
   - mesh
   http:
   - match:
     - gateways:
       - mesh
       port: 80
     route:
     - destination:
         host: istio-egressgateway.istio-system.svc.cluster.local
         subset: httpbin
         port:
           number: 80
   - match:
     - gateways:
       - istio-egressgateway
       port: 80
     route:
     - destination:
         host: $DOMAIN
         port:
           number: 443
       weight: 100
   EOF

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10. Create a DestinationRule to use mTLS credentials:

    Shell/Bash Copy

    kubectl apply -n istio-system -f - <<EOF
    apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1
    kind: DestinationRule
    metadata:
      name: originate-mtls-for-httpbin
    spec:
      host: $DOMAIN
      trafficPolicy:
        portLevelSettings:
        - port:
            number: 443
          tls:
            mode: MUTUAL
            credentialName: client-credential
            sni: $DOMAIN
    EOF

1. Send an HTTP request to the Kyma project website:

   When you send an HTTP request, Istio uses egress to redirect the HTTPS to the website.

   Shell Copy

   kubectl exec -n $NAMESPACE "$SOURCE_POD" -c curl -- curl -ik -X GET http://$DOMAIN/headers

   If successful, you get the 200 response code from the workload containing headers. One of these headers should be "X-Forwarded-Client-Cert": ["xxx"].

2. Check the logs of the Istio egress Gateway:

   Shell Copy

   kubectl logs -l istio=egressgateway -n istio-system

   If successful, the logs contain the request made by the egress Gateway:

   Code Copy

   {"authority":"{YOUR_DOMAIN}":"outbound|443||{YOUR_DOMAIN}",[...]}

By default, Istio cannot securely enforce that egress traffic is routed through the Istio egress Gateway. It only enables the flow through sidecar proxies.

However, you can use Kubernetes NetworkPolicies to restrict namespace traffic, so it only passes through the Istio egress Gateway. NetworkPolicies are the Kubernetes method for enforcing traffic rules within a namespace.

Support for NetworkPolicies depends on the Kubernetes CNI plugin used in the cluster. By default, SAP BTP, Kyma runtime uses the CNI configuration provided and managed by Gardener, which supports NetworkPolicies. However, if you’ve made any changes, make sure to check the relevant documentation.

In Gardener-based clusters, such as SAP BTP, Kyma runtime, the Network Policy restricting DNS traffic may not work as expected. It is due to the local DNS service used in discovery working outside the CNI. In such cases, define the IP CIDR of the kube-dns service in the NetworkPolicy’s ipBlock section to allow proper DNS resolution.

1. Fetch the IP address of the kube-dns Service:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   export KUBE_DNS_ADDRESS=$(kubectl get svc -n kube-system kube-dns -o jsonpath='{.spec.clusterIP}')

2. Create a NetworkPolicy with the fetched IP address in the ipBlock section. The NetworkPolicy allows only egress traffic to the Istio egress Gateway, blocking all other egress traffic.

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl apply -f - <<EOF
   apiVersion: networking.k8s.io/v1
   kind: NetworkPolicy
   metadata:
       name: network-policy-allow-egress-traffic
       namespace: ${NAMESPACE}
   spec:
       egress:
       - ports:
         - port: 53
           protocol: UDP
         to:
         - namespaceSelector:
             matchLabels:
                 kubernetes.io/metadata.name: kube-system
         - ipBlock:
             cidr: ${KUBE_DNS_ADDRESS}/32
       - to:
         - namespaceSelector:
             matchLabels:
                 kubernetes.io/metadata.name: istio-system
       podSelector: {}
       policyTypes:
       - Egress
   EOF

3. Send an HTTPS request to the Kyma project website:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl exec -n "$NAMESPACE" "$SOURCE_POD" -c curl -- curl -sSL -o /dev/null -D - https://kyma-project.io

   If successful, you get a response from the website similar to this one:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   HTTP/2 200
   accept-ranges: bytes
   age: 203
   ...

4. Send an HTTPS request to an external website:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   kubectl exec -n "$NAMESPACE" "$SOURCE_POD" -c curl -- curl -sSL -o /dev/null -D - https://www.google.com

   The request should fail with an error message similar to this one:

   Shell/Bash Copy

   curl: (35) Recv failure: Connection reset by peer
   command terminated with exit code 35

You have successfully secured the egress traffic in your namespace using Istio egress Gateway and Kubernetes NetworkPolicies.