This topic explains how to prepare Tanzu Kubernetes Grid (TKG) workload clusters before installing Tanzu packages on them. Tanzu packages are packaged services that extend workload cluster functionality.

Before you can install Tanzu packages to a workload cluster, you need to:

1. Install the Carvel imgpkg tool on your workstation.
2. Add a package repository to the target cluster.

The sections below describe these steps.

Prerequisites

Before preparing to install Tanzu packages to a workload cluster as described below, you need:

• A Linux client or jump host on which the Tanzu CLI and Kubectl are installed. See Install the Tanzu CLI and Kubernetes CLI for Use with Standalone Management Clusters
• A running workload cluster as described in Creating Workload Clusters.
• The target workload cluster has sufficient storage to run the packages you install, as described in Storage Requirements for Tanzu Packages below.

Install Carvel imgpkg

The Carvel imgpkg command (https://carvel.dev/imgpkg/) lets you browse package repositories.

To install Carvel imgpkg:

1. Install imgpkg.

   wget -O- https://carvel.dev/install.sh > install.sh
   sudo bash install.sh
   

2. Verify installation:

   imgpkg version
   imgpkg version 0.37.1
   

Add the Package Repository to the Cluster

Before you can install Tanzu packages to a cluster, you need to add the package repository from which the cluster downloads the package images.

The commands below refer to the Tanzu Standard package repository, which is distributed by VMware and contains the packages described in this publication. The Tanzu Standard repository is public, so you do not need to log in.

To add the package repository to a TKG workload cluster:

1. Log in to the target cluster with both the Tanzu CLI and Kubectl.

2. List the repository versions:

   imgpkg tag list -i projects.packages.broadcom.com/tkg/packages/standard/repo
   

   This command returns the available TKG package repository versions, for example:

   Tags
   
   Name
   ...
   v2023.10.16
   v2023.11.21
   v2023.7.13
   v2023.7.13_update.1
   v2023.7.13_update.2
   v2023.7.31_update.1
   v2023.9.19
   v2023.9.19_update.1
   v2024.2.1
   v2024.2.1_tmc.1
   v2024.4.12
   v2024.4.19
   v2024.5.14
   v2024.5.16
   v2024.6.27
   v2024.7.11
   v2024.7.2
   v2024.8.21
   v2025.1.27
   
   44 tags
   
   Succeeded
   
   

3. Add the package repository as follows, depending on your TKG deployment option:

   Run the tanzu package repository add command as described in Add a Package Repository.

4. Use Tanzu CLI or Kubectl commands to confirm that the repository object is created:

   • Tanzu CLI:

     tanzu package repository list -A
     

     This command returns output similar to the following:

     NAMESPACE   NAME            SOURCE                                                                         STATUS
     tkg-system  tanzu-standard (imgpkg) projects.packages.broadcom.com/tkg/packages/standard/repo:v2025.1.27   Reconcile succeeded
     

   • kubectl:

     kubectl get packagerepositories -A
     

     This command returns output similar to the following:

     NAMESPACE    NAME             AGE   DESCRIPTION
     tkg-system   tanzu-standard   24s   Reconcile succeeded
     

5. Use Tanzu CLI or Kubectl commands to list the packages in the repository:

   • Tanzu CLI:

     tanzu package repository list -A
     

     This command returns a list of all available packages and their versions in the repository

     tkg-system   cert-manager.tanzu.vmware.com.1.7.2+vmware.3-tkg.1    cert-manager.tanzu.vmware.com    1.7.2+vmware.3-tkg.1    23h8m10s
     tkg-system   cert-manager.tanzu.vmware.com.1.7.2+vmware.3-tkg.3    cert-manager.tanzu.vmware.com    1.7.2+vmware.3-tkg.3    23h8m10s
     ...
     ---
     tkg-system   contour.tanzu.vmware.com.1.28.5+vmware.1-tkg.1    contour.tanzu.vmware.com   1.28.5+vmware.1-tkg.1   23h8m10s
     tkg-system   contour.tanzu.vmware.com.1.29.1+vmware.1-tkg.1    contour.tanzu.vmware.com   1.29.1+vmware.1-tkg.1   23h8m10s
     

   • kubectl:

     kubectl -n tkg-system get packages
     

     This kubectl command returns a list of all available packages and their versions in the repository by querying the packages CRD. Refer to this list to determine which package versions you want to install.

     kubectl -n tkg-system get packages
     NAME                                                                 PACKAGEMETADATA NAME                           VERSION                 AGE
     cert-manager.tanzu.vmware.com.1.1.0+vmware.1-tkg.2                   cert-manager.tanzu.vmware.com                  1.1.0+vmware.1-tkg.2    4h39m13s
     cert-manager.tanzu.vmware.com.1.1.0+vmware.2-tkg.1                   cert-manager.tanzu.vmware.com                  1.1.0+vmware.2-tkg.1    4h39m13s
     ...
     ---
     contour.tanzu.vmware.com.1.17.1+vmware.1-tkg.1                       contour.tanzu.vmware.com                       1.17.1+vmware.1-tkg.1   4h39m12s
     contour.tanzu.vmware.com.1.17.2+vmware.1-tkg.2                       contour.tanzu.vmware.com                       1.17.2+vmware.1-tkg.2   4h39m12s
     ...
     

Storage Requirements for Tanzu Packages

The TKG workload cluster where you deploy a Tanzu package should be provisioned with a default storage class. Specifically, the Prometheus and Grafana packages require a default storage class.

To adjust the storage limit for the vSphere Namespace where the TKG cluster is provisioned:

1. Using the vSphere Client, log in to vCenter Server.
2. Select the vSphere Namespace where the target Tanzu Kubernetes cluster is provisioned.
3. Select Configure > Resource Limits.
4. Click Edit.
5. Adjust the Storage limit so that it is larger than the total size of the persistent volume claims required for the Prometheus and Grafana extensions.

Next Step

Proceed with installing the Tanzu Packages, starting with Cert Manager. See Install Cert Manager for Certificate Management.