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How to Build and push with non-root users

Introduction​

Building with non-root users may be necessary for an organization due to the security process or stance that an organization has for its environment. Below is information on how to build and push with non-root users

Kaniko Builds​

By default, Harness builds utilizing a Kubernetes cluster infrastructure are completed using kaniko for all Build and Push steps. If your team utilizes Kaniko, unfortunately, a Kaniko requirement is to have root access to build the Docker image. It doesn't support non-root users, so users will have to use one of the alternates listed below.

Build X Builds​

Customers can also utilize BuildX for their builds. This feature can be enabled by submitting a ticket to Harness Support to enable the flag CI_USE_BUILDX_ON_K8. We recommend reviewing the notes about this feature on the CI Early Access Features page. You must run BuildX on Kubernetes with Privileged mode enabled.

Drone Docker​

It is also possible to utilize drone docker. Please read the following documentation for a full breakdown of drone-docker and how to use it.

Individual Step Root / Buildah plugin​

If your Kubernetes cluster builds infrastructure is configured to run as non-root, you can either enable root access individual steps or use the Buildah plugin, which doesn't require root access, but will require privileged access.

For Buildah plugin environments, please keep in mind that settings and requirements will vary. For example, OpenShift Buildah environments have specific settings and requirements differing from others.

Enable root access for a single step​

If your build runs as non-root (runAsNonRoot: true), and you want to run the Build and Push step as root, you can set Run as User to 0 on the Build and Push step to use the root user for that individual step only.

If your security policy doesn't allow running as root for any step, you must use the Buildah plugin.

Use the Buildah plugin​

If your security policy doesn't allow running as root for any step, you must use the Buildah plugin in a Plugin step to build and push your image.

tip

buildah requires specific and different settings if the environment is an OpenShift environment. Please make note about the privileged flag. and defining anyuid for Security Context Constraints

To use the Buildah plugin, you must meet the following requirements:

Add a Plugin step​

At the point in your pipeline where you want to build and upload an image, add a Plugin step that uses the buildah plugin, for example:

                - step:
                    type: Plugin
                    name: buildah-docker
                    identifier: buildahdocker
                    spec:
                      connectorRef: account.harnessImage
                      image: plugins/buildah-docker:1.1.0-linux-amd64
                      privileged: false
                      settings:
                        repo: myDockerHub1234/test
                        tags: buildahtest
                        registry: https://index.docker.io/v2/
                        dockerfile: Dockerfile
                        username: <+secrets.getValue("DOCKER_HUB_USER")>
                        password: <+secrets.getValue("DOCKER_HUB_SECRET")>
                      runAsUser: "1000"

This step requires the following specifications:

  • connectorRef: Provide the ID of a connector corresponding to your push destination.
    • Docker Hub: Docker connector
    • ACR: Azure connector
    • ECR: AWS connector
    • GAR/GCR: GCP connector
  • image: Specify the plugin image and tag to use, such as plugins/buildah-docker:1.1.0-linux-amd64. If you don't specify a tag, the latest tag is used by default. Go to an image's Docker Hub page to browse available tags:
  • privileged: Set to false for OpenShift clusters. Set to true for non-OpenShift clusters.
  • runAsUser: Specify the ID of the non-root user to use for this step, such as 1000.
  • settings: Add the following settings as key-value pairs.
    • repo: The name of the repository where you want to store the image, for example, <hub-user>/<repo-name>. For private registries, specify a fully qualified repo name.
    • tags: Specify tags for your image.
    • registry: Specify the registry index, such as https://index.docker.io/v2/. The registry format for ECR is aws_account_id.dkr.ecr.region.amazonaws.com.
    • dockerfile: Specify the Dockerfile to use for the build.
    • username: Provide the username to access the push destination, either as plaintext or an expression referencing a Harness secret or pipeline variable, such as <+pipeline.variables.DOCKER_HUB_USER>.
    • password: An expression referencing a Harness secret or pipeline variable containing the password to access the push destination, such as <+pipeline.variables.DOCKER_HUB_SECRET>.
    • For more information and additional settings, including AWS S3 settings, go to Buildah plugin settings.

Buildah plugin settings​

For information about Buildah plugin settings, go to the Buildah README, the Buildah Drone Plugins Marketplace page, and the the main.go file for each destination:

Many Buildah plugin settings correspond with settings for the built-in Build and Push steps. If you're encountering an error with the buildah plugin configuration, you can reference the settings definitions for the built-in steps for guidance on the expected value for the equivalent Buildah settings. However, keep in mind that the configuration for Build and Push steps (such as field names and location in the YAML) is not an exact match to the Plugin step configuration.

DestinationBuildah imageBuildah main.goEquivalent Build and Push step
Docker Hubbuildah-dockerDocker main.goBuild and Push to Docker Registry
ACRbuildah-acrACR main.goBuild and Push to ACR
ECRbuildah-ecrECR main.goBuild and Push to ECR
GAR/GCRbuildah-grcGCR main.goBuild and Push to GAR/Build and Push to GCR

Stage YAML example​

This YAML example shows a Build (CI) stage with a Kubernetes cluster build infrastructure running as non-root (runAsNonRoot: true and runAsUser: "1000") and a Plugin step running the Buildah plugin.

    - stage:
        identifier: stage1
        type: CI
        name: stage1
        spec:
          cloneCodebase: true
          infrastructure:
            type: KubernetesDirect
            spec:
              connectorRef: YOUR_KUBERNETES_CLUSTER_CONNECTOR
              namespace: YOUR_NAMESPACE
              automountServiceAccountToken: true
              nodeSelector: {}
              containerSecurityContext:
                runAsNonRoot: true
                runAsUser: "1000"
              os: Linux
          execution:
            steps:
              - step:
                  identifier: buildah plugin
                  type: Plugin
                  name: buildah_plugin
                  spec:
                    connectorRef: YOUR_DOCKER_CONNECTOR
                    image: plugins/buildah-docker:1.1.0-linux-amd64
                    privileged: true
                    settings:
                      repo: myhub/test-repo
                      tags: builadhrootless
                      registry: https://index.docker.io/v2/
                      dockerfile: Dockerfile2
                      username: <+pipeline.variables.DOCKER_HUB_USER>
                      password: <+secrets.getValue("MyDockerPAT")>
                    runAsUser: "1000"

Build an image without pushing​

You can use your CI pipeline to test a Dockerfile used in your codebase and verify that the resulting image is correct before you push it to your Docker repository.

The following configuration is valid with the Docker Buildah plugin (plugins/buildah-docker) only. For other configurations, go to Build without pushing.

  1. In your CI pipeline, go to the Build stage that includes the Plugin step with the Docker Buildah plugin.
  2. In the Build stage's Overview tab, expand the Advanced section.
  3. Select Add Variable and enter the following:
    • Name: PLUGIN_DRY_RUN
    • Type: String
    • Value: true
  4. Save and run the pipeline.