Image-mode install: helmdeck without a Go toolchain
· 4 min read
The friction
Through v0.11.0, installing helmdeck required:
- Docker Engine + Compose v2
go ≥ 1.26(the control plane's Go binary)node ≥ 20(the Management UI Vite bundle)make(build orchestration)openssl,curl, ~6 GB disk
The go ≥ 1.26 requirement is the killer. Distro packages lag (Debian ships 1.22; even Trixie is still on 1.23). Operators evaluating helmdeck on a fresh VM had to install Go from upstream before they could try anything — and many didn't.
The fix isn't subtle: ship pre-built images and let operators pull them.