Vector Helm

Vector — Helm Chart

Repo: https://helm.vector.dev
OCI: oci://ghcr.io/vectordotdev/helm-charts/vector
Latest chart: v0.56.0 (app v0.56.0-distroless-libc)
K8s min: >=1.28.0-0

Quick Install

helm repo add vector https://helm.vector.dev
helm repo update

# Agent (DaemonSet — collect logs from all nodes)
helm install vector-agent vector/vector \
  --namespace vector --create-namespace \
  --set role=Agent \
  --set customConfig.sources.kubernetes_logs.type=kubernetes_logs \
  --set customConfig.sinks.stdout.type=console \
  --set 'customConfig.sinks.stdout.inputs[0]=kubernetes_logs' \
  --set customConfig.sinks.stdout.encoding.codec=json

Roles

# Aggregator (StatefulSet — centralized processing)
helm install vector-aggregator vector/vector \
  --namespace vector \
  --set role=Aggregator \
  --set replicas=3 \
  --set customConfig.sources.vector.type=vector \
  --set customConfig.sources.vector.address=0.0.0.0:6000 \
  --set customConfig.sinks.stdout.type=console \
  --set 'customConfig.sinks.stdout.inputs[0]=vector' \
  --set customConfig.sinks.stdout.encoding.codec=json

Configuration

Pipeline via customConfig

customConfig:
  data_dir: /vector-data-dir
  api:
    enabled: true
    address: 127.0.0.1:8686
  sources:
    kubernetes_logs:
      type: kubernetes_logs
      extra_label_selector: "app!=vector"
    internal_metrics:
      type: internal_metrics
    vector:
      address: 0.0.0.0:6000
      type: vector
      version: "2"

  transforms:
    remap:
      type: remap
      inputs: [kubernetes_logs]
      source: |
        .@timestamp = del(.timestamp)
        .service = .kubernetes.container_name

  sinks:
    console:
      type: console
      inputs: [remap]
      encoding:
        codec: json
    prometheus:
      type: prometheus_exporter
      inputs: [internal_metrics]
      address: 0.0.0.0:9090

HAProxy Load Balancer (Aggregator)

haproxy:
  enabled: true
  replicas: 2
  service:
    type: ClusterIP

PodMonitor (Prometheus)

podMonitor:
  enabled: true
  interval: 30s
  path: /metrics
  port: prom-exporter

Key Parameters

Secrets

secrets:
  generic:
    datadog_api_key: "your-api-key"
    aws_access_key_id: "AKIA..."
    aws_secret_access_key: "..."

Referenced via env:

env:
  - name: DATADOG_API_KEY
    valueFrom:
      secretKeyRef:
        name: vector
        key: datadog_api_key

Upgrading

helm repo update
helm upgrade vector-agent vector/vector \
  --namespace vector \
  --values values.yaml \
  --version 0.56.0

Common Mistakes

• Role not set — Default is Aggregator. Set --set role=Agent for DaemonSet.
• customConfig replaces all defaults — When using customConfig, you must define the full pipeline (sources, transforms, sinks). No defaults are merged.
• Agent requires RBAC — rbac.create=true (default) for reading pod logs. Disable only if using pre-created RBAC.
• API health endpoint — customConfig.api.enabled=true required for liveness/readiness probes. Without it, probes fail.
• gRPC probes — Vector 0.55+ supports gRPC health probes via grpc.health.v1.Health/Check on port 8686.
• Aggregator without persistence — persistence.enabled=false means buffer data is lost on pod restart.
• HostPath for Agent — Agent uses /var/log/, /var/lib/, /proc, /sys mounts by default. Don't override unless you know the impact.
• Base distribution — distroless-libc is minimal. Use debian if you need shell access or debugging tools.