# Argocd

> Scan ArgoCD application logs, triage deploy/sync issues, check container health, and diagnose migration failures across ops clusters. Use when the user says "argocd", "check deploys", "check pods", "what's failing", "triage", or asks about app health.

- Skill: `jeff-stapleton/argocd` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add jeff-stapleton/argocd`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/jeff-stapleton/argocd/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: DevOps & Infra
- Author: Jeff-Stapleton (https://skillmd.com/u/jeff-stapleton)
- Updated: 2026-09-10
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/jeff-stapleton/argocd

---


# ArgoCD Ops Triage

## Overview

Scan and triage ArgoCD-managed applications across the ops production and staging clusters. This skill checks application sync/health status, pulls pod logs, inspects Kubernetes events, and surfaces actionable issues.

## Cluster Context

| Alias | Cluster | API Server |
|---|---|---|
| `eks-ops-production` | Production | `https://5B9C5E61FDD7E90F0CF230129CD5D4B6.gr7.us-east-2.eks.amazonaws.com` |
| `eks-ops-staging` | Staging | `https://4DB97F6B7EEB40C519A2845E2656BDFB.yl4.us-west-1.eks.amazonaws.com` |

- **Namespace:** `ops`
- **ArgoCD Server:** `argocd.flybreeze.team`

## Procedure

### Step 1: Determine Scope

Ask the user what they want to check. Options:

- **Full scan** — sweep all apps across both clusters for any issues
- **Specific app** — check a named application
- **Specific cluster** — scan only production or staging
- **Failing only** — show only apps that are degraded, out-of-sync, or have unhealthy pods

If the user's initial message already specifies scope (e.g., "check staging" or "what's failing in prod"), skip this prompt and proceed.

### Step 2: Application Status Overview

List all applications in the target scope:

```bash
argocd app list --server argocd.flybreeze.team -o wide
```

To filter by cluster, pipe through grep for the relevant API server URL. To filter by project/namespace:

```bash
argocd app list --server argocd.flybreeze.team --project ops -o wide
```

Parse the output and build a summary table with columns: **App Name**, **Sync Status**, **Health Status**, **Cluster**, **Last Sync Time**.

Flag any app where:
- Sync status is not `Synced`
- Health status is not `Healthy`

If everything is green and the user asked for a general scan, report that all apps are healthy and stop unless the user wants deeper inspection.

### Step 3: Diagnose Unhealthy Apps

For each flagged app, get detailed status:

```bash
argocd app get <app-name> --server argocd.flybreeze.team
```

This shows:
- Sync status and last sync result
- Health breakdown per resource (Deployments, Pods, Services, Jobs)
- Any sync errors or conditions

Report the resource-level health breakdown. Identify which specific resources are degraded.

### Step 4: Pull Pod Logs

For apps with unhealthy pods or containers, pull recent logs:

```bash
argocd app logs <app-name> --server argocd.flybreeze.team --namespace ops --tail 100
```

If specific container or pod names are known from Step 3, narrow the log query:

```bash
argocd app logs <app-name> --server argocd.flybreeze.team --namespace ops --container <container> --tail 150
```

For crash-looping containers, pull previous container logs:

```bash
argocd app logs <app-name> --server argocd.flybreeze.team --namespace ops --container <container> --previous --tail 150
```

Scan logs for:
- **Errors/Exceptions** — stack traces, panic messages, fatal errors
- **Migration failures** — database connection errors, schema conflicts, migration timeouts
- **OOM kills** — "OOMKilled", memory limit messages
- **Startup failures** — readiness/liveness probe failures, port binding errors
- **Connection issues** — DNS resolution failures, connection refused, timeouts to downstream services

### Step 5: Check Recent Sync History

For apps that are out-of-sync or recently failed:

```bash
argocd app history <app-name> --server argocd.flybreeze.team
```

This shows recent deploy attempts with revisions and status. Identify:
- When the last successful sync was
- What revision introduced the failure
- Whether the issue is a new regression or a persistent problem

### Step 6: Check Kubernetes Events (if needed)

If ArgoCD logs alone don't explain the issue, check resource events:

```bash
argocd app resources <app-name> --server argocd.flybreeze.team
```

This lists all managed resources and their health. For specific failing resources, the user may need `kubectl` access — note this as a next step if ArgoCD tooling isn't sufficient.

### Step 7: Triage Summary

Present findings as a structured report:

**Cluster Health Overview:**
- Total apps scanned
- Healthy / Degraded / Out-of-Sync counts

**Issues Found** (for each issue):
- **App:** name and cluster
- **Problem:** one-line summary (e.g., "CrashLoopBackOff on web container", "Sync failed — manifest validation error")
- **Evidence:** key log lines or error messages (quote directly, keep brief)
- **Likely Cause:** your assessment based on the evidence
- **Suggested Action:** concrete next step (e.g., "Roll back to revision X", "Check DB connectivity from pod", "Fix manifest at path Y")

**Migration Issues** (if any):
- Which migration step failed
- Error output
- Whether it's safe to retry or needs manual intervention

If no issues are found, confirm all apps are healthy with last-sync timestamps.

## Execution Guidelines

- Always use `--server argocd.flybreeze.team` on every `argocd` command.
- Run independent `argocd` commands in parallel where possible (e.g., fetching details for multiple apps simultaneously).
- Keep log output focused — use `--tail` to avoid dumping thousands of lines. Start with 100-150 lines; fetch more only if the issue isn't visible.
- When quoting error messages, include enough context (2-3 lines around the error) for the user to understand the failure, but don't dump entire logs.
- If `argocd` commands fail with auth errors, prompt the user to re-login: `argocd login argocd.flybreeze.team --sso`
- Timestamps matter — always note when the last successful sync was relative to now so the user knows how long things have been broken.