Overview
As of November 18th, 2024, Bitnami has transitioned its primary method for distributing Helm charts to utilize OCI format stored in Docker Hub. However, to maintain compatibility with existing user workflows, Bitnami did not simply abandon its traditional repository endpoint (https://charts.bitnami.com/bitnami). Instead, they modified the index.yaml file served from that endpoint. Previously, the urls field within Bitnami's index.yaml contained standard HTTPS links pointing to .tgz chart packages hosted on charts.bitnami.com. For example:
urls:
- https://charts.bitnami.com/bitnami/airflow-18.3.2.tgz
After the change, this field was updated to contain OCI URIs pointing to the corresponding chart artifact stored in Docker Hub:
urls:
- oci://registry-1.docker.io/bitnamicharts/airflow:23.0.2
Implications for Artifactory users
While we support both legacy Helm repositories (local, remote, virtual using index.yaml and .tgz) and Helm OCI repositories (local, remote, virtual using OCI protocols), they are treated as fundamentally distinct repositories with different API protocols. Meaning, hybrid mode is unsupported.
When attempting to resolve a chart from Bitnami registry using Helm client version 3.8.0 and above through a legacy Helm repository, we save an entry with the following URL rewrite:
<ARTIFACTORY_URL>/artifactory/api/helm/<REPOSITORY_KEY>/oci://registry-1.docker.io/bitnamicharts/airflow:23.0.2
The Helm client receives this rewritten URL from Artifactory. It cannot interpret this string as either a valid HTTP/S URL (due to the embedded oci:// scheme) or a valid OCI URI (due to the https://... prefix). Consequently, any attempt by the Helm client to download the chart using this URL fails, typically with a "not found" error
Conclusion
Bitnami has officially declared the deprecation of the legacy .tgz Helm chart format, as detailed in their recent blog post. This change reinforces the commitment to the OCI specification and encourages users to migrate to the newer format to avoid potential service disruptions.
We strongly encourage users to shift to utilizing native Helm OCI repositories within JFrog Artifactory. This transition aligns with Bitnami's future direction and prepares your workflows for long-term compatibility with Helm.
If you need additional assistance or have questions, please contact our support team.