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DevContainer Environment

Overview

The hackathon environment runs entirely in a GitHub Codespace (or local DevContainer) that provides a complete, pre-configured development and deployment environment. Everything you need is automatically set up when the Codespace launches.

Environment Components

The DevContainer environment includes:

graph TB
    subgraph "DevContainer / Codespace"
        VSCODE[VS Code IDE]
        DOCKER[Docker-in-Docker]
        KUBECTL[kubectl]
        HELM[Helm]
        TERRAFORM[Terraform]
    end

    subgraph "Kubernetes Cluster (kind)"
        KIND[kind Cluster]
    end

    subgraph "Kubernetes Components"
        OF[OpenFeature Operator]
        CM[Cert-Manager]
        KG[Kubernetes Gateway]
        DT[Dynatrace Operator]
        APP[Vegas Casino App]
        OTEL[OTEL Collectors]
    end

    VSCODE --> KIND
    DOCKER --> KIND
    KUBECTL --> KIND
    HELM --> KIND

    KIND --> OF
    KIND --> CM
    KIND --> KG
    KIND --> DT
    KIND --> APP
    KIND --> OTEL

    APP --> OTEL
    OTEL --> DT
    DT --> DYNATRACE[Dynatrace Tenant]

    style KIND fill:#9333ea
    style OF fill:#dc2626
    style DT fill:#06b6d4
    style APP fill:#10b981

Component Details

1. Kind Cluster

What it is: A local Kubernetes cluster running inside your Codespace using kind (Kubernetes in Docker).

Purpose: Provides a complete Kubernetes environment for deploying the Vegas Casino application.

Configuration: - Defined in .devcontainer/kind-cluster.yaml - Automatically created during Codespace initialization - Runs on a single node (sufficient for hackathon purposes)

Access: 

# Check cluster status
kubectl cluster-info
kubectl get nodes

# View all pods
kubectl get pods -A

2. OpenFeature Operator

What it is: Kubernetes operator that manages feature flags using the OpenFeature standard.

Purpose: - Automatically injects flagd sidecars into application pods - Manages FeatureFlag and FeatureFlagSource CRDs - Enables dynamic feature flag management without redeploying services

Installation: Automatically installed during Codespace setup via Helm.

Resources: - Namespace: open-feature-system - CRDs: FeatureFlag, FeatureFlagSource

Verification: 

# Check operator status
kubectl get pods -n open-feature-system

# Verify CRDs
kubectl get crd | grep openfeature

See Feature Flags Guide for details on available flags.

3. Cert-Manager

What it is: Kubernetes operator for managing TLS certificates automatically.

Purpose: - Issues and manages TLS certificates for the Gateway - Provides automatic certificate renewal - Required for HTTPS endpoints

Installation: Automatically installed during Codespace setup.

Resources: - Namespace: cert-manager - CRDs: Certificate, Issuer, ClusterIssuer

Verification: 

# Check cert-manager status
kubectl get pods -n cert-manager

# View certificates
kubectl get certificates -A

4. Kubernetes Gateway API

What it is: Modern Kubernetes API for managing ingress and load balancing.

Purpose: - Provides external access to the Vegas Casino application - Manages routing and TLS termination - Replaces traditional Ingress controllers

Components: - Gateway: Defines entry points and listeners - HTTPRoute: Defines routing rules - GatewayClass: Defines gateway implementation

Resources: - Gateway: vegas-casino-gateway in vegas-casino namespace - HTTPRoute: Routes traffic to frontend and dashboard services

Access: 

# Get gateway external IP
kubectl get gateway vegas-casino-gateway -n vegas-casino

# View HTTP routes
kubectl get httproute -n vegas-casino

5. Vegas Casino Application

What it is: The main application stack consisting of:

  • Frontend Service: Web UI (Node.js/Express)
  • Game Services: Slots, Roulette, Dice, Blackjack
  • Scoring Service: Leaderboards (Java/Spring Boot)
  • Dashboard Service: Analytics (Node.js)
  • Supporting Services: Redis, PostgreSQL

Deployment: Deployed via Helm chart in the vegas-casino namespace.

Access: 

# View all application pods
kubectl get pods -n vegas-casino

# Access via port forwarding
kubectl port-forward -n vegas-casino svc/vegas-casino-frontend 3000:3000

6. OpenTelemetry Collectors

What it is: Collectors that receive, process, and export telemetry data.

Purpose: - Receives traces, metrics, and logs from application services - Processes and enriches telemetry data - Exports to Dynatrace via the Dynatrace Operator

Deployment: - DaemonSet: One collector per node (for node-level metrics) - StatefulSet: Centralized collector for application telemetry

Configuration: Defined in codespace/manifests/otel-collector-*.yaml

Verification: 

# Check collector pods
kubectl get pods -n default -l app=otel-collector

# View collector logs
kubectl logs -n default -l app=otel-collector

7. Dynatrace Operator

What it is: Kubernetes operator that manages Dynatrace OneAgent and ActiveGate.

Purpose: - Automatically injects OneAgent into application pods - Manages ActiveGate for metrics and traces export - Configures Dynatrace monitoring for the cluster

Configuration: - Requires Dynatrace environment credentials (provided via Codespace secrets) - Automatically configured during Codespace initialization

Resources: - Namespace: dynatrace - CRDs: Dynakube, ActiveGate

Verification: 

# Check Dynatrace operator
kubectl get pods -n dynatrace

# View Dynakube status
kubectl get dynakube -n dynatrace

Initialization Process

When your Codespace launches, the following happens automatically:

  1. System Setup (.devcontainer/post_create.sh):
  2. Installs kubectl, Helm, kind, Terraform
  3. Sets up Docker-in-Docker

  4. Creates kind cluster

  5. Terraform Configuration (codespace/configuration/init.sh):

  6. Configures Dynatrace tokens and credentials
  7. Sets up Kubernetes resources

  8. Installs operators (OpenFeature, Cert-Manager, Gateway API, Dynatrace)

  9. Application Deployment (codespace/deployment.sh):

  10. Deploys Vegas Casino application via Helm
  11. Configures feature flags
  12. Sets up Gateway and routing

Environment Variables

The Codespace requires these secrets (configured in GitHub Codespace settings):

Variable Description Example
DYNATRACE_ENVIRONMENT_ID Environment ID from Dynatrace URL abc12345
DYNATRACE_ENVIRONMENT Environment type live, sprint, or dev
DYNATRACE_API_TOKEN API token with apiTokens.read & apiTokens.write dt0c01.xxx
DYNATRACE_PLATFORM_TOKEN Platform token with davis-copilot:conversations:execute dt0c01.xxx
DYNATRACE_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID OAuth client ID xxx
DYNATRACE_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET OAuth client secret xxx
DYNATRACE_ACCOUNT_ID Dynatrace account ID xxx

Accessing the Application

# Forward frontend service
kubectl port-forward -n vegas-casino svc/vegas-casino-frontend 3000:3000

# Access at http://localhost:3000

Via Gateway (if external IP available)

# Get gateway address
kubectl get gateway vegas-casino-gateway -n vegas-casino \
  -o jsonpath='{.status.addresses[0].value}'

# Access via the returned IP

Troubleshooting

Operators Not Running

# Check OpenFeature operator
kubectl get pods -n open-feature-system

# Check Dynatrace operator
kubectl get pods -n dynatrace

# Check cert-manager
kubectl get pods -n cert-manager

Application Not Deploying

# Check Helm release status
helm list -n vegas-casino

# View pod status
kubectl get pods -n vegas-casino

# Check pod logs
kubectl logs -n vegas-casino <pod-name>

Telemetry Not Flowing

# Check OTEL collectors
kubectl get pods -l app=otel-collector

# Check Dynatrace operator
kubectl get dynakube -n dynatrace

# Verify credentials
kubectl get secret -n dynatrace

Next Steps