The Apigee APIM Operator for Kubernetes allows you to perform API management tasks,
such as defining API products
and operations, using Kubernetes tools. It is designed to support
cloud-native developers by providing a command-line interface that integrates with familiar Kubernetes tools like
kubectl. The operator works by using various APIM resources to keep your
Google Kubernetes Engine cluster synchronized with the Apigee runtime.
Benefits
The APIM Operator can benefit your organization by providing:
Simplified API Management: The APIM Operator allows API producers to manage and
secure their APIs using Kubernetes resource definitions.
You can use the same tools and workflows for managing your APIs that you use for other Kubernetes resources.
Streamlined Networking: The operator enforces API policies at the load balancer
level, which streamlines the networking setup and reduces complexity in managing API access and security.
Fine-grained access control: The addition of Kubernetes' role-based access control (RBAC) to Apigee
custom resource definitions enables fine-grained access control for a range of roles, including API developers, platform administrators, and
infrastructure administrators.
Integration with Kubernetes: The operator integrates with native Kubernetes
concepts such as Custom Resource Definitions (CRDs) and Helm charts, providing a seamless experience for cloud-native developers.
Reduced Context Switching: By enabling API management directly from the Kubernetes environment,
the APIM Operator reduces the need for developers to switch between different tools and interfaces.
When to use APIM Operator
The APIM Operator is designed to be used by API producers who want to manage their APIs
using Kubernetes tools. It is especially useful for cloud-native developers who are familiar
with Kubernetes and want to use the same tools and workflows for managing their APIs that they use for other Kubernetes resources.
The APIM Operator enables existing Apigee customers to extend their API management
infrastructure with tools based on Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF)
technologies.
Requirements
Before you install the APIM Operator, note the following:
The APIM Operator requires a GKE cluster with GKE version 1.27 or later.
The APIM Operator is only supported for use with Apigee version 1-15-0-apigee-4 or later. It can't be used with
Apigee hybrid at this time.
The following limitations apply to the APIM Operator:
Only REST APIs are supported. gRPC and GraphQL are not supported.
A maximum of 25 regional or global GKE Gateway resources with API management policies
attached are supported.
A maximum of 50 APIM extension policies can be applied to a single environment. To add more APIM extension policies,
you must create a new environment.
API management policies can only be attached to Gateway resources and not to HTTPRoutes.
Region expansion is not supported. Once configured, the
APIM Operator can't be expanded to additional regions.
The API version has changed from the public preview (now apim.googleapis.com/v1). The GA version of APIM Operator is not
compatible with or upgradeable from the public preview version previously released.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Hard to understand","hardToUnderstand","thumb-down"],["Incorrect information or sample code","incorrectInformationOrSampleCode","thumb-down"],["Missing the information/samples I need","missingTheInformationSamplesINeed","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-08-29 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eThe Apigee APIM Operator for Kubernetes (Preview) enables API management tasks like defining API products and operations using Kubernetes tools, specifically for cloud-native developers.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThis operator simplifies API management by allowing the use of Kubernetes resource definitions, streamlines networking by enforcing API policies at the load balancer level, and provides fine-grained access control through Kubernetes' RBAC.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThe APIM Operator is designed for use with the Apigee runtime and is not compatible with Apigee hybrid, requiring a GKE cluster with version 1.27 or later and Apigee version \u003ccode\u003e1-14-0-apigee-4\u003c/code\u003e or later.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThe current Public Preview release of the APIM Operator supports only REST APIs, has limitations on the number of GKE Gateway resources and APIM extension policies, and does not support region expansion.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThe operator is designed to be used with existing apigee customers, so they can extend their API infrastructure with CNCF tools.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],[],null,["# Apigee APIM Operator for Kubernetes overview\n\n*This page\napplies to **Apigee** , but not to **Apigee hybrid**.*\n\n\n*View [Apigee Edge](https://docs.apigee.com/api-platform/get-started/what-apigee-edge) documentation.*\n\nThe Apigee APIM Operator for Kubernetes allows you to perform API management tasks,\nsuch as defining [API products](/apigee/docs/api-platform/publish/what-api-product#what-is-an-api-product)\nand [operations](/apigee/docs/api-platform/publish/what-api-product#operations), using Kubernetes tools. It is designed to support\ncloud-native developers by providing a command-line interface that integrates with familiar Kubernetes tools like\n[`kubectl`](https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/kubectl/). The operator works by using various APIM resources to keep your\nGoogle Kubernetes Engine cluster synchronized with the Apigee runtime.\n| **Note**: The APIM Operator is designed to be used with the Apigee runtime. It is not a standalone product.\n\nBenefits\n--------\n\nThe APIM Operator can benefit your organization by providing:\n\n- **Simplified API Management**: The APIM Operator allows API producers to manage and secure their APIs using Kubernetes resource definitions. You can use the same tools and workflows for managing your APIs that you use for other Kubernetes resources.\n- **Streamlined Networking**: The operator enforces API policies at the load balancer level, which streamlines the networking setup and reduces complexity in managing API access and security.\n- **Fine-grained access control**: The addition of Kubernetes' role-based access control (RBAC) to Apigee custom resource definitions enables fine-grained access control for a range of roles, including API developers, platform administrators, and infrastructure administrators.\n- **Integration with Kubernetes**: The operator integrates with native Kubernetes concepts such as Custom Resource Definitions (CRDs) and Helm charts, providing a seamless experience for cloud-native developers.\n- **Reduced Context Switching**: By enabling API management directly from the Kubernetes environment, the APIM Operator reduces the need for developers to switch between different tools and interfaces.\n\nWhen to use APIM Operator\n-------------------------\n\nThe APIM Operator is designed to be used by API producers who want to manage their APIs\nusing Kubernetes tools. It is especially useful for cloud-native developers who are familiar\nwith Kubernetes and want to use the same tools and workflows for managing their APIs that they use for other Kubernetes resources.\nThe APIM Operator enables existing Apigee customers to extend their API management\ninfrastructure with tools based on [Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF)](https://www.cncf.io)\ntechnologies.\n\nRequirements\n------------\n\nBefore you install the APIM Operator, note the following:\n\n- The APIM Operator requires a GKE cluster with GKE version 1.27 or later.\n- The APIM Operator is only supported for use with Apigee version `1-15-0-apigee-4` or later. It can't be used with Apigee hybrid at this time.\n- The APIM Operator requires [Helm version 3.13.3](https://helm.sh/docs/intro/install) or later.\n\nKnown limitations\n-----------------\n\nThe following limitations apply to the APIM Operator:\n\n- Only REST APIs are supported. gRPC and GraphQL are not supported.\n- A maximum of 25 regional or global GKE Gateway resources with API management policies attached are supported.\n- A maximum of 50 APIM extension policies can be applied to a single environment. To add more APIM extension policies, you must create a new environment.\n- API management policies can only be attached to Gateway resources and not to HTTPRoutes.\n- Region expansion is not supported. Once configured, the APIM Operator can't be expanded to additional regions.\n- The API version has changed from the public preview (now `apim.googleapis.com/v1`). The GA version of APIM Operator is not compatible with or upgradeable from the public preview version previously released.\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\nWhat's next\n-----------\n\n- Learn how to [Install the Apigee APIM Operator for Kubernetes](/apigee/docs/api-platform/apigee-kubernetes/apigee-apim-operator-install).\n- [Use Apigee policies with the Apigee APIM Operator for Kubernetes](/apigee/docs/api-platform/apigee-kubernetes/apigee-apim-operator-create)."]]
