# Try the 25.1 Beta of the Redpanda Operator > For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.redpanda.com/llms.txt). Component-specific: [streaming-full.txt](https://docs.redpanda.com/streaming-full.txt) --- title: Try the 25.1 Beta of the Redpanda Operator page-beta-text: This is a beta feature. Beta features are available for testing and feedback. They are not supported by Redpanda and should not be used in production environments. latest-redpanda-tag: v25.1.1 latest-console-tag: v3.7.3 latest-operator-version: v26.1.4 # EOL = End-of-Life (support lifecycle status) page-is-nearing-eol: "false" page-is-past-eol: "true" page-eol-date: April 7, 2026 latest-connect-version: 4.93.0 docname: deployment-option/self-hosted/kubernetes/k-25.1-beta page-component-name: streaming page-version: "25.1" page-component-version: "25.1" page-component-title: Streaming page-relative-src-path: deployment-option/self-hosted/kubernetes/k-25.1-beta.adoc page-edit-url: https://github.com/redpanda-data/docs/edit/v/25.1/modules/deploy/pages/deployment-option/self-hosted/kubernetes/k-25.1-beta.adoc # Beta release status page-beta: "true" description: Deploy the 25.1 beta release of the Redpanda Operator or Redpanda Helm chart. This version of the Redpanda Operator no longer requires FluxCD or its custom resource definitions. In this version, the Redpanda Operator is responsible for reconciling the Redpanda cluster. page-git-created-date: "2025-04-07" page-git-modified-date: "2025-04-08" support-status: past end-of-life release-status: beta - This is a beta feature. Beta features are available for testing and feedback. They are not supported by Redpanda and should not be used in production environments. --- Deploy the 25.1 beta release of the Redpanda Operator or Redpanda Helm chart. This version of the Redpanda Operator no longer requires FluxCD or its custom resource definitions. In this version, the Redpanda Operator is responsible for reconciling the Redpanda cluster. This beta version is available for testing and feedback. It is not supported by Redpanda and should not be used in production environments. To give feedback on beta releases, reach out to the Redpanda team in [Redpanda Community Slack](https://redpanda.com/slack). ## [](#prerequisites)Prerequisites Make sure that your Kubernetes cluster meets the [requirements](https://docs.redpanda.com/streaming/25.1/deploy/deployment-option/self-hosted/kubernetes/k-requirements/). ## [](#install-redpanda-operator-v25-1-1-beta1)Install Redpanda Operator v25.1.1-beta1 The Redpanda Operator is namespace scoped. You must install the Redpanda Operator in the same namespace as your Redpanda resource (Redpanda cluster). 1. Make sure that you have permission to install custom resource definitions (CRDs): ```bash kubectl auth can-i create CustomResourceDefinition --all-namespaces ``` You should see `yes` in the output. You need these cluster-level permissions to install [cert-manager](https://cert-manager.io/docs/) and Redpanda Operator CRDs in the next steps. 2. Install cert-manager: ```bash helm repo add jetstack https://charts.jetstack.io helm repo update helm install cert-manager jetstack/cert-manager \ --set crds.enabled=true \ --namespace cert-manager \ --create-namespace ``` TLS is enabled by default and cert-manager is used to manage TLS certificates. 3. Install the Redpanda Operator CRDs: ```bash kubectl kustomize "https://github.com/redpanda-data/redpanda-operator//operator/config/crd?ref=v26.2.1-beta.1" \ | kubectl apply --server-side -f - ``` 4. Deploy the Redpanda Operator. ```bash helm repo add redpanda https://charts.redpanda.com helm upgrade --install redpanda-controller redpanda/operator \ --namespace \ --create-namespace \ --version v26.2.1-beta.1 ``` 5. Ensure that the Deployment is successfully rolled out: ```bash kubectl --namespace rollout status --watch deployment/redpanda-controller-operator ``` deployment "redpanda-controller-operator" successfully rolled out 6. Install a [Redpanda custom resource](https://docs.redpanda.com/streaming/25.1/reference/k-crd/) to deploy a Redpanda cluster and Redpanda Console v3. `redpanda-cluster.yaml` ```yaml apiVersion: cluster.redpanda.com/v1alpha2 kind: Redpanda metadata: name: redpanda ``` 7. If you want to use enterprise features in Redpanda, add the details of a Secret that stores your Enterprise Edition license key. `redpanda-cluster.yaml` ```yaml apiVersion: cluster.redpanda.com/v1alpha2 kind: Redpanda metadata: name: redpanda spec: clusterSpec: enterprise: licenseSecretRef: name: key: ``` For details, see [Add an Enterprise Edition License to Redpanda in Kubernetes](https://docs.redpanda.com/streaming/25.1/get-started/licensing/add-license-redpanda/kubernetes/). 8. Apply the Redpanda resource: ```bash kubectl apply -f redpanda-cluster.yaml --namespace ``` The Redpanda resource must be deployed in the same namespace as the Redpanda Operator. 9. Wait for the Redpanda Operator to deploy the cluster: ```bash kubectl get redpanda --namespace --watch ``` NAME READY STATUS redpanda True Redpanda reconciliation succeeded This step may take a few minutes. You can watch for new Pods to make sure that the deployment is progressing: ```bash kubectl get pod --namespace ``` If it’s taking too long, see [Troubleshooting](https://docs.redpanda.com/streaming/25.1/troubleshoot/errors-solutions/k-resolve-errors/). ## [](#install-the-redpanda-helm-chart-v25-1-1-beta1)Install the Redpanda Helm chart v25.1.1-beta1 1. Install cert-manager using Helm: ```bash helm repo add jetstack https://charts.jetstack.io helm repo update helm install cert-manager jetstack/cert-manager \ --set crds.enabled=true \ --namespace cert-manager \ --create-namespace ``` The Redpanda Helm chart enables TLS by default and uses cert-manager to manage TLS certificates. 2. If you want to use enterprise features in Redpanda, add the details of a Secret that stores your Enterprise Edition license key. `redpanda-values.yaml` ```yaml enterprise: licenseSecretRef: name: key: ``` For details, see [Add an Enterprise Edition License to Redpanda in Kubernetes](https://docs.redpanda.com/streaming/25.1/get-started/licensing/add-license-redpanda/kubernetes/). 3. Install the Redpanda Helm chart to deploy a Redpanda cluster and Redpanda Console v3. ```bash helm repo add redpanda https://charts.redpanda.com helm repo update helm install redpanda redpanda/redpanda \ --version v25.1.1-beta1 --namespace --create-namespace \ --values redpanda-values.yaml ``` 4. Wait for the Redpanda cluster to be ready: ```bash kubectl --namespace rollout status statefulset redpanda --watch ``` When the Redpanda cluster is ready, the output should look similar to the following: statefulset rolling update complete 3 pods at revision redpanda-8654f645b4... ## [](#next-steps)Next steps To give feedback about this beta version, reach out to the Redpanda team in [Redpanda Community Slack](https://redpanda.com/slack).