How Rocket Scientists Deploy Kubernetes

Industry

Defense Aerospace

Location

United States

Use Cases

Bare Metal Hybrid

Challenge

ITAR compliance and security

Bare metal and cloud support

High operational overhead

Environment

On-prem and cloud

Why Sidero and Omni

Out-of-the-box security

Ease of use

Impact

Unified and secure operating system across all clusters

Reliable and painless updates

Ursa Major is a company of rocket scientists, making advanced rocket propulsion systems in a one-of-a-kind facility where they design, build, and test engines in one location. They are the leading independent rocket propulsion provider and a critical player in building the defense industrial base in the United States.

Challenge: Out-of-the-Box Security and Support Needs on a Budget

Ursa Major needed a unified Kubernetes deployment platform for both in-house and cloud environments. Due to the sensitive nature of their industry, ITAR compliance and strict security requirements made built-in security essential.

The Ursa Major team had concerns about managing Kubernetes across heterogeneous hardware, as this is often complex and fragile, especially during OS updates. They needed a vendor that would streamline on-premise cluster setup, provide reliable support, and reduce operational overhead. The team considered VMware and other large vendors, but found the licensing and support costs were cost prohibitive.

Solution: On-Prem, Out-of-the-Box Kubernetes via Omni and Talos Linux

We found that Omni and Talos Linux were simple to set up, delivering more security out of the box, and because Talos is purpose-built for Kubernetes it was rock solid during updates.”

Gwendolyn James, Staff DevOps Engineer, Ursa Major

Ursa Major chose Sidero to support their infrastructure strategy. The Sidero team conducted a design review of Ursa Major’s proposed Kubernetes layout, selecting Talos Linux as the operating system across the clusters and Omni for centralized management.

Ursa Major integrated Omni with an on-premises GitHub for authentication, unifying the authentication of Kubernetes and provisioning clusters and machines within their enterprise systems through Omni. Sidero continues to provide ongoing professional support and services for the on-premise cluster. 

Results: Unified, Rock-Solid Infrastructure

“Omni has made it simple for us to deploy new clusters, scale up or down, and it lets us focus on our applications–not Kubernetes. Omni makes Kubernetes just work for us. Talos Linux and Omni are such an excellent experience that we have deployed more on-premise clusters and everything has just worked.”

Gwendolyn James, Staff DevOps Engineer, Ursa Major

With Talos and Omni, the Ursa Major team is able to manage in-house and cloud environments with ease. Because Talos Linux is specially made for Kubernetes, it has proven rock solid during updates, providing streamlined operations at a cost-effective price point compared to other vendors, allowing them to effortlessly deploy yet more on-prem clusters.

Talos’s built-in security ensures that Ursa Major is able to stay compliant. With a minimal attack surface, API-driven management, and minimal binaries in the OS, Talos Linux provides a reliable foundation for Ursa Major’s security. Running Omni on their infrastructure has also simplified their security audit requirements.

Hobby

For home labbers
$ 10 Monthly for 10 nodes
  • Includes 10 nodes in base price
  • Limited to 10 nodes, 1 user
  • Community Support

Startup

Build right
$ 250 Monthly for 10 nodes
  • Includes 10 nodes in base price
  • Additional nodes priced per node, per month
  • Scales to unlimited Clusters,
    Nodes and Users
  • Community Support

Business

Expert support
$ 600 Monthly for 10 nodes
  • Volume pricing
  • Scales to unlimited Clusters,
    Nodes and Users
  • Talos Linux, Omni and Kubernetes support from our experts
  • Business hours support with SLAs
  • Unlimited users with RBAC and SAML

Enterprise

Enterprise Ready
$ 1000 Monthly for 10 nodes
  • Business plan features, plus...
  • Volume pricing
  • 24 x 7 x 365 Support
  • Fully Managed Option
  • Can Self Host
  • Supports Air-Gapped
  • Private Slack Channel
On Prem
available

Edge

Manage scale
$ Call Starting at 100 nodes
  • Pricing designed for edge scale
  • 24 x 7 x 365 Support with SLAs
  • Only outgoing HTTPS required
  • Secure node enrollment flows
  • Reliable device management
  • Can Self Host On Prem
  • Private Slack Channel
On Prem
available