how to Install argocd on debian 13

ArgoCD is a declarative, GitOps-based continuous delivery tool for Kubernetes. On Debian 13 (Trixie), you can install it easily using kubectl and a few straightforward commands. This guide walks through the full setup process.

Step 1: Update System Packages

Start by making sure your system is up to date:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2: Install kubectl (If Not Installed)

You need kubectl to interact with your Kubernetes cluster:

sudo apt install -y apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl
curl -fsSLo /usr/share/keyrings/kubernetes-archive-keyring.gpg https://packages.cloud.google.com/apt/doc/apt-key.gpg
echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/kubernetes-archive-keyring.gpg] https://apt.kubernetes.io/ kubernetes-xenial main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/kubernetes.list
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y kubectl

Check the installation:

kubectl version --client

Step 3: Create a Namespace for ArgoCD

It’s best practice to install ArgoCD in its own namespace:

kubectl create namespace argocd

Step 4: Install ArgoCD

Download and apply the official ArgoCD installation manifests:

kubectl apply -n argocd -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/argoproj/argo-cd/stable/manifests/install.yaml

This deploys all necessary ArgoCD components into the argocd namespace.

Step 5: Expose the ArgoCD API Server

By default, the API server is not accessible externally. You can expose it using a LoadBalancer or NodePort (for testing).

Example using NodePort:

kubectl patch svc argocd-server -n argocd -p '{"spec": {"type": "NodePort"}}'

To find the port:

kubectl get svc -n argocd argocd-server

Step 6: Get the Initial Admin Password

ArgoCD generates an admin password automatically during installation. Retrieve it with:

kubectl get secret argocd-initial-admin-secret -n argocd -o jsonpath="{.data.password}" | base64 -d && echo

Step 7: Access the ArgoCD Web UI

Get your node’s IP and open it in your browser:

http://<node-ip>:<node-port>

Login credentials:

• Username: admin

• Password: (the one you just retrieved)

Step 8: Install ArgoCD CLI (Optional but Recommended)

For easier interaction, install the argocd command-line tool:

sudo curl -sSL -o /usr/local/bin/argocd https://github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/releases/latest/download/argocd-linux-amd64
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/argocd

Verify installation:

argocd version

Secure with HTTPS (Ingress + TLS)

If you’re deploying in production, expose ArgoCD securely via an ingress controller with TLS:

kubectl apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/argoproj/argo-cd/stable/manifests/ha/install.yaml

Then configure ingress with cert-manager or your own SSL certificate. Always delete the initial admin secret after setting a custom password for better security:

kubectl delete secret argocd-initial-admin-secret -n argocd