:_mod-docs-content-type: PROCEDURE

// Module included in the following assemblies:
//
// assembly-deploy-kafka-connect-with-plugins.adoc

[id='proc-deploying-kafkaconnector-{context}']
= Deploying KafkaConnector resources

[role="_abstract"]
Deploy `KafkaConnector` resources to manage connectors.
The `KafkaConnector` custom resource offers a Kubernetes-native approach to management of connectors by the Cluster Operator.
You don't need to send HTTP requests to manage connectors, as with the Kafka Connect REST API.
You manage a running connector instance by updating its corresponding `KafkaConnector` resource, and then applying the updates.
The Cluster Operator updates the configurations of the running connector instances. 
You remove a connector by deleting its corresponding `KafkaConnector`.

`KafkaConnector` resources must be deployed to the same namespace as the Kafka Connect cluster they link to.

In the configuration shown in this procedure, the `autoRestart` feature is enabled (`enabled: true`) for automatic restarts of failed connectors and tasks. 
You can also annotate the `KafkaConnector` resource to xref:proc-manual-restart-connector-str[restart a connector] or xref:proc-manual-restart-connector-task-str[restart a connector task] manually.

You can use your own connectors or try the examples provided by Strimzi.
Up until Apache Kafka 3.1.0, example file connector plugins were included with Apache Kafka. 
Starting from the 3.1.1 and 3.2.0 releases of Apache Kafka, the examples need to be xref:using-kafka-connect-with-plug-ins-str[added to the plugin path as any other connector]. 

Strimzi provides an xref:config-examples-{context}[example `KafkaConnector` configuration file] (`examples/connect/source-connector.yaml`) for the example file connector plugins, which creates the following connector instances as `KafkaConnector` resources:

* A `FileStreamSourceConnector` instance that reads each line from the Kafka license file (the source) and writes the data as messages to a single Kafka topic.
* A `FileStreamSinkConnector` instance that reads messages from the Kafka topic and writes the messages to a temporary file (the sink).

We use the example file to create connectors in this procedure. 

NOTE: The example connectors are not intended for use in a production environment.  

.Prerequisites

* A Kafka Connect deployment
* The Cluster Operator is running

.Procedure

. Add the `FileStreamSourceConnector` and `FileStreamSinkConnector` plugins to Kafka Connect in one of the following ways:
+
* xref:creating-new-image-using-kafka-connect-build-{context}[Configure Kafka Connect to build a new container image with plugins automatically]
* xref:creating-new-image-from-base-{context}[Create a Docker image from the base Kafka Connect image] (manually or using continuous integration)

. Set the `strimzi.io/use-connector-resources annotation` to `true` in the Kafka Connect configuration.
+
[source,yaml,subs="attributes+"]
----
apiVersion: {KafkaConnectApiVersion}
kind: KafkaConnect
metadata:
  name: my-connect-cluster
  annotations:
    strimzi.io/use-connector-resources: "true" 
spec:
    # ...
----
+
With the `KafkaConnector` resources enabled, the Cluster Operator watches for them.


. Edit the `examples/connect/source-connector.yaml` file:
+
Example source connector configuration:
+
--
include::../../shared/snip-example-source-connector-config.adoc[]
--

. Create the source `KafkaConnector` in your Kubernetes cluster:
+
[source,shell,subs="+quotes"]
----
kubectl apply -f examples/connect/source-connector.yaml
----

. Create an `examples/connect/sink-connector.yaml` file:
+
[source,shell,subs="+quotes"]
----
touch examples/connect/sink-connector.yaml
----

. Paste the following YAML into the `sink-connector.yaml` file:
+
[source,yaml,subs="attributes+"]
----
apiVersion: {KafkaConnectorApiVersion}
kind: KafkaConnector
metadata:
  name: my-sink-connector
  labels:
    strimzi.io/cluster: my-connect
spec:
  class: org.apache.kafka.connect.file.FileStreamSinkConnector # <1>
  tasksMax: 2
  config: # <2>
    file: "/tmp/my-file" # <3>
    topics: my-topic # <4>
----
+
<1> Full name or alias of the connector class. This should be present in the image being used by the Kafka Connect cluster.
<2> xref:#kafkaconnector-configs[Connector configuration] as key-value pairs.
<3> Temporary file to publish the source data to.
<4> Kafka topic to read the source data from.

. Create the sink `KafkaConnector` in your Kubernetes cluster:
+
[source,shell,subs="+quotes"]
----
kubectl apply -f examples/connect/sink-connector.yaml
----

. Check that the connector resources were created:
+
[source,shell,subs="+quotes"]
----
kubectl get kctr --selector strimzi.io/cluster=<my_connect_cluster> -o name

my-source-connector
my-sink-connector
----
+
Replace <my_connect_cluster> with the name of your Kafka Connect cluster.

. In the container, execute `kafka-console-consumer.sh` to read the messages that were written to the topic by the source connector:
+
[source,shell,subs="+quotes"]
----
kubectl exec <my_kafka_cluster>-kafka-0 -i -t -- bin/kafka-console-consumer.sh --bootstrap-server <my_kafka_cluster>-kafka-bootstrap._NAMESPACE_.svc:9092 --topic my-topic --from-beginning
----
+
Replace <my_kafka_cluster> with the name of your Kafka cluster.

[[kafkaconnector-configs]]
[discrete]
== Source and sink connector configuration options

The connector configuration is defined in the `spec.config` property of the `KafkaConnector` resource.

The `FileStreamSourceConnector` and `FileStreamSinkConnector` classes support the same configuration options as the Kafka Connect REST API.
Other connectors support different configuration options.

.Configuration options for the `FileStreamSource` connector class
[cols="4*",options="header",stripes="none",separator=¦]
|===

¦Name
¦Type
¦Default value
¦Description

m¦file
¦String
¦Null
¦Source file to write messages to. If not specified, the standard input is used.

m¦topic
¦List
¦Null
¦The Kafka topic to publish data to.

|===

.Configuration options for `FileStreamSinkConnector` class
[cols="4*",options="header",stripes="none",separator=¦]
|===

¦Name
¦Type
¦Default value
¦Description

m¦file
¦String
¦Null
¦Destination file to write messages to. If not specified, the standard output is used.

m¦topics
¦List
¦Null
¦One or more Kafka topics to read data from.

m¦topics.regex
¦String
¦Null
¦A regular expression matching one or more Kafka topics to read data from.

|===
