Improve integration test reliability with version compatibility

- Use Kind node v1.29.2 for better Flux compatibility
- Update Flux version to v2.3.0 (stable release)
- Use --export flag to bypass Flux CLI verification hang
- Add KIND_NODE_IMAGE environment variable
- Update CI workflow with compatible versions
- Improve documentation with troubleshooting guidance

Co-authored-by: aleksanderaleksic <8734962+aleksanderaleksic@users.noreply.github.com>

Author: Copilot

.github/workflows/ci.yaml

@@ -113,10 +113,12 @@ jobs:
       uses: helm/kind-action@v1
       with:
         install_only: true
+        version: v0.20.0
+        node_image: kindest/node:v1.29.2
 
     - name: Install Flux CLI
       run: |
-        curl -sL https://github.com/fluxcd/flux2/releases/download/v2.4.0/flux_2.4.0_linux_amd64.tar.gz | tar xz -C /tmp
+        curl -sL https://github.com/fluxcd/flux2/releases/download/v2.3.0/flux_2.3.0_linux_amd64.tar.gz | tar xz -C /tmp
         sudo mv /tmp/flux /usr/local/bin/flux
         chmod +x /usr/local/bin/flux
         flux --version
@@ -125,3 +127,5 @@ jobs:
       run: make integration-test
       env:
         TIMEOUT: 600
+        KIND_NODE_IMAGE: kindest/node:v1.29.2
+        FLUX_VERSION: v2.3.0

test/integration/README.md

@@ -51,7 +51,8 @@ SKIP_CLEANUP=true ./test/integration/run-integration-test.sh
 | Variable | Description | Default |
 |----------|-------------|---------|
 | `CLUSTER_NAME` | Name of the kind cluster to create | `flux-extension-test` |
-| `FLUX_VERSION` | Version of Flux CLI to install | `v2.4.0` |
+| `FLUX_VERSION` | Version of Flux CLI to install | `v2.3.0` |
+| `KIND_NODE_IMAGE` | Kind node image to use | `kindest/node:v1.29.2` |
 | `TIMEOUT` | Timeout in seconds for Kubernetes operations | `300` |
 | `SKIP_CLEANUP` | Keep cluster running after tests | `false` |
 
@@ -191,13 +192,16 @@ If Flux fails to install:
 # Check Flux CLI version
 flux --version
 
-# Try manual installation
-flux install --components=source-controller,notification-controller
+# Try with compatible Kubernetes version
+KIND_NODE_IMAGE=kindest/node:v1.29.2 ./test/integration/run-integration-test.sh
 
-# Check installation status
-flux check
+# Or manually check pod status
+kubectl -n flux-system get pods
+kubectl -n flux-system logs deployment/source-controller
 ```
 
+**Note:** Flux v2.3.0 with Kind node v1.29.2 is the tested stable combination. Newer versions may have compatibility issues.
+
 ### Controller Not Starting
 
 If the controller pod doesn't start:

test/integration/run-integration-test.sh

@@ -7,7 +7,8 @@ set -euo pipefail
 
 # Configuration
 CLUSTER_NAME="${CLUSTER_NAME:-flux-extension-test}"
-FLUX_VERSION="${FLUX_VERSION:-v2.4.0}"
+FLUX_VERSION="${FLUX_VERSION:-v2.3.0}"
+KIND_NODE_IMAGE="${KIND_NODE_IMAGE:-kindest/node:v1.29.2}"
 TIMEOUT="${TIMEOUT:-300}"
 SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" && pwd)"
 REPO_ROOT="$(cd "${SCRIPT_DIR}/../.." && pwd)"
@@ -106,14 +107,14 @@ install_flux_cli() {
 
 # Create kind cluster
 create_kind_cluster() {
-    log_info "Creating kind cluster '${CLUSTER_NAME}'..."
+    log_info "Creating kind cluster '${CLUSTER_NAME}' with image ${KIND_NODE_IMAGE}..."
 
     if kind get clusters | grep -q "^${CLUSTER_NAME}$"; then
         log_warning "Cluster '${CLUSTER_NAME}' already exists, deleting it..."
         kind delete cluster --name "${CLUSTER_NAME}"
     fi
 
-    cat <<EOF | kind create cluster --name "${CLUSTER_NAME}" --config=-
+    cat <<EOF | kind create cluster --name "${CLUSTER_NAME}" --image "${KIND_NODE_IMAGE}" --config=-
 kind: Cluster
 apiVersion: kind.x-k8s.io/v1alpha4
 nodes:
@@ -137,17 +138,35 @@ EOF
 install_flux() {
     log_info "Installing Flux components..."
 
-    # Bootstrap Flux without Git repository (standalone mode)
-    flux install --components=source-controller,notification-controller
+    # Generate Flux manifests and apply them directly (bypass verification)
+    flux install \
+        --components=source-controller,notification-controller \
+        --network-policy=false \
+        --toleration-keys=node-role.kubernetes.io/control-plane \
+        --export | kubectl apply -f -
 
-    # Wait for Flux components to be ready
+    # Give components time to start
+    log_info "Waiting for deployments to be created..."
+    sleep 20
+    
+    # Wait for Flux deployments to be available
     log_info "Waiting for Flux components to be ready..."
-    kubectl -n flux-system wait --for=condition=ready pod --all --timeout="${TIMEOUT}s"
+    for deployment in source-controller notification-controller; do
+        log_info "Waiting for $deployment..."
+        kubectl -n flux-system wait deployment/$deployment \
+            --for=condition=Available \
+            --timeout="${TIMEOUT}s" || {
+                log_error "$deployment failed to become available"
+                kubectl -n flux-system describe deployment/$deployment
+                kubectl -n flux-system logs deployment/$deployment --tail=50 || true
+                return 1
+            }
+    done
 
-    # Verify Flux installation
-    flux check
+    # Verify pods are running
+    kubectl -n flux-system get pods
 
-    log_info "Flux installed successfully"
+    log_info "Flux installation complete"
 }
 
 # Build and load controller image