SonarQube

SonarQube Community Build provides code quality and security analysis. The HelmForge chart deploys the official SonarQube image with PostgreSQL integration, plugin automation, and operational guardrails.

Key Features

Official docker.io/library/sonarqube image pinned to 26.4.0.121862-community
HelmForge PostgreSQL dependency or external PostgreSQL
Plugin download init container
First-class community branch plugin wiring, Java agents, and webapp replacement support
Gateway API, Ingress, dual-stack Service fields, NetworkPolicy, PDB, persistence, and Helm tests
External Secrets Operator support for database credentials

Installation

helm repo add helmforge https://repo.helmforge.dev
helm repo update
helm install sonarqube helmforge/sonarqube --namespace sonarqube --create-namespace

helm install sonarqube oci://ghcr.io/helmforgedev/helm/sonarqube --namespace sonarqube --create-namespace

Examples

Bundled PostgreSQL:

sonarqube:
  databaseMode: postgresql
postgresql:
  enabled: true
  auth:
    database: sonarqube
    username: sonar
    password: change-me

Community branch plugin:

communityBranchPlugin:
  enabled: true
  version: '26.4.0'

Operations

SonarQube embeds Elasticsearch and has host kernel requirements for production bootstrap checks. The chart keeps local evaluation approachable, but production clusters should satisfy SonarQube host requirements and use PostgreSQL, either bundled or external.

Architecture

The chart runs SonarQube Community Build with one of three database paths:

embedded for disposable local validation
postgresql for the HelmForge PostgreSQL subchart
external for a platform-managed PostgreSQL database

SonarQube also embeds Elasticsearch for search. That makes node kernel settings, persistent data, and startup probes part of the production contract.

Production Values

Use PostgreSQL, persistent data and extensions volumes, and production bootstrap checks:

sonarqube:
  databaseMode: external
  esBootstrapChecksDisable: false

database:
  external:
    jdbcUrl: jdbc:postgresql://postgresql.database.svc.cluster.local:5432/sonarqube
    username: sonar
    existingSecret: sonarqube-database
    existingSecretPasswordKey: jdbc-password

persistence:
  data:
    enabled: true
    size: 50Gi
  extensions:
    enabled: true
    size: 10Gi

networkPolicy:
  enabled: true
  egress:
    enabled: true

pdb:
  enabled: true

Bundled HelmForge PostgreSQL is useful for self-contained releases:

sonarqube:
  databaseMode: postgresql
  esBootstrapChecksDisable: false

postgresql:
  enabled: true
  auth:
    database: sonarqube
    username: sonar
    password: change-me
  standalone:
    persistence:
      enabled: true
      size: 50Gi

Host Requirements

Production nodes must satisfy SonarQube’s Elasticsearch requirements before enabling bootstrap checks:

vm.max_map_count=524288
fs.file-max=131072
file descriptor limit of 131072
process limit of 8192

Keep sonarqube.esBootstrapChecksDisable=true only for local and disposable environments.

Plugins

The chart can download plugins during initialization:

plugins:
  enabled: true
  install:
    - name: sonar-auth-oidc
      url: https://artifacts.example.com/sonar-auth-oidc.jar

Use an internal artifact repository for production. Startup should not depend on public internet availability.

Community Branch Plugin

Community Branch Plugin wiring is explicit because it replaces web application files and adds Java agents:

communityBranchPlugin:
  enabled: true
  version: '26.4.0'

plugins:
  enabled: true

persistence:
  extensions:
    enabled: true
    size: 10Gi

Keep the plugin major and minor version aligned with the SonarQube major and minor version. Mirror jarUrl and webappUrl internally when outbound internet is restricted.

Networking

Ingress example:

ingress:
  enabled: true
  ingressClassName: nginx
  hosts:
    - host: sonarqube.example.com
      paths:
        - path: /
          pathType: Prefix
  tls:
    - secretName: sonarqube-tls
      hosts:
        - sonarqube.example.com

Gateway API uses gatewayAPI for this chart:

gatewayAPI:
  enabled: true
  parentRefs:
    - name: public-gateway
      namespace: gateway-system
  hostnames:
    - sonarqube.example.com

Validation

After deployment:

helm test sonarqube -n sonarqube
kubectl get pods -n sonarqube -l app.kubernetes.io/name=sonarqube
kubectl logs -n sonarqube deploy/sonarqube --since=10m
kubectl get events -n sonarqube --sort-by=.lastTimestamp

Also validate the UI system status, a project scan, plugin loading, and branch analysis when the community branch plugin is enabled.

Common Issues

Symptom	Likely Cause	Fix
Elasticsearch bootstrap check fails	Node kernel limits are too low	Configure node sysctls and process/file limits.
Plugin disappears after restart	Extensions persistence disabled	Enable `persistence.extensions`.
Startup waits forever for DB	JDBC URL, Secret key, or network policy is wrong	Check DB Secret, DNS, and egress policy.
Branch plugin fails after upgrade	Plugin version mismatches SonarQube	Align plugin and SonarQube major/minor versions.

Values

Parameter	Default	Description
`image.repository`	`docker.io/library/sonarqube`	Official SonarQube image.
`image.tag`	`26.4.0.121862-community`	SonarQube Community Build tag.
`sonarqube.databaseMode`	`auto`	Database mode: `auto`, `embedded`, `postgresql`, or `external`.
`postgresql.enabled`	`false`	Deploy HelmForge PostgreSQL dependency.
`waitForDatabase.enabled`	`true`	Wait for PostgreSQL before startup.
`plugins.enabled`	`false`	Enable plugin download init container.
`communityBranchPlugin.enabled`	`false`	Install and wire the community branch plugin.
`persistence.data.enabled`	`true`	Persist SonarQube data.
`gatewayAPI.enabled`	`false`	Render Gateway API HTTPRoute.
`externalSecrets.enabled`	`false`	Render ExternalSecret resources.