Set up local development environment

[aktech]

Context

Configure a local Kubernetes development environment for iterating on the Helm chart. Evaluate both DevContainers and Tilt approaches before deciding on the final setup.

Background

Two main approaches for local K8s development:

• DevContainers: Containerized dev environment with all tools pre-installed. Used by nic-operator. Provides consistency across team, zero host setup.
• Tilt: File watcher that auto-redeploys on changes. Provides faster iteration loop.

We should evaluate both before committing to one approach.

Tasks

• Try DevContainers with nic-operator repo to understand the experience
• Try Tilt with a simple Helm chart to understand the experience
• Compare: setup complexity, iteration speed, CI compatibility
• Decide on approach based on evaluation
• Implement chosen approach:
  • If DevContainers: Create .devcontainer/devcontainer.json and post-install.sh
  • If Tilt: Create Tiltfile and setup scripts
  • If both: Implement DevContainers with Tilt installed inside
• Create Makefile with common commands (k3d-up, k3d-down, install, upgrade, lint, logs)
• Create .gitignore for generated files
• Document setup in README

Evaluation Criteria

• Setup time: How long for a new contributor to get started?
• Iteration speed: How quickly can you see changes?
• CI compatibility: Can we use the same setup in GitHub Actions?
• Consistency with NIC ecosystem: Does it align with nic-operator? (if not then we should have a good reason for not to, as in if tilt provides a much better value)

Acceptance Criteria

• New contributor can start developing within a few minutes
• Chart changes can be tested locally
• Approach documented in README

Depends on

• Initialize Helm chart structure #1

[aktech]

This is implemented with tilt.