Merge pull request #1008 from fluxcd/helm-faq

docs/faq/index.md

@@ -152,7 +152,8 @@ cd ./deploy/prod && kustomize create --autodetect --recursive
 
 ### What is the behavior of Kustomize used by Flux
 
-We referred to the Kustomization CLI flags here, so that you can replicate the same behavior using the CLI. The behavior of Kustomize used by the controller is currently configured as following:
+We referred to the Kustomization CLI flags here, so that you can replicate the same behavior using the CLI.
+The behavior of Kustomize used by the controller is currently configured as following:
 
 - `--allow_id_changes` is set to false, so it does not change any resource IDs.
 - `--enable_kyaml` is disabled by default, so it currently used `k8sdeps` to process YAMLs.
@@ -197,6 +198,59 @@ NAMESPACE  	NAME           	READY	MESSAGE
 default  	default-podinfo	False	no chart version found for podinfo-9.0.0
 ```
 
+### Can I use Flux HelmReleases without GitOps?
+
+Yes, you can install the Flux components directly on a cluster
+and manage Helm releases with `kubectl`.
+
+Install the controllers needed for Helm operations with `flux`:
+
+```sh
+flux install \
+--namespace=flux-system \
+--network-policy=false \
+--components=source-controller,helm-controller
+```
+
+Create a Helm release with `kubectl`:
+
+```sh
+cat << EOF | kubectl apply -f -
+---
+apiVersion: source.toolkit.fluxcd.io/v1beta1
+kind: HelmRepository
+metadata:
+  name: bitnami
+  namespace: flux-system
+spec:
+  interval: 30m
+  url: https://charts.bitnami.com/bitnami
+---
+apiVersion: helm.toolkit.fluxcd.io/v2beta1
+kind: HelmRelease
+metadata:
+  name: metrics-server
+  namespace: kube-system
+spec:
+  interval: 60m
+  releaseName: metrics-server
+  chart:
+    spec:
+      chart: metrics-server
+      version: "^5.x"
+      sourceRef:
+        kind: HelmRepository
+        name: bitnami
+        namespace: flux-system
+  values:
+    apiService:
+      create: true
+EOF
+```
+
+Based on the above definition, Flux will upgrade the release automatically
+when Bitnami publishes a new version of the metrics-server chart.
+
 ## Flux v1 vs v2 questions
 
 ### What does Flux v2 mean for Flux?

docs/guides/helm-operator-migration.md

@@ -773,6 +773,12 @@ Probably, but with some side notes:
 1. It is still under active development, and while our focus has been to stabilize the API as much as we can during the first development phase, we do not guarantee there will not be any breaking changes before we reach General Availability. We are however committed to provide [conversion webhooks](https://kubernetes.io/docs/tasks/extend-kubernetes/custom-resources/custom-resource-definition-versioning/#webhook-conversion) for upcoming API versions.
 1. There may be (internal) behavioral changes in upcoming releases, but they should be aimed at further stabilizing the Helm Controller itself, solving edge case issues, providing better logging, observability, and/or other improvements.
 
+### Can I use Helm Controller standalone?
+
+Helm Controller depends on [Source Controller](../components/source/controller.md), you can install both controllers
+and manager Helm releases in a declarative way without GitOps.
+For more details please see this [answer](../faq/index.md#can-i-use-flux-helmreleases-without-gitops).
+
 ### I have another question
 
 Given the amount of changes, it is quite possible that this document did not provide you with a clear answer for you specific setup. If this applies to you, do not hestitate to ask for help in the [GitHub Discussions](https://github.com/fluxcd/flux2/discussions/new?category_id=31999889) or on the [`#flux` CNCF Slack channel](https://slack.cncf.io)!