A Kubernetes administrator is deploying the Instana agent as a DaemonSet using the standard Instana deployment manifests. A Kubernetes Secret named instana-agent-secret has been created containing the agent key, but agent pods fail to authenticate with the backend. The DaemonSet references the Secret correctly by name. What is the expected data field name within the Secret for the agent key?
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Short Explanation and Infographic
The Instana agent DaemonSet deployment expects the agent authentication key to be stored in a Kubernetes Secret with the data field name key. The DaemonSet spec references this Secret and maps the key field to the agent authentication configuration. Using alternative field names such as agent-key or INSTANA_AGENT_KEY will cause authentication to fail even when the Secret exists and the value is correct.
Full explanation below image
Full Explanation
The Instana agent DaemonSet deployment expects the agent authentication key to be stored in a Kubernetes Secret with the data field name key. The DaemonSet spec references this Secret and maps the key field to the agent authentication configuration. Using alternative field names such as agent-key or INSTANA_AGENT_KEY will cause authentication to fail even when the Secret exists and the value is correct. The correct answer is 'key'. The incorrect options — 'INSTANA_LICENSE', 'agent-key', 'INSTANA_AGENT_KEY' — are wrong because they do not align with IBM Instana's architecture or recommended practices for this scenario. Understanding this concept is essential for the Domain 3: Installation domain of the IBM Instana Observability certification.