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+# Deployment Validation Operator (DVO)
+
+A Kubernetes operator that continuously validates deployments and other resources against curated best practices using kube-linter, with Prometheus metrics for monitoring compliance.
+
+## Project Overview
+
+**Type**: Kubernetes Operator  
+**Language**: Go  
+**Framework**: Operator SDK with controller-runtime  
+**Primary Purpose**: Continuous deployment validation and compliance monitoring  
+**Target Users**: Platform engineers, SREs, DevOps teams, cluster administrators
+
+## Technical Stack
+
+- **Language**: Go 1.24+ with modern Go modules
+- **Kubernetes Integration**: controller-runtime v0.19.7
+- **Validation Engine**: kube-linter v0.6.8 (StackRox)
+- **Metrics**: Prometheus client for metrics exposure
+- **Configuration**: Viper for configuration management
+- **Logging**: Zap for structured logging
+- **Testing**: Ginkgo for BDD-style testing
+
+## Architecture & Core Concepts
+
+### Operator Pattern
+- **Controller-Runtime**: Uses Kubernetes controller-runtime for efficient resource watching
+- **No CRDs**: Currently operates without custom resource definitions
+- **Read-Only**: Monitors and validates resources without modification
+- **Metrics-Driven**: Reports validation results via Prometheus metrics
+
+### Validation Engine
+- **kube-linter Integration**: Continuous version of StackRox's static analysis tool
+- **Best Practices Focus**: Emphasizes fault-tolerance and security
+- **Configurable Checks**: Supports custom validation rules via ConfigMap
+- **Resource Exclusion**: Annotation-based and namespace-based filtering
+
+### Metrics and Monitoring
+- **Prometheus Metrics**: Gauge metrics reporting validation failures
+- **Standard Labels**: `name`, `namespace`, and `kind` for all metrics
+- **Value Semantics**: `1` indicates failed validation, `0` indicates success
+- **Grafana Integration**: Pre-built dashboard templates available
+
+## Default Validation Checks
+
+The operator enables these security and reliability checks by default:
+- **Security**: `privileged-container`, `privilege-escalation-container`, `run-as-non-root`
+- **Network**: `host-ipc`, `host-network`, `host-pid`, `non-isolated-pod`
+- **Reliability**: `pdb-max-unavailable`, `pdb-min-available`
+- **Resources**: `unset-cpu-requirements`, `unset-memory-requirements`
+- **System**: `unsafe-sysctls`
+
+## Development Workflow
+
+### Local Development
+```bash
+# Build the operator binary
+make go-build
+
+# Run locally with development settings
+POD_NAMESPACE="deployment-validation-operator" \
+WATCH_NAMESPACE="" \
+NAMESPACE_IGNORE_PATTERN='^(openshift.*|kube-.*)$' \
+build/_output/bin/deployment-validation-operator \
+--kubeconfig=$HOME/.kube/config --zap-devel
+
+# Check exposed metrics
+curl localhost:8383/metrics
+```
+
+### Testing
+```bash
+# Run unit tests
+make test
+
+# Run end-to-end tests (requires ginkgo and KUBECONFIG)
+make e2e-test
+```
+
+## AI Development Guidelines
+
+### Code Architecture Patterns
+
+#### Controller Implementation
+```go
+// Follow controller-runtime patterns
+type MyReconciler struct {
+    client.Client
+    Log    logr.Logger
+    Scheme *runtime.Scheme
+}
+
+func (r *MyReconciler) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, req ctrl.Request) (ctrl.Result, error) {
+    // Standard reconcile loop implementation
+}
+```
+
+#### Metrics Integration
+```go
+// Use Prometheus client patterns
+var (
+    validationFailures = prometheus.NewGaugeVec(
+        prometheus.GaugeOpts{
+            Name: "dvo_validation_failures_total",
+            Help: "Number of validation failures",
+        },
+        []string{"name", "namespace", "kind", "check"},
+    )
+)
+```
+
+### Configuration Management
+
+#### ConfigMap Structure
+```yaml
+apiVersion: v1
+kind: ConfigMap
+metadata:
+  name: deployment-validation-operator-config
+data:
+  config.yaml: |
+    checks:
+      doNotAutoAddDefaults: false
+      addAllBuiltIn: false
+      include: []
+      exclude: []
+```
+
+#### Resource Exclusion Patterns
+```yaml
+# Exclude specific check
+metadata:
+  annotations:
+    ignore-check.kube-linter.io/run-as-non-root: "Legacy system requirement"
+
+# Exclude all checks  
+metadata:
+  annotations:
+    kube-linter.io/ignore-all: "OLM managed deployment"
+```
+
+### Common Development Tasks
+
+#### Adding New Validation Checks
+1. **Kube-linter Integration**: Leverage existing kube-linter checks
+2. **Custom Checks**: Implement using kube-linter's check framework
+3. **Configuration**: Update ConfigMap schema for new options
+4. **Metrics**: Add appropriate Prometheus metrics
+5. **Documentation**: Update check documentation
+
+#### Extending Resource Support
+1. **Controller Watching**: Add new resource types to controller watches
+2. **RBAC**: Update cluster roles for new resource permissions
+3. **Validation Logic**: Extend validation pipeline for new resources
+4. **Testing**: Add comprehensive test coverage
+
+#### Performance Optimization
+- **Watch Filtering**: Use field selectors and label selectors
+- **Batch Processing**: Process multiple resources efficiently
+- **Memory Management**: Monitor memory usage with large clusters
+- **Rate Limiting**: Implement appropriate rate limiting for API calls
+
+### Deployment Considerations
+
+#### Security and RBAC
+- **Cluster-wide Permissions**: Requires broad read access for comprehensive validation
+- **Service Account**: Uses dedicated service account with minimal required permissions
+- **Network Policies**: Consider network policies for metrics scraping
+- **Node Affinity**: Default configuration targets infrastructure nodes
+
+#### Scalability
+- **Single Instance**: Currently designed for single-pod deployment
+- **Resource Requirements**: Configure appropriate CPU/memory limits
+- **Namespace Filtering**: Use `NAMESPACE_IGNORE_PATTERN` to reduce load
+- **Check Configuration**: Disable unnecessary checks to improve performance
+
+#### Monitoring and Observability
+- **Prometheus Integration**: Standard `/metrics` endpoint on port 8383
+- **Grafana Dashboards**: Deploy provided dashboard templates
+- **Alerting**: Create alerts based on validation failure metrics
+- **Logging**: Use structured logging with appropriate log levels
+
+## Common Development Patterns
+
+### Error Handling
+```go
+// Standard error handling patterns
+if err != nil {
+    r.Log.Error(err, "Failed to validate resource", 
+        "resource", resource.Name, 
+        "namespace", resource.Namespace)
+    return ctrl.Result{RequeueAfter: time.Minute * 5}, err
+}
+```
+
+### Configuration Loading
+```go
+// Use viper for configuration management
+viper.SetConfigName("config")
+viper.SetConfigType("yaml")
+viper.AddConfigPath("/etc/dvo/")
+```
+
+### Metrics Updates
+```go
+// Update metrics with proper labels
+validationFailures.WithLabelValues(
+    resource.Name,
+    resource.Namespace, 
+    resource.Kind,
+    checkName,
+).Set(1)
+```
+
+## Useful Commands
+
+```bash
+# Development
+make go-build                 # Build operator binary
+make test                     # Run unit tests
+make e2e-test                # Run end-to-end tests
+
+# Deployment
+make deploy                   # Deploy to cluster
+make undeploy                # Remove from cluster
+make bundle                   # Generate OLM bundle
+
+# Code Quality
+make lint                     # Run linting
+make fmt                      # Format code
+make vet                      # Run go vet
+
+# Release Management
+operator-sdk generate bundle  # Generate bundle manifests
+```
+
+## Integration Points
+
+### kube-linter Integration
+- **Check Configuration**: Uses kube-linter's configuration format
+- **Custom Checks**: Can add organization-specific validation rules
+- **Annotation Support**: Leverages kube-linter's ignore annotations
+- **Rule Updates**: Benefits from upstream kube-linter rule improvements
+
+### Prometheus Integration
+- **Metrics Endpoint**: Exposes `/metrics` on port 8383
+- **ServiceMonitor**: Compatible with Prometheus Operator
+- **Alert Rules**: Can define PrometheusRule resources
+- **Grafana**: Pre-built dashboard templates available
+
+### OpenShift Integration
+- **Platform Compatibility**: Tested on OpenShift clusters
+- **Security Context**: Respects OpenShift security policies
+- **Network Policies**: Supports OpenShift SDN networking
+- **Resource Quotas**: Operates within OpenShift resource constraints
+
+## Project Structure
+
+```
+├── api/                    # API definitions (currently empty)
+├── bundle/                 # OLM bundle manifests
+├── config/                 # Kustomize configuration
+├── deploy/                 # Deployment manifests
+│   ├── openshift/         # OpenShift-specific manifests
+│   └── observability/     # Grafana dashboard templates
+├── docs/                   # Documentation
+├── hack/                   # Development scripts
+├── internal/              # Internal packages
+├── pkg/                   # Public packages
+│   ├── controller/        # Controller implementations
+│   ├── metrics/          # Prometheus metrics
+│   └── validation/       # Validation logic
+└── version/               # Version information
+```
+
+## Contributing Guidelines
+
+- **Go Standards**: Follow standard Go conventions and idioms
+- **Controller Patterns**: Use controller-runtime best practices
+- **Testing**: Maintain comprehensive test coverage
+- **Documentation**: Update docs for new features and changes
+- **Metrics**: Ensure all validation results are properly instrumented
+- **Configuration**: Support configurable behavior via ConfigMap
+- **Backwards Compatibility**: Maintain API stability for existing deployments
+
+This operator serves as a critical component for maintaining deployment quality and security compliance in Kubernetes environments.
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