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Container Service for Kubernetes:Overview of the cross-region O&M communication component raven-agent-ds

Last Updated:Mar 17, 2026

In ACK Edge clusters, nodes in different physical locations belong to separate network domains and cannot communicate using Pod IPs or service IPs by default. raven-agent-ds is the network agent component of Raven, the cross-region O&M communication system for ACK Edge clusters, that bridges these isolated domains. It runs as a DaemonSet on every node in host network mode and handles both Layer 3 tunnel networking and Layer 7 proxy traffic between cloud and edge environments.

How it works

raven-agent-ds supports two complementary modes:

  • Tunnel mode: Configures VXLAN devices, forwarding databases (FDBs), and routes on cluster nodes, then establishes IPsec-VPN connections to enable direct container-to-container communication across regions.

  • Proxy mode: Runs a Layer 7 proxy service on the gateway node to route cloud-edge HTTP/HTTPS traffic, including O&M operations and monitoring.

Choose a mode

ScenarioRecommended mode
Container-to-container communication across regions using Pod IPs or service IPsTunnel mode
Cross-region HTTP/HTTPS requests, cloud-edge O&M, or cloud-edge monitoringProxy mode

By default, proxy mode is enabled. For configuration instructions, see Work with the cloud-edge communication component Raven.

Usage notes

  • ACK Edge clusters must run Kubernetes 1.26.3 or later.

  • raven-agent-ds is automatically installed in ACK Edge clusters. No manual installation is required.

  • For a full architectural overview of Raven, see Cross-region O&M communication component Raven.

Release notes

March 2025

VersionImage addressTypeDescriptionRelease dateImpact
v0.4.8registry-{.{regionId}}-vpc.ack.aliyuncs.com/acs/raven-agent:v0.4.8EnhancementAdded WebSocket protocol support.2025-03-15No impact on workloads.

February 2025

VersionImage addressTypeDescriptionRelease dateImpact
v0.4.7registry-{.{regionId}}-vpc.ack.aliyuncs.com/acs/raven-agent:v0.4.7Enhancement / Bug fixMetrics collection is now supported. Fixed an issue that caused occasional panics. Custom resource requests and limits can now be defined.2025-02-14No impact on workloads.

November 2024

VersionImage addressTypeDescriptionRelease dateImpact
v0.4.6registry-{.{regionId}}-vpc.ack.aliyuncs.com/acs/raven-agent:v0.4.6EnhancementOptimized regular VPN connection checks. Optimized how the public IP address is retrieved at the edge.2024-11-15No impact on workloads.

June 2024

VersionImage addressTypeDescriptionRelease dateImpact
v0.4.5registry-{.{regionId}}-vpc.ack.aliyuncs.com/acs/raven-agent:v0.4.5Bug fixFixed IP rule and VPN rule leakage. Added scheduled rule-checking.2024-06-25No impact on workloads.

April 2024

VersionImage addressTypeDescriptionRelease dateImpact
v0.4.4registry-{.{regionId}}-vpc.ack.aliyuncs.com/acs/raven-agent:v0.4.4Enhancement / Bug fix / SecurityFixed broadcast storms during cross-region data transfer. Added compatibility with both iptables and nftables kernel modules. Fixed an issue where the proxy service was disabled when gateway resources were deleted. Added AdvancedRollingUpdate mode support. Fixed CVE issues and improved image security.2024-04-15No impact on workloads.

March 2024

VersionImage addressTypeDescriptionRelease dateImpact
v0.4.3registry-{.{regionId}}-vpc.ack.aliyuncs.com/acs/raven-agent:v0.4.3Bug fix / SecurityFixed an issue where access control list (ACL) entries failed to be added. Patched CVE issues.2024-03-01No impact on workloads.

January 2024

VersionImage addressTypeDescriptionRelease dateImpact
v0.4.2registry-{.{regionId}}-vpc.ack.aliyuncs.com/acs/raven-agent:v0.4.2EnhancementAdded KeepAlive and automatic reconnection support for cross-domain VPN tunnels. Optimized cloud-edge communication to reduce cross-region traffic.2024-01-23No impact on workloads.

November 2023

VersionImage addressTypeDescriptionRelease dateImpact
v0.4.1registry-{.{regionId}}-vpc.ack.aliyuncs.com/acs/raven-agent:v0.4.1EnhancementAdded ARM64 architecture support. Edge nodes can now connect to the cloud over Internet connections and Express Connect circuits simultaneously.2023-11-20No impact on workloads.

October 2023

VersionImage addressTypeDescriptionRelease dateImpact
v0.4.0registry-{.{regionId}}-vpc.ack.aliyuncs.com/acs/raven-agent:v0.4.0EnhancementIntroduced tunnel mode for cross-region container communication. Introduced proxy mode for cloud-edge O&M tunnels.2023-10-25No impact on workloads.