An Open Source Proof of Concept demonstrating Kubernetes Gateway API routing with Envoy Gateway.

Envoy Gateway PoC is an educational Proof of Concept developed by OpenMind Systems Lab.

This project demonstrates how to deploy and use Envoy Gateway with the Kubernetes Gateway API in a local Kubernetes environment.

The PoC installs Envoy Gateway, deploys two demo HTTP applications, creates a GatewayClass, configures a Gateway and an HTTPRoute, then validates path-based routing through Envoy Proxy.

This repository is designed to be simple, reproducible and easy to understand.

After completing this Proof of Concept you will understand how to:

• Install Envoy Gateway on Kubernetes
• Use the Kubernetes Gateway API
• Create a GatewayClass
• Deploy a Gateway resource
• Configure an HTTPRoute
• Route traffic to multiple backend services
• Test local routing with kubectl port-forward
• Understand the role of Envoy Proxy as a Kubernetes gateway

Request flow:

Client
  │
  ▼
Envoy Proxy
  │
  ▼
Gateway API HTTPRoute
  │
  ├── /v1 ──► app-v1 Service ──► app-v1 Pod
  │
  └── /v2 ──► app-v2 Service ──► app-v2 Pod

The objective of this PoC is to expose two demo applications through Envoy Gateway using path-based routing.

.
├── manifests/
│   ├── 00-namespace.yaml
│   ├── 01-demo-apps.yaml
│   ├── 02-gatewayclass.yaml
│   └── 03-gateway.yaml
├── media/
│   └── schema.png
├── README.md
└── LICENSE

• Kubernetes cluster
• kubectl
• Internet access to pull Envoy Gateway manifests and container images

Example local environments:

• Docker Desktop Kubernetes
• kind
• minikube

Check your cluster:

kubectl cluster-info
kubectl get nodes

Install Envoy Gateway:

kubectl apply --server-side \
  -f https://github.com/envoyproxy/gateway/releases/download/v1.8.1/install.yaml

Wait for the Envoy Gateway controller:

kubectl wait --timeout=5m \
  -n envoy-gateway-system deployment/envoy-gateway \
  --for=condition=Available

Verify the installation:

kubectl get pods -n envoy-gateway-system

Expected result:

NAME                             READY   STATUS
envoy-gateway-xxxxxxxxxx-xxxxx   1/1     Running

Apply the demo applications:

kubectl apply -f manifests/01-demo-apps.yaml

Verify:

kubectl get pods
kubectl get svc

Expected resources:

app-v1
app-v2

Create the GatewayClass used by the PoC:

kubectl apply -f manifests/02-gatewayclass.yaml

Apply the Gateway and HTTPRoute resources:

kubectl apply -f manifests/03-gateway.yaml

Verify:

kubectl get gatewayclass
kubectl get gateway
kubectl get httproute

Expected resources:

GatewayClass: eg
Gateway:      eg-poc
HTTPRoute:    eg-poc-route

Wait for the Gateway to be accepted and programmed:

kubectl wait --for=condition=Accepted gateway/eg-poc --timeout=60s
kubectl wait --for=condition=Programmed gateway/eg-poc --timeout=180s

Check all PoC resources:

kubectl get gatewayclass
kubectl get gateway eg-poc
kubectl get httproute eg-poc-route
kubectl get pods
kubectl get svc
kubectl get pods,svc -n envoy-gateway-system

You should see:

• Envoy Gateway running in envoy-gateway-system
• One generated Envoy data-plane Pod running in envoy-gateway-system
• Two demo applications running in the default namespace
• A GatewayClass named eg
• A Gateway named eg-poc
• An HTTPRoute named eg-poc-route

Envoy Gateway creates an Envoy Proxy service for the Gateway.

Retrieve the generated Envoy service name:

ENVOY_SERVICE=$(kubectl get svc -n envoy-gateway-system \
  -o name | grep envoy-default-eg-poc | head -n 1)

echo $ENVOY_SERVICE

Port-forward the Envoy service locally:

kubectl -n envoy-gateway-system port-forward $ENVOY_SERVICE 8888:80

In another terminal, test the /v1 route:

curl http://localhost:8888/v1

Expected result:

hello from app v1

Test the /v2 route:

curl http://localhost:8888/v2

Expected result:

hello from app v2

Envoy Gateway exposes an admin interface that can be used for local inspection and troubleshooting.

Port-forward the Envoy Gateway deployment:

kubectl -n envoy-gateway-system port-forward deployment/envoy-gateway 19000:19000

Open:

http://localhost:19000

Once the PoC is deployed:

• Envoy Gateway is installed successfully.
• The GatewayClass is accepted by Envoy Gateway.
• The Gateway is accepted and programmed.
• Envoy Proxy routes /v1 traffic to app-v1.
• Envoy Proxy routes /v2 traffic to app-v2.
• Local traffic is accessible through http://localhost:8888.

If the Gateway stays in Programmed=False, inspect it:

kubectl describe gateway eg-poc

If you see Waiting for controller, verify the GatewayClass:

kubectl get gatewayclass
kubectl describe gatewayclass eg

If you see Envoy replicas unavailable, check the generated Envoy data-plane Pod:

kubectl get pods -A | grep -i envoy
kubectl get events -A --sort-by=.lastTimestamp | tail -30

If the route does not answer, verify the HTTPRoute:

kubectl describe httproute eg-poc-route

This Proof of Concept introduces several important Kubernetes and platform engineering concepts:

• Gateway API fundamentals
• Envoy Gateway architecture
• GatewayClass and controller binding
• Path-based HTTP routing
• Kubernetes services and deployments
• Local traffic testing with port-forwarding
• Cloud Native ingress patterns

This repository is part of the OpenMind Systems Lab research program focused on:

• ☸️ Cloud Native
• 🔒 Infrastructure Security
• 📨 Distributed Messaging
• ⚙️ Platform Engineering
• 📊 Technical Benchmarking
• 🤖 Artificial Intelligence & MCP

Discover all projects:

https://github.com/openmind-systems-lab

Delete the Gateway API resources:

kubectl delete -f manifests/03-gateway.yaml --ignore-not-found=true
kubectl delete -f manifests/02-gatewayclass.yaml --ignore-not-found=true

Delete the demo applications:

kubectl delete -f manifests/01-demo-apps.yaml --ignore-not-found=true

Uninstall Envoy Gateway:

kubectl delete -f https://github.com/envoyproxy/gateway/releases/download/v1.8.1/install.yaml \
  --ignore-not-found=true

• https://gateway.envoyproxy.io
• https://gateway-api.sigs.k8s.io
• https://www.envoyproxy.io

Contributions, ideas and improvements are welcome.

Feel free to:

• Open an Issue
• Submit a Pull Request
• Suggest improvements
• Share feedback

This project is released under the MIT License.

OpenMind Systems Lab is an independent French non-profit association dedicated to research, experimental development and technical benchmarking in Cloud Native technologies.

Our mission is to produce practical, reproducible and educational Open Source Proofs of Concept covering Kubernetes, Platform Engineering, Distributed Messaging, Infrastructure Security and Artificial Intelligence.

GitHub Organization:

https://github.com/openmind-systems-lab

Made with ❤️ by OpenMind Systems Lab