Sync & agents

When you use Anyport, you’re using a dashboard (the website) and a small agent that runs on your infrastructure—on each cluster you connect. You bring your own infra; the agent is what lets you develop and deploy from the dashboard. This page explains what the agent is, why it’s there, and what “sync” means from your point of view—without technical jargon.

What is the agent?

The agent is a component the Anyport CLI installs in each cluster when you run anyport cluster attach. It runs in the background and does two things that matter to you:

  1. It carries out what you do in Anyport. When you create a project, deploy an app, or delete something, Anyport tells the agent on that cluster to do it. The agent makes it happen where your workloads run—so your actions in the dashboard become real on your infra.

  2. It reports back what’s happening. The agent watches the cluster and sends status back to Anyport—so you see up-to-date pod counts, health, logs, and metrics in the console. When something fails or changes, you see it in Anyport.

So from your perspective: you act in the dashboard → the agent makes it happen in the cluster and keeps Anyport informed.

One agent per cluster

  • You install one agent per cluster, and each has its own token. The token is the agent's whole identity, and it is what the agent presents on every connection — it does not expire and is not consumed by first use. Anyport stores only its hash, and the CLI creates and uses the plaintext in a single process, so it is never displayed or written down. Replace one with anyport cluster reconnect <name>, which reissues and reinstalls together.
  • The agent runs in namespace (usually anyport) and stays connected to Anyport as long as the cluster is running and can reach the Anyport platform.

When the agent is running and healthy, Anyport shows the cluster as Active. If the agent stops (e.g. the pod is down or the cluster can’t reach Anyport), the cluster may appear disconnected until the agent is back.

What “sync” means for you

Sync here just means “Anyport and your cluster stay in step.”

Both directions of sync: what you do in the dashboard reaches the cluster through the agent, and what the cluster is doing comes back to the dashboard.
Both directions of sync: what you do in the dashboard reaches the cluster through the agent, and what the cluster is doing comes back to the dashboard.
  • You do something in Anyport (e.g. create a project, add a managed service). Anyport sends that intent to the agent in the right cluster. The agent applies it—creates the namespace, runs the workload, etc. When it’s done (or if it fails), Anyport updates so you see the result.
  • Something changes in the cluster (e.g. a pod restarts, a deployment becomes ready). The agent sees it and reports to Anyport. The dashboard then shows the latest status, pod list, and so on.

You don’t have to run any sync command yourself. As long as the agent is installed and the cluster is connected, this happens automatically.

Logs and metrics

When you open Logs or Metrics for an app, Anyport asks the agent in that app’s cluster for them. For the live view the agent reads directly from the pods. For searchable history and metrics over time it queries the Observability stores running in that same cluster, and only if you have installed them. Either way the data travels back over the agent’s connection, which is why logs and metrics are available only while the cluster is connected.

For more detail, see Logs & metrics.

What you need to do

From a user’s point of view you only need to:

  1. Run anyport cluster attach with kubectl pointing at the cluster.
  2. The CLI registers the cluster and installs the agent in the same run, so there is no token to move between them.
  3. Use Anyport as usual—create projects, deploy apps, view logs and metrics. The agent handles the rest.

You don’t configure “sync” or “streams”—the agent and the platform handle that. If a cluster shows as Active, sync is working.

Summary

WhatIn plain terms
AgentThe piece that runs in each cluster. It does what you ask in Anyport and reports status, logs, and metrics back.
SyncAnyport and the cluster stay in step: your actions become real in the cluster, and cluster state is reflected in the dashboard.
TokensOne long-lived token per cluster, presented on every connection. Stored hashed, never displayed; reissue with anyport cluster reconnect.
ActiveThe cluster is connected and the agent is healthy. You can manage it and see live status.

Next steps