name: argocd description: Deploy Kubernetes apps declaratively with Argo CD applications and projects. Use when tasks mention argocd, Argo CD, argocd app sync, Application CRD, AppProject, or GitOps with Argo CD.

Argo CD

Use this skill to manage GitOps deployments with Argo CD declaratively and safely.

Quick Start

1. Run argocd app list to see all applications and their sync status.
2. Run argocd app diff <name> before any sync to preview what will change.
3. Use argocd app sync <name> to trigger a deployment.
4. Check argocd app get <name> for health and sync state after deploying.

Intent Router

• references/install-and-setup.md — install argocd CLI, login, env vars, initial setup
• references/command-cookbook.md — argocd app list/get/create/sync/diff/history/rollback commands
• references/application-management.md — Application CRD, sync policies, waves, hooks, health status
• references/rbac-and-projects.md — AppProject CRD, RBAC policies, SSO, multi-tenancy

Workflow

Deploy an Application

# Preview changes before syncing
argocd app diff my-app

# Sync a specific application
argocd app sync my-app

# Sync only specific resources
argocd app sync my-app --resource apps:Deployment:my-deployment

Create an Application

argocd app create my-app \
  --repo https://github.com/org/repo \
  --path k8s/overlays/production \
  --dest-server https://kubernetes.default.svc \
  --dest-namespace production \
  --sync-policy automated

Monitor Health

argocd app get my-app
argocd app history my-app
argocd app rollback my-app 3

Safety Guardrails

• Always run argocd app diff <name> before argocd app sync to preview what will change in production.
• Use --dry-run when creating or modifying Applications to validate configuration before committing.
• Set syncPolicy.automated.prune: false initially; enable pruning only after verifying the resource list is correct.
• Never share the argocd-initial-admin-secret — rotate the admin password immediately after first login.
• Use AppProject sourceRepos and destinations to restrict what repositories and clusters each team can deploy to.
• Use argocd app sync --resource <group:kind:name> to sync specific resources rather than triggering a full sync unnecessarily.
• Store repository credentials as Kubernetes secrets, not as plain-text in Application manifests.

Related Skills

kubectl, helm, kustomize, flux, ci-architecture