Push To Registry

by hashicorpf706481af9b8No license890 starsListed Oct 8, 2026Updated Oct 8, 2026Repository updated 3 days ago

Push Packer build metadata to HCP Packer registry for tracking and managing image lifecycle. Use when integrating Packer builds with HCP Packer for version control and governance.

Instructions onlyDevOps & Cloud

AI-generated overview

Configures Packer builds to push image build metadata to the HCP Packer registry for version tracking and governance.

What it does: This skill provides instructions for adding an hcp_packer_registry block to Packer templates so build metadata is pushed to the HCP Packer registry. It covers bucket and build labels, authentication with HCP service principal credentials, CI/CD integration, querying artifacts in Terraform, and common troubleshooting and best practices. It produces configuration guidance and example HCL, YAML, and Terraform snippets rather than executable scripts.
When to use it: Use it when integrating Packer image builds with HCP Packer for version control, lifecycle tracking, or governance. It is also relevant when setting up registry authentication, labels, or CI/CD automation for Packer builds.
Requirements: Packer 1.7.7 or later and network access to the HCP API. HCP service principal credentials are needed: HCP_CLIENT_ID, HCP_CLIENT_SECRET, HCP_ORGANIZATION_ID, and HCP_PROJECT_ID, with a Contributor role on the project. No scripts are included; the skill is instructions only.

Push to HCP Packer Registry

Configure Packer templates to push build metadata to HCP Packer registry.

Reference: HCP Packer Registry

Note: HCP Packer is free for basic use. Builds push metadata only (not actual images), adding minimal overhead (<1 minute).

Basic Registry Configuration

hcl

packer {  required_version = ">= 1.7.7"}
variable "image_name" {  type    = string  default = "web-server"}
locals {  timestamp = regex_replace(timestamp(), "[- TZ:]", "")}
source "amazon-ebs" "ubuntu" {  region        = "us-west-2"  instance_type = "t3.micro"
  source_ami_filter {    filters = {      name = "ubuntu/images/*ubuntu-jammy-22.04-amd64-server-*"    }    most_recent = true    owners      = ["099720109477"]  }
  ssh_username = "ubuntu"  ami_name     = "${var.image_name}-${local.timestamp}"}
build {  sources = ["source.amazon-ebs.ubuntu"]
  hcp_packer_registry {    bucket_name = var.image_name    description = "Ubuntu 22.04 base image for web servers"
    bucket_labels = {      "os"   = "ubuntu"      "team" = "platform"    }
    build_labels = {      "build-time" = local.timestamp    }  }
  provisioner "shell" {    inline = [      "sudo apt-get update",      "sudo apt-get upgrade -y",    ]  }}

packer {  required_version = ">= 1.7.7"}
variable "image_name" {  type    = string  default = "web-server"}
locals {  timestamp = regex_replace(timestamp(), "[- TZ:]", "")}
source "amazon-ebs" "ubuntu" {  region        = "us-west-2"  instance_type = "t3.micro"
  source_ami_filter {    filters = {      name = "ubuntu/images/*ubuntu-jammy-22.04-amd64-server-*"    }    most_recent = true    owners      = ["099720109477"]  }
  ssh_username = "ubuntu"  ami_name     = "${var.image_name}-${local.timestamp}"}
build {  sources = ["source.amazon-ebs.ubuntu"]
  hcp_packer_registry {    bucket_name = var.image_name    description = "Ubuntu 22.04 base image for web servers"
    bucket_labels = {      "os"   = "ubuntu"      "team" = "platform"    }
    build_labels = {      "build-time" = local.timestamp    }  }
  provisioner "shell" {    inline = [      "sudo apt-get update",      "sudo apt-get upgrade -y",    ]  }}

Authentication

Set environment variables before building:

bash

export HCP_CLIENT_ID="your-service-principal-client-id"export HCP_CLIENT_SECRET="your-service-principal-secret"export HCP_ORGANIZATION_ID="your-org-id"export HCP_PROJECT_ID="your-project-id"
packer build .

export HCP_CLIENT_ID="your-service-principal-client-id"export HCP_CLIENT_SECRET="your-service-principal-secret"export HCP_ORGANIZATION_ID="your-org-id"export HCP_PROJECT_ID="your-project-id"
packer build .

Create HCP Service Principal

Navigate to HCP → Access Control (IAM)
Create Service Principal
Grant "Contributor" role on project
Generate client secret
Save client ID and secret

Registry Configuration Options

bucket_name (required)

The image identifier. Must stay consistent across builds!

bucket_labels (optional)

Metadata at bucket level. Updates with each build.

build_labels (optional)

Metadata for each iteration. Immutable after build completes.

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions

yaml

name: Build and Push to HCP Packer
on:  push:    branches: [main]
env:  HCP_CLIENT_ID: ${{ secrets.HCP_CLIENT_ID }}  HCP_CLIENT_SECRET: ${{ secrets.HCP_CLIENT_SECRET }}  HCP_ORGANIZATION_ID: ${{ secrets.HCP_ORGANIZATION_ID }}  HCP_PROJECT_ID: ${{ secrets.HCP_PROJECT_ID }}
jobs:  build:    runs-on: ubuntu-latest    steps:      - uses: actions/checkout@v4      - uses: hashicorp/setup-packer@main
      - name: Build and push        run: |          packer init .          packer build \            -var "git_commit=${{ github.sha }}" \            .

name: Build and Push to HCP Packer
on:  push:    branches: [main]
env:  HCP_CLIENT_ID: ${{ secrets.HCP_CLIENT_ID }}  HCP_CLIENT_SECRET: ${{ secrets.HCP_CLIENT_SECRET }}  HCP_ORGANIZATION_ID: ${{ secrets.HCP_ORGANIZATION_ID }}  HCP_PROJECT_ID: ${{ secrets.HCP_PROJECT_ID }}
jobs:  build:    runs-on: ubuntu-latest    steps:      - uses: actions/checkout@v4      - uses: hashicorp/setup-packer@main
      - name: Build and push        run: |          packer init .          packer build \            -var "git_commit=${{ github.sha }}" \            .

Querying in Terraform

hcl

data "hcp_packer_artifact" "ubuntu" {  bucket_name  = "web-server"  channel_name = "production"  platform     = "aws"  region       = "us-west-2"}
resource "aws_instance" "web" {  ami           = data.hcp_packer_artifact.ubuntu.external_identifier  instance_type = "t3.micro"
  tags = {    PackerBucket = data.hcp_packer_artifact.ubuntu.bucket_name  }}

data "hcp_packer_artifact" "ubuntu" {  bucket_name  = "web-server"  channel_name = "production"  platform     = "aws"  region       = "us-west-2"}
resource "aws_instance" "web" {  ami           = data.hcp_packer_artifact.ubuntu.external_identifier  instance_type = "t3.micro"
  tags = {    PackerBucket = data.hcp_packer_artifact.ubuntu.bucket_name  }}

Common Issues

Authentication Failed

Verify HCP_CLIENT_ID and HCP_CLIENT_SECRET
Ensure service principal has Contributor role
Check organization and project IDs

Bucket Name Mismatch

Keep bucket_name consistent across builds
Don't include timestamps in bucket_name
Creates new bucket if name changes

Build Fails

Packer fails immediately if can't push metadata
Prevents drift between artifacts and registry
Check network connectivity to HCP API

Best Practices

Consistent bucket names - Never change for same image type
Meaningful labels - Use for versions, teams, compliance
CI/CD automation - Automate builds and registry pushes
Immutable build labels - Put changing data (git SHA, date) in build_labels

References

Source and attribution

Source:hashicorp/agent-skillsinplugins/packer/skills/push-to-registryat commitf706481

License: No license

Content belongs to its original authors. SourceWeft indexes it from a public repository.

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Push To Registry

Push to HCP Packer Registry

Basic Registry Configuration

Authentication

Create HCP Service Principal

Registry Configuration Options

bucket_name (required)

bucket_labels (optional)

build_labels (optional)

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions

Querying in Terraform

Common Issues

Best Practices

References

Source and attribution

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