F5 NGINX: Pioneering the Future of Kubernetes Gateway Solutions
It’s been nearly a year and a half since the Kubernetes community officially announced the general availability of the Gateway API—a milestone that redefined how networking and traffic management are handled in Kubernetes clusters. This was more than just an incremental update. It marked a fundamental shift in networking for cloud-native environments, offering a powerful, extensible, and expressive framework to manage connectivity.
The Gateway API replaces the limited capabilities of the Ingress API with role-oriented design, standardized resources, and extensibility. From introducing advanced traffic routing and splitting to enabling multi-tenancy with its role-oriented design, the Gateway API unlocks complex use cases that were previously hard to handle. It’s no surprise that this shift spurred widespread innovation across the industry, as vendors—including F5—recognized its potential to shape the future of Kubernetes networking.
Yet, adoption of a new standard like this doesn’t happen overnight. While the Gateway API offers clear benefits, many organizations remain cautious. They’re carefully weighing the complexity of migration and existing Ingress tooling against the standardized, yet flexible, routing configuration of the Gateway API. And their decision to adopt isn’t driven only by technical limitations—it’s about trade-offs. The time, effort, and risk involved in transitioning must be offset by meaningful, tangible improvements to their networking capabilities.
A slower pace of adoption across the industry reflects this cautious approach. While the Gateway API is widely regarded as the future of Kubernetes networking, many organizations are still exploring its capabilities or assessing the trade-offs before they commit to full-scale adoption. Reports from the Kubernetes community suggest that experimentation with the Gateway API is steadily increasing. Early adopters are leveraging it for diverse use cases—from simple HTTP routing to advanced multi-tenant architectures. This demonstrates growing interest in the Gateway API’s possibilities, even as many teams take a wait-and-see approach.
At F5, we’ve observed similar dynamics. Many of our customers are holding off on an immediate leap. That’s not because they lack interest, but because they’re focused on balancing innovation with the operational certainty that mature Ingress solutions provide. That’s why we believe the journey to the Gateway API doesn’t have to be rushed. It just has to be strategic.
Let’s break it down. Some of the challenges of moving to the Gateway API include:
- Complex infrastructure overhaul: Migration may require rewriting automation and changes to existing application pipelines.
- Ecosystem support gaps: Full tool and controller support are still evolving.
- Lack of time and expertise: The learning curve and refactoring demand dedicated time.
- Risk aversion: Teams hesitate to disrupt what is already working.
Yet there are also substantial benefits:
- Role-oriented design: Gateway API resources are divided by organizational role. This allows developers to make changes that don’t disrupt other teams.
- Standardized traffic policies: Many common traffic policies are tightly integrated within the API itself, making configuration universal across implementations and far more manageable than Ingress annotations.
- Extensibility: Extension points allow implementations to extend the Gateway API to provide custom features under the API’s framework.
If there’s anything we know about app delivery and infrastructure, it’s this: change takes time and company-wide convincing. Ongoing support, guidance, and innovation are essential to even start the transition.
Tackling Gateway API adoption: Insights from F5
At F5, we’ve been deeply involved in the development and evolution of Kubernetes networking. We’ve engaged with the challenges firsthand and helped teams overcome them.
Our experience confirms one core truth: successfully adopting the Gateway API isn’t just about implementing a new standard. It’s about building a foundation for future success. To get there, organizations need solutions that prioritize simplicity, performance, flexibility, and robust support. Here’s how these principles pave the way for smoother transitions and set the stage for long-term value:
- Simplicity through a clean-slate approach: Migrating to the Gateway API requires more than technical changes. It’s a cultural and operational shift. With a clean slate, we can address all the paint points from Ingress and achieve a superior networking experience through a single interface: the Gateway API. While this may require more upfront effort, the long-term benefits—streamlined processes, reduced overhead, and faster results—far outweigh the challenges.
- Performance as a foundation: Network performance is critical, especially in large Kubernetes environments. Lean Gateway API implementations should rely on a data plane that strives to minimize architectural overhead, which in turn improves latency, resource efficiency, and scalability. Solutions must combine the flexibility of the Gateway API with high performance by default to ensure teams can transition without compromising speed or reliability.
- Flexibility through modular design: Kubernetes environments vary widely, from basic routing needs to complex architectures. Modular Gateway API solutions let teams adopt capabilities alongside other solutions, such as service meshes, to fit the needs of your environment without adding complexity. This approach fosters experimentation and ensures solutions stay scalable and adaptable.
- Support as a success catalyst: Expert guidance can be of great help as you adopt the Gateway API. Comprehensive documentation, reliable resources, and hands-on support reduce the friction of transitioning from Ingress. Trusted partners and community engagement dramatically simplify migration, turning a daunting shift into a smooth, efficient process.
The future is Gateway API ... at your own pace
We know that 18 months isn’t a long time—and that just because the Gateway API opened a world of possibilities, it doesn’t mean every organization is ready to adopt it just yet.
For many teams, the Ingress API is not only a capable solution but also a critical component of their existing infrastructure. The Ingress API has served as the backbone of Kubernetes networking for years. Organizations with well-established environments don’t need to feel forced to abandon a stable and successful solution.
At F5, we’re deeply aware of this reality, which is why we’re not abandoning the Ingress API. We continue to invest in the development of the F5 NGINX Ingress Controller, delivering innovations and features that keep it robust, secure, and relevant for modern use cases.
For organizations that wish to stay on Ingress, we’re committed to making sure it remains a high-value solution that powers today’s Kubernetes workloads with confidence. For teams exploring the Gateway API, our purpose-built F5 NGINX Gateway Fabric combines modern simplicity, performance, and flexibility to help organizations adopt the standard with confidence.
The decision to shift to the Gateway API is a significant change that doesn’t have to happen overnight. Yet ultimately, organizations that make the shift will position themselves for growth and innovation—while laying the foundation for future success with a modern, scalable, and interoperable system that will shape the future of Kubernetes networking. Whether it’s today or down the road, at F5, we’re ready when you are. To learn more, contact us at F5.