To uniformly manage Helm charts with security controls, what is the best practice?

Storing Helm charts in OCI (Open Container Initiative) format using Artifact Registry is considered a best practice because it provides a structured and secure way to manage both public and private charts. Artifact Registry integrates seamlessly with other Google Cloud services, offering built-in security controls, policies, and access management features that enhance the overall security posture of your Helm chart distribution.

With Artifact Registry, you can leverage Google Cloud's identity and access management (IAM) to define granular permissions for users and service accounts, ensuring that only authorized personnel can access or modify the charts. This centralized management makes it easier to enforce security policies across how containers and charts are used within your environment, while also facilitating versioning and traceability.

Additionally, using OCI format aligns Helm chart storage with modern container management practices, allowing you to take advantage of existing tools and processes within your CI/CD pipelines. This integration can help automate deployments, reducing the risk of human error and improving consistency across environments.

While other methods such as running a Helm chart repository server or using GitHub Enterprise also offer ways to manage Helm charts, they may not provide the same level of built-in security and integration capabilities that Artifact Registry offers, making it a more robust solution for uniform management with security controls.