Suggestion: Create a Blog Post to Explain Istio Ambient Mode Terminology with Illustrations

[rootsongjc]

I'd like to suggest creating a dedicated blog post on Istio.io that provides a comprehensive explanation of key Istio Ambient mode terminology. Currently, the Istio Ambient Overview section contains some descriptions of specific terms, but they are scattered throughout and lack illustrative examples.

This blog post could offer a focused, well-structured glossary of terms, along with explanatory illustrations for each major concept in Ambient mode, such as ztunnel, waypoint proxy, HBONE, GENEVE tunneling, and so on. The goal is to make the concepts easier to grasp for users, especially those new to Ambient mode, by presenting them in one consolidated post rather than across different documents.

Suggested Approach:

• Create a single blog post that serves as a visual glossary, explaining the key concepts of Istio Ambient mode in one place.
• Include diagrams for each major term to visually aid in understanding. For example, showing how ztunnel works with waypoint proxies and pod communication.
• Provide detailed yet clear explanations of terms like L4/L7 processing in Ambient mode, GENEVE tunneling, HBONE protocols, and their interactions.
• Include practical examples to show how Ambient mode operates in real Kubernetes environments.

Why This Is Valuable:

• Improved Comprehensibility: The Ambient mode concepts can be challenging to understand without visuals, especially with L4 and L7 separation. Illustrations would help users grasp these concepts more easily.
• Centralized Information: The current Ambient mode section is informative but dispersed. A single blog post dedicated to terminology would serve as a one-stop reference, improving accessibility for readers.
• Community Education: Ambient mode is a relatively new and powerful development for Istio, but its adoption can be enhanced by providing more approachable educational content.

This would greatly benefit users exploring Ambient mode and help boost Istio's adoption for those looking for lightweight and efficient service mesh solutions.

Thank you for considering this suggestion!

[craigbox]

100%. Though, to be honest, all that content will need to go in the docs too :)

one quick note, I don't think GENEVE is relevant any more? I definitely wouldn't want to confuse people with it if they're just using ambient and not debugging it. HBONE is borderline the same; I've referred to it before beacuse it does come up a lot

[rootsongjc]

Thank you for the feedback, @craigbox

I understand the importance of including this content in the official docs as well. Since the terminology list is quite extensive, I thought it might make sense to start with a blog post where we can test the overall flow and gather community feedback. Once we establish a clear and approachable way to present the terms, we can work on incorporating the most useful parts into the main documentation in a structured manner.

I’ve compiled a draft of the blog post that includes some key Ambient mode terminology and illustrative diagrams to make the concepts easier to digest. The draft is available here: Google Doc Draft. I’d love to get feedback from the community on this draft—both on the content itself and the visual style of the diagrams (which can still be adjusted).

Regarding your note on GENEVE, I appreciate the clarification. If it's not as relevant anymore, we can definitely consider removing it or repositioning it to avoid confusion, especially for users who are not in the weeds of debugging. I want to make sure the blog is as clear and beginner-friendly as possible. I’ll also take into account your thoughts on HBONE and ensure we keep the focus appropriate—maybe providing an overview without diving into too many internal details that could overwhelm new users.

Looking forward to any suggestions or thoughts you or others in the community may have. Thanks again for the guidance!