Add cluster (Private clusters)¶

This page shows how to add a Private cluster in the UI. API-level details are documented separately in the API reference.

Flow: create a cluster connection¶

What do I see?
Under Settings → Private clusters, you get a table of browser-local cluster connections and an Add cluster button.

What can I do?
1. Open Add cluster.
2. Enter Name and Brokers (comma-separated).
3. Choose Auth type (none, SASL/PLAIN, SCRAM-SHA-256, SCRAM-SHA-512).
4. For auth types other than none, provide username/password.
5. Optionally mark the cluster as Production.
6. Optionally configure TLS and Skip verify.
7. Optionally configure Schema Registry (URL + optional credentials/TLS).
8. Run Test connection, then Save.

When should I use this?
Use this when your cluster is not configured server-side or when you want to work with your own credentials.

Add private cluster modal

Expected result after save¶

What do I see?
The cluster appears in Private clusters, in the cluster selector, and in Fleet overview with PRIVATE tag.

What can I do?
1. Select it and start working in Topics, Groups, and Brokers.
2. Use Export JSON to back up cluster configs.
3. Use Import JSON to move them to another device/browser.

When should I use this?
Use this for cross-device migration or sharing connection configs within your team.

Common pitfalls¶

What do I see?
Connection test/save errors or missing availability in certain tabs (for example Schemas).

What can I do?
1. First test is slow/timeout: on cold DNS, first probe can be slow; retry is often much faster.
2. Schemas unavailable: without Schema Registry URL, Schemas cannot be used. Configure SR in cluster settings.
3. Auth failure: verify Auth type matches broker setup and credentials are complete.
4. Produce warning on prod: if a cluster is marked as Production, producing a message requires an extra confirmation step.
5. Name conflicts: if a private cluster has the same name as a shared cluster, shared cluster wins in selector. Use distinct names.
6. Delete is local: deleting removes the entry only from the current browser. Export before deleting if needed.

Production warning before produce

When should I use this?
Use this when connectivity behaves unexpectedly or a newly added cluster is not usable as expected.

Security note¶

Private-cluster credentials are stored in your browser and sent to backend only for requests targeting the selected private cluster. Export files include the same data.