Conditionals — Orkestra

Conditionals are the logic layer in Orkestra. They let you express when something should happen — without writing Go code.

A conditional is a when: or anyOf: block attached to a resource, a status field, or a hook. Orkestra evaluates it on every reconcile. If the condition passes, the block runs. If it fails, the block is skipped cleanly — no error, no partial state.

Where conditionals work

Location	Effect
`onCreate`, `onReconcile`, `onDelete` resources	Resource is created/updated/deleted only when conditions pass
`status.fields` entries	Status field is written only when conditions pass
Motifs	Conditions apply inside motif templates the same way

`when:` — AND semantics

All conditions must pass. If any one fails, the block is skipped.

services:
  - name: "{{ .metadata.name }}-public"
    type: LoadBalancer
    when:
      - field: spec.exposePublicly
        equals: "true"
      - field: spec.environment
        equals: "production"

This service is created only when exposePublicly is true and environment is production.

`anyOf:` — OR semantics

At least one condition must pass.

services:
  - name: "{{ .metadata.name }}-svc"
    anyOf:
      - field: spec.environment
        equals: "production"
      - field: spec.forceExpose
        equals: "true"

The service is created when either condition is true.

Condition operators

Operator	Meaning
`equals`	Exact string match (default)
`notEquals`	String mismatch
`contains`	Substring match
`prefix`	Starts with
`suffix`	Ends with
`exists`	Field is non-empty
`notExists`	Field is absent or empty
`gt`	Numerically greater than
`lt`	Numerically less than
`in`	Member of comma-separated list

Where to go next

Resource Conditions — conditional creation for onCreate, onReconcile, onDelete
Async Reconciliation — multi-phase workflows using when: gates
Status Conditions — state machines via when: on status.fields

Try it

ork init --pack intermediate
cd 05-when-conditions

Follow the README — one CRD, three tiers, different resources at each tier, zero Go code.