Pods failing to pull images from harbor registry with "HTTP 401 Unauthorized Error"

Products

• VMware Telco Cloud Automation
• VMware Telco Cloud Platform

Issue/Introduction

Pods are failing to start and remain in an error state because the system is unable to pull images from the Harbor registry.

The specific error reported is an HTTP 401 Unauthorized response, despite the image path and credentials appearing correct. Pods consistently report an "error 401 unauthorized" during the image pull process.

Environment

TCA build : 2.3, 3.2, 3.3

TCP : 3.0, 4.0, 5.0.1

Cause

A configuration omission exists within the TCA Manager Partner Systems registry configuration. Because Harbor is operating as a private registry, the integration requires explicit port designation for secure communication. The Harbor URL was registered in the partner system without appending port 443 (e.g., configured as https://example.com, causing the cluster to fail secure authentication handshakes.

Resolution

1. Access the TCA Manager interface.

2. Navigate to the Partner Systems configuration section.

3. Locate the Harbor registry registration entry.

4. Update the Harbor URL to explicitly include the :443 port designation at the end of the address (e.g., modify https://example.com to https://example.com:443).

5. Save the configuration and verify the connection to ensure the cluster can authenticate and execute image pulls.