---
layout: docs
page_title: GatewayClass resource configuration reference
description: >-
  A `GatewayClass` resource specifies a controller name, controller parameters, and global `Gateway` options for Consul API Gateway. Learn about its configuration model and reference specifications, and review an example configuration.
---

# GatewayClass resource configuration reference

This topic provides describes how to configure the `GatewayClass` resource, a generic Kubernetes gateway object used as a template for creating `Gateway` resources.

## Introduction

The `GatewayClass` specification includes the name of the controller (`controllerName`) and an API object containing controller-specific configuration resources within the cluster (`parametersRef`). The value of the `controllerName` field must be set to `hashicorp.com/consul-api-gateway-controller`.

When gateways are created from a `GatewayClass`, they use the parameters specified in the `GatewayClass` at the time of instantiation.

The `GatewayClass` resource is a generic Kubernetes gateway object. For configuration specific to Consul API Gateway, refer to [GatewayClassConfig](/consul/docs/reference/k8s/api-gateway/gatewayclassconfig).

## Configuration model
The following outline shows how to format the configurations in the `GatewayClass` object. Click on a property name to view details about the configuration.

* [`controllerName`](#controllername): string | required
* [`parametersRef`](#parametersref): object | optional
  * [`group`](#parametersref): string | required if `parametersRef` is set
  * [`kind`](#parametersref): string | required if `parametersRef` is set
  * [`name`](#parametersref): string | required if `parametersRef` is set
* [`description`](#description): string | optional

## Specification

This topic provides details about the configuration parameters.

### controllerName
Specifies the name of the controller that manages the gateways generated by this class.
The value must always be `hashicorp.com/consul-api-gateway-controller`.

* Type: string
* Required: required

### parametersRef
Defines an API object that references additional configurations required by the gateway controller. The following table describes the fields that you must include in the `parametersRef` configuration.

* Type: object
* Required: optional

| Parameter | Description | Type | Required |
| ---       | ---         | ---      | --- |
| `group` | Specifies the Kubernetes group that the `parametersRef` is a member of. <br/>The value must always be `api-gateway.consul.hashicorp.com`.<br/>The `parametersRef.group` is always the same across all deployments of Consul API Gateway. | String | Required |
| `kind` | Specifies the type of Kubernetes object that the `parametersRef` configuration defines. <br/>The value must always be `GatewayClassConfig`. <br/> This `parametersRef.kind` is always the same across all deployments of Consul API Gateway. | String | Required |
| `name` | Specifies a name for the `GatewayClassConfig` object. | String | Required |


### description
Specifies a human-readable description of the gateway class. We recommend using the description field to describe the gateway class's purpose.

* Type: string
* Required: optional

## Example Configuration
The following example creates a gateway class called `example-gateway-class`:

<CodeBlockConfig filename="gateway.yaml">

```yaml
apiVersion: gateway.networking.k8s.io/v1alpha2
kind: GatewayClass
metadata:
  name: example-gateway-class
spec:
  controllerName: 'hashicorp.com/consul-api-gateway-controller'
  parametersRef:
    group: api-gateway.consul.hashicorp.com
    kind: GatewayClassConfig
    name: example-gateway-class-config
  description: The gateway class is for creating test gateways class configurations
```
</CodeBlockConfig>

Refer to the [Kubernetes Gateway API documentation](https://gateway-api.sigs.k8s.io/v1alpha2/references/spec/#gateway.networking.k8s.io/v1alpha2.GatewayClass) for details about configuring gateway classes.

