WSO2 APIM Open Shift Deployment YAML error for '@' value in password

In this blog, I would like to share a small but tricky experience while working with Open Shift Deployment of WSO2 API Manager.

Scenario

I have been using WSO2 APIM deployment template YAML from official Github repository and customized the same as per the environment. The important change was using external database MSSQL Server where the DB & password for respective databases  were created by DBAs.

Problem Statement

Once I configured the DB details and executed my YAML, it was successful. However when I checked the POD logs it shows below error-

found character '@' that cannot start any token. (Do not use @ for indentation)

 in 'string', line 286, column 21:

              password: @x!~#321228H

Cause

The password value specified in YAML file contains '@' symbol in the beginning of the password and YAML considered it as indentation and hence caused error  

Solution

To overcome this problem, we need to either change the db password with a character in the beginning or place the password value inside single quotes as shown below-

password: '@x!~#321228H'

This resolves the issue.