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HashiCorp Vault: Secrets Management for Kubernetes

HashiCorp Vault is a tool for securely managing secrets, such as API keys, passwords, and certificates. It provides a centralized solution for storing, accessing, and controlling sensitive data in Kubernetes clusters. This guide provides an overview of Vault, its benefits, and how to integrate it with Kubernetes.

🚧 Work in Progress

This page is currently under construction. Please check back later for detailed information about HashiCorp Vault setup and usage in Kubernetes.

Table of Contents​

Introduction​

HashiCorp Vault is a powerful tool for managing secrets in Kubernetes. It provides fine-grained access control, encryption, and auditing capabilities, ensuring that sensitive data is securely stored and accessed.

Why Use HashiCorp Vault?​

  • Centralized Secrets Management: Store and manage secrets in a single, secure location.
  • Dynamic Secrets: Generate secrets on demand, such as database credentials.
  • Access Control: Use policies to control who can access specific secrets.
  • Audit Logging: Track access to secrets for compliance and security purposes.

Architecture​

HashiCorp Vault integrates with Kubernetes as follows:

  1. Vault Server: The central component that stores and manages secrets.
  2. Kubernetes Auth Method: Allows Kubernetes workloads to authenticate with Vault using service accounts.
  3. Secrets Injection: Secrets can be injected into pods as environment variables or files.

Installation​

Note: Detailed installation steps will be added soon.

Configuration​

To configure Vault with Kubernetes, you need to enable the Kubernetes authentication method and define policies. Example configuration:

Enable Kubernetes Auth Method​

vault auth enable kubernetes
vault write auth/kubernetes/config \
    token_reviewer_jwt="$(cat /var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/token)" \
    kubernetes_host="https://$KUBERNETES_PORT_443_TCP_ADDR:443" \
    kubernetes_ca_cert=@/var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/ca.crt

Define Policy​

path "secret/data/my-app/*" {
  capabilities = ["read"]
}

Create Role​

vault write auth/kubernetes/role/my-app \
    bound_service_account_names=my-app-sa \
    bound_service_account_namespaces=my-app-namespace \
    policies=my-app-policy \
    ttl=1h

Best Practices​

  • Use namespaces to isolate secrets for different applications.
  • Regularly rotate secrets to minimize exposure.
  • Implement access control policies to restrict access to sensitive data.
  • Monitor Vault logs for unauthorized access attempts.
  • Use encryption for data at rest and in transit.
  • Regularly back up Vault data to prevent data loss.
  • Test disaster recovery procedures to ensure quick recovery in case of failure.
  • Use dynamic secrets for databases and other services to minimize the risk of credential exposure.

Stay tuned for more detailed information on setting up and using HashiCorp Vault in Kubernetes!