Contents
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- devops-secret-management-sealed-secrets
- devops-secret-management-cloud-specific-tools
- devops-secret-management-vault
- devops-secret-management-sops
Roadmap info from roadmap website
Secret Management
Secret management refers to the secure handling, storage, and distribution of sensitive information such as passwords, API keys, and certificates within an organization’s IT infrastructure. It involves using specialized tools and practices to protect secrets from unauthorized access while ensuring they are available to authorized systems and users when needed. Secret management solutions typically offer features like encryption at rest and in transit, access controls, auditing, rotation policies, and integration with various platforms and services. These systems aim to centralize secret storage, reduce the risk of exposure, automate secret lifecycle management, and provide seamless integration with applications and DevOps workflows. Effective secret management is crucial for maintaining security, compliance, and operational efficiency in modern, complex IT environments.
Visit the following resources to learn more:
Free Resources
- articleHow to Manage Secrets in Web Applications?
- articleWhy DevSecOps Teams Need Secrets Management
- videoDevOps Tricks for Managing Secrets in Production
Comparison
| Technology | Description | Characteristics | Use Cases | Other Tech Affinity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sealed Secrets | A Kubernetes-native secret management solution that encrypts secrets into a SealedSecret CRD that can be stored safely in Git. | - Kubernetes native - Encrypted secrets are sealed and stored as Kubernetes custom resources - Only the controller can decrypt them. | - Storing Kubernetes secrets in Git - CI/CD workflows that require storing sensitive information in version control. | - Kubernetes - GitOps tools (ArgoCD, FluxCD) - Helm |
| Cloud-Specific Tools | Cloud provider-specific tools like AWS Secrets Manager, Azure Key Vault, and Google Secret Manager, designed to manage secrets in the cloud. | - Tight integration with cloud platforms - Automatic secret rotation - IAM-based access control - API-driven access. | - Managing cloud-native infrastructure secrets - Automatically rotating secrets in cloud-based services. | - AWS, Azure, GCP native services - Terraform and cloud SDKs |
| HashiCorp Vault | A highly flexible, secure, and platform-agnostic secret management tool that supports dynamic secrets, encryption as a service, and PKI. | - Centralized, secure storage - Supports dynamic secrets - Strong access control policies (RBAC) - Works across environments (cloud, on-prem, hybrid). | - Enterprise-grade secret management - Dynamic secrets for databases, cloud services, and PKI - Encryption as a service. | - Integrates with Terraform, Consul, Kubernetes - Works with both cloud and on-prem environments - DevOps automation tools (Jenkins, Ansible) |
| SOPS (Secret OPerationS) | A tool to encrypt/decrypt files using various encryption backends (PGP, KMS, GCP KMS, Azure Key Vault), often used with GitOps. | - File-based secret management - Can encrypt YAML, JSON, and ENV files - Works with multiple encryption backends - GitOps-friendly. | - Managing encrypted configuration files in Git - GitOps workflows - Securing sensitive data in config files (Kubernetes manifests, Helm charts). | - GitOps tools (Flux, ArgoCD) - Cloud-native encryption (AWS KMS, GCP KMS, Azure) - Kubernetes |
Key Highlights:
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- Sealed Secrets is best suited for Kubernetes-native environments where secrets need to be stored securely in Git for version control.
- Cloud-Specific Tools offer excellent integration with cloud ecosystems and automatic secret rotation, making them ideal for cloud-native applications.
- Vault stands out as an enterprise-grade, platform-agnostic solution with dynamic secret generation and encryption services for hybrid environments.
- SOPS excels in GitOps workflows by allowing secure, file-based secret encryption and decryption across multiple environments using various backends.