Secret Management Archives - DEVOPS DONE RIGHT

Introduction to External Secret Operator

In today’s digital world, the protection of sensitive information has become paramount. So while working with microservices orchestrator tools such as kubernetes it is important to handle the secrets securely such as username or password, DB Password, or API Keys. Kubernetes has a built-in feature for managing secrets called secrets. But the downside of Secrets is that It doesn’t support storing or retrieving the secrets from external secret management systems like AWS Secrets Manager, HashiCorp Vault, Google Secrets Manager, Azure Key Vault, IBM Cloud Secrets Manager, and many more.

Moreover, external secret management provides encryption at rest, secret rotation policies, and many more. So in this blog, we will talk about the solution GoDaddy came up with an open-source solution called External Secrets Operator.

What is External Secret Operator?

External Secrets Operator is a tool or component that extends the functionality of Kubernetes to manage external secrets in a more secure and efficient manner. It acts as a bridge between Kubernetes and external secret management systems, allowing you to securely store and retrieve secrets from external sources. It integrates with external secret providers such as HashiCorp Vault, AWS Secrets Manager, Azure Key Vault, or other similar systems. This enables Kubernetes applications to access and utilize secrets stored in these external systems without exposing them directly within the cluster.

Handling Private Affair: A Guide to Secrets Management System

Needless to say an automated system, no matter how big or small, must be designed with scale in mind. We’ll talk about laying foundation for a robust and malleable setup which is a useful read for everyone.

In my experience as DevOps and SRE, I’ve enjoyed quite a lot of things this profession offered. From the satisfaction of fulfilled curiosities to the anxiety of unforeseen mishaps, it delivered one day after the other. The nervousness in the face of new challenges, happiness on receiving appreciation, thrill during troubleshooting, the pride after a successful implementation, and a lot more. But the one I found myself seeking was boredom. Yes, plain old silence where no surprises are met, everything runs exactly as it should and you enjoy listening to dropping pins. This is especially true when the system in question is your own design. There’s no greater sentiment. It is like watching a bird that you’ve freed soar.

Introducing Kubernetes Vault Web-hook

Initially, we had the DevOps framework in which Development and Operation team collaborated to create an “Agile” ecosystem. But nowadays a lot of people are talking about the “DevSecOps” realm in which people do not treat security as an afterthought instead of that people are inculcating security in their development and operation practices.