HashiCorp Vault

What is HashiCorp Vault stack

HashiCorp Vault is a popular open-source tool designed for secrets management, data protection, and access control in modern IT infrastructure. It provides a secure and centralized way to manage sensitive information, such as passwords, API keys, tokens, encryption keys, and other confidential data that applications and services require for their operation.

Who is using HashiCorp Vault

The HashiCorp Vault stack is widely used in modern DevOps and cloud-native environments to securely manage secrets, protect sensitive data, and enhance overall security posture. It offers a robust solution for organizations aiming to centralize and secure their secrets management while maintaining efficient access controls.

• Software Developers
• System Administrators

What are the benefits of using HashiCorp Vault stack

• The stack is based on docker containers, which makes it effortlessly portable and scalable
• A single server can hold more than one container as there are no duplicates of OS for each app
• Portainer can assist you in managing your containers
• The suite comprises the Linux operating system's preset settings, like tuned network settings, preconfigured swap, etc.

How to use

Following the successful deployment of HashiCorp Vault, an email notification will be sent to you, containing all essential information regarding how to access both your server and the Vault Web UI. You'll simply need to follow the provided steps to seamlessly finalize the process.

How to integrate Vault into your project

HashiCorp Vault can be integrated into your project using a Docker environment. Docker provides a convenient way to package and deploy applications, including HashiCorp Vault, within isolated containers.

For example, integrating HashiCorp Vault into your Python project involves using the hvac library to interact with Vault's API. Here's a step-by-step guide to help you integrate HashiCorp Vault into your Python project:

1. Install hvac library:
Start by installing the hvac library using pip. Open your terminal and run:

pip install hvac

2. Import and Configure:
Import the necessary modules from hvac, and configure the Vault client with the appropriate Vault server URL and authentication method.

import hvac  
# Configure the Vault client
client = hvac.Client(     
    url='http://your-vault-server:8200',  # Replace with your Vault server URL 
    token='your-vault-token'              # Replace with your Vault token or use another authentication method
)

3. Use Secrets in Your Project:
You can use Vault-stored secrets in your Python project. For example, let's say you have a secret stored in Vault under the path secret/myapp/api_key. You can retrieve this secret and use it in your application:

secret = client.read('secret/myapp/api_key') 

if secret and 'data' in secret:     
    api_key = secret['data'].get('api_key')     
        print(f"API Key: {api_key}") 
    else:     
        print("Secret not found or invalid")

See Java integration example