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106 lines
4.3 KiB
Markdown
106 lines
4.3 KiB
Markdown
# API Overview
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## Architecture
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The External Secrets Operator extends Kubernetes with [Custom
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Resources](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/extend-kubernetes/api-extension/custom-resources/),
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which define where secrets live and how to synchronize them. The controller
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fetches secrets from an external API and creates Kubernetes
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[secrets](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/configuration/secret/). If the
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secret from the external API changes, the controller will reconcile the state in
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the cluster and update the secrets accordingly.
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## Resource model
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To understand the mechanics of the operator let's start with the data model. The
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SecretStore references an bucket of key/value pairs. But because every external
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API is slightly different this bucket may be e.g. an instance of an Azure
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KeyVault or a AWS Secrets Manager in a certain AWS Account and region. Please
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take a look at the provider documentation to see what the Bucket actually maps
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to.
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### SecretStore
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The idea behind the [SecretStore](api-secretstore.md) resource is to separate concerns of
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authentication/access and the actual Secret and configuration needed for
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workloads. The ExternalSecret specifies what to fetch, the SecretStore specifies
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how to access. This resource is namespaced.
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``` yaml
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{% include 'basic-secret-store.yaml' %}
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```
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The `SecretStore` contains references to secrets which hold credentials to
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access the external API.
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### ExternalSecret
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An [ExternalSecret](api-externalsecret.md) declares what data to fetch. It has a reference to a
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`SecretStore` which knows how to access that data. The controller uses that
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`ExternalSecret` as a blueprint to create secrets.
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``` yaml
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{% include 'basic-external-secret.yaml' %}
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```
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### ClusterSecretStore
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The [ClusterSecretStore](api-clustersecretstore.md) is a global, cluster-wide SecretStore that can be
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referenced from all namespaces. You can use it to provide a central gateway to your secret provider.
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## Behavior
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The External Secret Operator (ESO for brevity) reconciles `ExternalSecrets` in
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the following manner:
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1. ESO uses `spec.secretStoreRef` to find an appropriate `SecretStore`. If it
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doesn't exist or the `spec.controller` field doesn't match it won't further
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process this ExternalSecret.
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2. ESO instanciates an external API client using the specified credentials from
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the `SecretStore` spec.
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3. ESO fetches the secrets as requested by the `ExternalSecret`, it will decode
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the secrets if required
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5. ESO creates an `Kind=Secret` based on the template provided by
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`ExternalSecret.target.template`. The `Secret.data` can be templated using
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the secret values from the external API.
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6. ESO ensures that the secret values stay in sync with the external API
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## Roles and responsibilities
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The External Secret Operator is designed to target the following persona:
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* **Cluster Operator**: The cluster operator is responsible for setting up the
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External Secret Operator, managing access policies and creating
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ClusterSecretStores.
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* **Application developer**: The Application developer is responsible for
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defining ExternalSecrets and the application configuration
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Each persona will roughly map to a Kubernetes RBAC role. Depending on your
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environment these roles can map to a single user. **Note:** There is no Secret
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Operator that handles the lifecycle of the secret, this is out of the scope of
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ESO.
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## Access Control
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The External Secrets Operator runs as a deployment in your cluster with elevated
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privileges. It will create/read/update secrets in all namespaces and has access
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to secrets stored in some external API. Ensure that the credentials you provide
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give ESO the least privilege necessary.
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Design your `SecretStore`/`ClusterSecretStore` carefully! Be sure to restrict
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access of application developers to read only certain
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keys in a shared environment.
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You should also consider using Kubernetes' admission control system (e.g.
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[OPA](https://www.openpolicyagent.org/) or [Kyverno](https://kyverno.io/)) for
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fine-grained access control.
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## Running multiple Controller
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You can run multiple controller within the cluster. One controller can be
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limited to only process `SecretStores` with a predefined `spec.controller`
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field.
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!!! note "Testers welcome"
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This is not widely tested. Please help us test the setup and/or document use-cases.
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