# role_include_vault-check

An include-only Ansible role to check if HashiCorp Vault variables truly exist

# Import

Whenever you work with HashiCorp Vault data stored in a `kv` secrets engine you may want to import this role into whatever playbook you're running.

Given a `role` directory create a `meta` subdirectory underneath it with a file named `requirements.yml`.

```
role
├── meta                   <--- Create this
│   └── requirements.yml   <--- Create this
└── tasks
    └── main.yml
```

In `requirements.yml` add:

```
- src: 'https://quico.space/quico-ansible/role_include_vault-check.git'
  version: 'master'
```

Now whenver you import `role` for example via `ansible-galaxy install ...` you'll automatically get this one downloaded as well. You can optionally leave out `version: 'master'` since this is the default version anyways, meaning the `role_include_vault-check` newest master commit. The `version:` attribute helps you pin a version, for example as `version: 'v1.0.0'` which will instead pull `role_include_vault-check` Git tag `v1.0.0`. Side note, this role follows the [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/) standard. A Git tag name `v1.0.0` refers to Semantic Version `1.0.0`.

# Use it

## Generic setup

From your `role` call this one like so:

```
- name: 'If a secret is missing: Fail progress'
  import_role:
    name: 'role_include_vault-check'
  vars:
    - vault_check_base_path: '{{ vault_check_base_path }}'
    - vault_check_inc_vault_data: '{{ vault_check_vault_data }}'
    - vault_check_fail_checks:
      - 'password',
      - 'password_salt'
```

This `role_include_vault-check` expects two variables in your `import_role` task for example via the `vars` statement:

1. `vault_check_base_path`: The path in HashiCorp Vault's `kv` secrets engine where secrets are located. Has cosmetic purpose only to inform the user where a key-value check succeeded or failed.

1. `vault_check_inc_vault_data`: The Vault data dictionary we want checked.

1. `vault_check_fail_checks`: A list of keys located at `vault_check_base_path` for which you want to confirm that they are non-empty.

    Can either be defined in place like so:
    ```
    - vault_check_fail_checks:
      - 'password'
      - 'password_salt'
    ```

    Or can use a list variable defined elsewhere:
    ```
    - vault_check_fail_checks: '{{ some_list }}'
    ```

## In context

In a real-world use case you'll likely first query HashiCorp Vault for key-value pairs for example like so:

```
- name: 'Get secrets'
  no_log: 'true'
  loop_control:
    loop_var: 'server'
  with_community.hashi_vault.vault_kv2_get: '{{ local_os_password_vault_paths }}'
  ansible.builtin.set_fact:
    vault_data: '{{ vault_data | default({}) | combine (server.secret) }}'
```

The `vault_kv2_get` lookup plug-in (see [vault_kv2_get lookup documentation](https://docs.ansible.com/ansible/devel/collections/community/hashi_vault/vault_kv2_get_lookup.html)) iterates over variables you want loaded from Vault. For each iteration it stores the iteration's output in `loop_var: 'server'`. From that output we only really care about the `server.secret` dictionary. We append that to a `vault_data` dictionary which is first initialized as an empty dictionary and then expanded per iteration. When done `vault_data` contains key-values pair for all Vault variables.

The next step can be this `role_include_vault-check` to hard-fail in case a key turned out to have an empty value.

```
- name: 'If a secret is missing: Fail progress'
  import_role:
    name: 'role_include_vault-check'
  vars:
    - vault_check_base_path: '{{ local_os_password_vault_base }}'
    - vault_check_inc_vault_data: '{{ vault_data }}'
    - vault_check_fail_checks: '{{ local_os_password_vault_vars }}'
```

## Output

Ansible's task output will be for example:

```
TASK [...] ****************************************************************************************
ok: ...

TASK [role_include_vault-check : If a secret is missing: Fail progress] ***************************
ok: [fully.qualified.domain.name] => (item=password) => {
    "msg": "Vault has secret 'password' at 'name/domain/qualified/fully/os/root'"
}
ok: [fully.qualified.domain.name] => (item=password_salt) => {
    "msg": "Vault has secret 'password_salt' at 'name/domain/qualified/fully/os/root'"
}

TASK [...] ****************************************************************************************
ok: ...

```