Integrate HashiCorp Vault with Redis Enterprise for Kubernetes

Configure HashiCorp Vault as the centralized secret management system for Redis Enterprise for Kubernetes.

You can configure HashiCorp Vault as the centralized secret management system for the Redis Enterprise Kubernetes operator, replacing the default Kubernetes secrets. This integration provides enhanced security, centralized secret management, and advanced features like secret rotation and audit logging.

What secrets are managed by Vault?

When Vault integration is enabled, all secrets referenced in Redis Enterprise custom resources are retrieved from Vault instead of Kubernetes secrets, including:

For complete details on supported secrets, see the RedisEnterpriseCluster API reference and RedisEnterpriseDatabase API reference.

Secret path structure

Vault secrets follow a hierarchical path structure:

<VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/<VAULT_SECRET_PREFIX>/<secret-name>

Default example:

secret/data/redisenterprise-redis-ns/my-cluster
secret/data/redisenterprise-redis-ns/my-database-password
secret/data/redisenterprise-redis-ns/tls-certificates

Prerequisites

Before integrating Redis Enterprise operator with HashiCorp Vault, ensure you have the following components properly configured:

HashiCorp Vault Requirements:

• Vault instance: HashiCorp Vault v1.15.2+ with TLS and network connectivity to your Kubernetes cluster
• Authentication method: Configure Kubernetes authentication method in Vault (see HashiCorp's Kubernetes Auth documentation)
• Secret engine: Enable and configure KV version 2 secret engine
  • Default mount path: secret/ (configurable)
  • Used to store all Redis Enterprise secrets
  • Supports versioning and metadata

Kubernetes Requirements:

• Vault Agent Injector: Deploy the HashiCorp Vault Agent Injector
  • Enables automatic secret injection into pods
  • See Vault Agent Injector tutorial
• Network access: Ensure Kubernetes cluster can reach Vault
  • Configure appropriate network policies and firewall rules
  • Vault typically runs on port 8200 (HTTPS)
• Service accounts: Proper RBAC configuration for operator service accounts

Vault editions:

This guide supports both Vault Community and Enterprise editions:

• Vault Community: Use all commands without -namespace flags or VAULT_NAMESPACE parameters
• Vault Enterprise: Supports namespaces for logical isolation and multi-tenancy (separate from Kubernetes namespaces)

Minimum token TTL:

Configure Vault token policies with minimum TTL of 1 hour:

• Prevents frequent token renewal overhead
• Ensures stable operation during maintenance windows
• See Vault token management

Deployment scenarios

This guide covers the most common deployment scenario with the following assumptions:

• Vault Enterprise with namespace support (adapt for Community Edition by removing namespace parameters)
• Multiple Redis Enterprise clusters in the same Kubernetes cluster
• Namespace isolation using Kubernetes namespace suffixes for Vault configurations
• Production security with proper RBAC and network policies

Configure the operator

1. Configure Vault policies and roles

   Create a policy that grants the Redis Enterprise operator read access to secrets:

   vault policy write -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE> - <<EOF
   path "secret/data/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/*" {
     capabilities = ["create", "read", "update", "delete", "list"]
   }
   path "secret/metadata/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/*" {
     capabilities = ["list"]
   }
   EOF
   

   Parameter explanation:

   • <VAULT_NAMESPACE>: Your Vault Enterprise namespace (omit for Community Edition)
   • <K8S_NAMESPACE>: Kubernetes namespace where Redis Enterprise operator is deployed

   Configure a Vault role that binds the operator's service account to the policy:

   vault write -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> auth/<AUTH_PATH>/role/redis-enterprise-operator-<K8S_NAMESPACE> \
           bound_service_account_names="redis-enterprise-operator" \
           bound_service_account_namespaces=<K8S_NAMESPACE> \
           policies=redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>
   

   Parameter explanation:

   • <AUTH_PATH>: Kubernetes auth method path in Vault (default: kubernetes)
   • Role name includes namespace for multi-tenant isolation

2. Configure operator environment

   Create a ConfigMap with Vault configuration for the Redis Enterprise operator:

   # operator-environment-config.yaml
   apiVersion: v1
   kind: ConfigMap
   metadata:
     name: operator-environment-config
     namespace: <K8S_NAMESPACE>
   data:
     CREDENTIAL_TYPE: "vault"
     VAULT_SERVER_FQDN: "<VAULT_FQDN>"
     VAULT_SERVICE_PORT_HTTPS: "8200"
     VAULT_SECRET_ROOT: "secret"
     VAULT_SECRET_PREFIX: "redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>"
     VAULT_ROLE: "redis-enterprise-operator-<K8S_NAMESPACE>"
     VAULT_AUTH_PATH: "<AUTH_PATH>"
     VAULT_NAMESPACE: "<VAULT_NAMESPACE>"
     VAULT_CACHE_SECRET_EXPIRATION_SECONDS: "120"
   

   Apply the configuration:

   kubectl apply -f operator-environment-config.yaml
   

   Configuration parameters:

   Parameter	Description	Default	Required
   CREDENTIAL_TYPE	Must be set to "vault" to enable Vault integration	-	Yes
   VAULT_SERVER_FQDN	Vault server hostname (e.g., vault.vault-ns.svc.cluster.local)	-	Yes
   VAULT_SERVICE_PORT_HTTPS	Vault HTTPS port	8200	Yes
   VAULT_SECRET_ROOT	KV-v2 secret engine mount path	secret	Yes
   VAULT_SECRET_PREFIX	Prefix for all Redis Enterprise secrets	redisenterprise	Yes
   VAULT_ROLE	Vault role for operator authentication	redis-enterprise-operator	Yes
   VAULT_AUTH_PATH	Kubernetes auth method path	kubernetes	Yes
   VAULT_NAMESPACE	Vault Enterprise namespace	-	Enterprise only
   VAULT_CACHE_SECRET_EXPIRATION_SECONDS	Secret cache duration	120	No

   Secret path construction: Secrets are stored at <VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/data/<VAULT_SECRET_PREFIX>/<secret-name>

   
   

3. Deploy the operator

   Deploy the Redis Enterprise operator following the standard installation guide.

   Warning:

   The operator pod will not be ready until the admission controller secret is stored in Vault (covered in the next step).
   
   

4. Configure admission controller secret

   Generate and store the admission controller TLS certificate in Vault:

   kubectl exec -it $(kubectl get pod -l name=redis-enterprise-operator -o jsonpath='{.items[0].metadata.name}') \
     -c redis-enterprise-operator -- /usr/local/bin/generate-tls -infer | tail -4 > output.json
   

   Copy the certificate file to Vault (if Vault is running in Kubernetes):

   kubectl cp output.json vault-0:/tmp -n vault
   

   Store the certificate in Vault:

   vault kv put -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> <VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/admission-tls @output.json
   

   Note:

   Once the operator is running with Vault integration, proceed to create Redis Enterprise clusters. Do not create clusters before completing this setup.
   
   

5. Create Vault CA certificate secret

   Create a Kubernetes secret containing the Certificate Authority certificate used by your Vault instance:

   kubectl create secret generic vault-ca-cert \
           --namespace <K8S_NAMESPACE> \
           --from-file=vault.ca=<vault-ca-cert-file-path>
   

   Warning:

   The Vault server certificate must be signed by the Certificate Authority provided in this secret.

Create Redis Enterprise clusters

1. Generate cluster credentials

   Unlike standard deployments, Vault integration requires manually creating cluster credentials:

   # Generate a secure random password
   openssl rand -base64 32
   

   Store credentials in Vault:

   vault kv put -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> \
     <VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/<REC_NAME> \
     username=<YOUR_USERNAME> \
     password=<YOUR_PASSWORD>
   

   Important notes:

   • The username field in the REC spec is ignored when using Vault
   • The username from the Vault secret takes precedence
   • Use strong, unique passwords for each cluster
   
   

2. Create cluster service account role

   Configure a Vault role for the Redis Enterprise cluster's service account:

   vault write -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> \
     auth/<AUTH_PATH>/role/redis-enterprise-rec-<K8S_NAMESPACE> \
     bound_service_account_names=<REC_NAME> \
     bound_service_account_namespaces=<K8S_NAMESPACE> \
     policies=redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>
   

   
   

3. Deploy Redis Enterprise cluster

   Create the RedisEnterpriseCluster resource with Vault configuration:

   apiVersion: app.redislabs.com/v1
   kind: RedisEnterpriseCluster
   metadata:
     name: rec
     namespace: <K8S_NAMESPACE>
     labels:
       app: redis-enterprise
   spec:
     nodes: 3
     clusterCredentialSecretName: rec
     clusterCredentialSecretType: vault
     clusterCredentialSecretRole: redis-enterprise-rec-<K8S_NAMESPACE>
     vaultCASecret: vault-ca-cert
     podAnnotations:
       vault.hashicorp.com/auth-path: auth/<AUTH_PATH>
       vault.hashicorp.com/namespace: <VAULT_NAMESPACE>
   

   Apply the configuration:

   kubectl apply -f redis-enterprise-cluster.yaml
   

   Key configuration fields:

   Field	Description	Example
   clusterCredentialSecretName	Name of the secret in Vault containing cluster credentials	rec
   clusterCredentialSecretType	Must be set to vault	vault
   clusterCredentialSecretRole	Vault role for cluster authentication	redis-enterprise-rec-<K8S_NAMESPACE>
   vaultCASecret	Kubernetes secret containing Vault's CA certificate	vault-ca-cert
   podAnnotations	Vault agent annotations for pod-level configuration	See example above

Create Redis Enterprise databases

To create a Redis Enterprise database (REDB) with Vault integration:

1. Create database password in Vault:

   vault kv put -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> \
     <VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/redb-<DATABASE_NAME> \
     password=<DATABASE_PASSWORD>
   

   
   

2. Create the REDB custom resource: Follow the standard database creation process. The REC configuration automatically enables Vault integration for all databases.

   
   

3. Configure additional secrets (optional): Store additional REDB secrets in the path redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/. Secrets must comply with the REDB secrets schema.

For complete field documentation, see the Redis Enterprise database API reference.

Redis Enterprise Remote Cluster secrets

The secretName field is supported and should be stored in HashiCorp Vault when the Redis Enterprise cluster uses Vault as a secret source.

Redis Enterprise Active-Active database secrets

REAADB resources include REDB specifications in the globalConfigurations field. All secret names specified in these configurations are supported and should be stored in HashiCorp Vault when the Redis Enterprise cluster uses Vault as a secret source.

Manage secrets

Redis Enterprise cluster secrets

Example REC configuration with all certificates

apiVersion: app.redislabs.com/v1
kind: RedisEnterpriseCluster
metadata:
  name: rec
  labels:
    app: redis-enterprise
spec:
  nodes: 3
  licenseSecretName: <VAULT_SECRET_NAME>
  clusterCredentialSecretName: <VAULT_SECRET_NAME>
  certificates:
    apiCertificateSecretName: <VAULT_SECRET_NAME>
    cmCertificateSecretName: <VAULT_SECRET_NAME>
    metricsExporterCertificateSecretName: <VAULT_SECRET_NAME>
    proxyCertificateSecretName: <VAULT_SECRET_NAME>
    syncerCertificateSecretName: <VAULT_SECRET_NAME>
    ldapClientCertificateSecretName: <VAULT_SECRET_NAME>
  # Vault configuration
  clusterCredentialSecretType: vault
  clusterCredentialSecretRole: redis-enterprise-rec-<K8S_NAMESPACE>
  vaultCASecret: vault-ca-cert
  podAnnotations:
    vault.hashicorp.com/auth-path: auth/<AUTH_PATH>
    vault.hashicorp.com/namespace: <VAULT_NAMESPACE>

You can also update certificates using kubectl patch:

kubectl patch rec rec --type merge --patch '{"spec": {"certificates": {"apiCertificateSecretName": "<VAULT_SECRET_NAME>"}}}'

Database secrets

Database passwords

Store database passwords in Vault using the database name as the secret key:

vault kv put -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> \
  <VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/<DATABASE_NAME> \
  password=<DATABASE_PASSWORD>

Backup storage credentials

Store backup storage credentials for Redis Enterprise databases:

vault kv put -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> \
  <VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/<BACKUP_SECRET_NAME> \
  AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=<access_key> \
  AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=<secret_key>

TLS certificates

Store TLS certificates for database connections:

vault kv put -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> \
  <VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/<CERT_SECRET_NAME> \
  tls.crt=<certificate_content> \
  tls.key=<private_key_content>

Troubleshooting

Common Issues and Solutions

Operator pod not ready

Symptoms: Operator pod remains in Pending or CrashLoopBackOff state

Causes and solutions:

1. Missing admission controller secret:

   # Check if admission-tls secret exists in Vault
   vault kv get -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> <VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/admission-tls
   

2. Vault CA certificate issues:

   # Verify vault-ca-cert secret exists
   kubectl get secret vault-ca-cert -n <K8S_NAMESPACE>
   
   # Check certificate content
   kubectl get secret vault-ca-cert -n <K8S_NAMESPACE> -o jsonpath='{.data.vault\.ca}' | base64 -d
   

3. Network connectivity:

   # Test Vault connectivity from operator pod
   kubectl exec -it <operator-pod> -c redis-enterprise-operator -- \
     curl -k https://<VAULT_FQDN>:8200/v1/sys/health
   

Authentication failures

Symptoms: Failed to authenticate with Vault errors in operator logs

Solutions:

1. Verify Vault role configuration:

   vault read -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> auth/<AUTH_PATH>/role/redis-enterprise-operator-<K8S_NAMESPACE>
   

2. Check service account token:

   # Verify service account exists
   kubectl get serviceaccount redis-enterprise-operator -n <K8S_NAMESPACE>
   
   # Check token mount
   kubectl describe pod <operator-pod> -n <K8S_NAMESPACE> | grep -A5 "Mounts:"
   

Secret retrieval failures

Symptoms: Failed to read Vault secret errors

Solutions:

1. Verify secret exists:

   vault kv get -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> <VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/<secret-name>
   

2. Check policy permissions:

   vault policy read -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>
   

3. Validate secret format:

   # Cluster credentials must have 'username' and 'password' keys
   vault kv get -format=json -namespace=<VAULT_NAMESPACE> <VAULT_SECRET_ROOT>/redisenterprise-<K8S_NAMESPACE>/<cluster-name>
   

Debugging commands

Check operator logs:

kubectl logs -f deployment/redis-enterprise-operator -n <K8S_NAMESPACE> -c redis-enterprise-operator

Verify Vault configuration:

kubectl get configmap operator-environment-config -n <K8S_NAMESPACE> -o yaml

Test Vault authentication:

# From within operator pod
kubectl exec -it <operator-pod> -n <K8S_NAMESPACE> -c redis-enterprise-operator -- \
  cat /var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/token