vault Block

The vault block configures Nomad's integration with HashiCorp's Vault. When configured, Nomad can create and distribute Vault tokens to tasks automatically. For more information on the architecture and setup, please see the Nomad and Vault integration documentation.

vault {
  enabled = true
  address = "https://vault.company.internal:8200"
}

vault Parameters

• address - (string: "https://vault.service.consul:8200") - Specifies the address to the Vault server. This must include the protocol, host/ip, and port given in the format protocol://host:port. If your Vault installation is behind a load balancer, this should be the address of the load balancer.

• allow_unauthenticated (bool: true) - Specifies if users submitting jobs to the Nomad server should be required to provide their own Vault token, proving they have access to the policies listed in the job. This option should be disabled in an untrusted environment.

• enabled (bool: false) - Specifies if the Vault integration should be activated.

• create_from_role (string: "") - Specifies the role to create tokens from. The token given to Nomad does not have to be created from this role but must have "update" capability on "auth/token/create/<create_from_role>" path in Vault. If this value is unset and the token is created from a role, the value is defaulted to the role the token is from. This is largely for backwards compatibility. It is recommended to set the create_from_role field if Nomad is deriving child tokens from a role.

• task_token_ttl (string: "72h") - Specifies the TTL of created tokens when using a root token. This is specified using a label suffix like "30s" or "1h".

• ca_file (string: "") - Specifies an optional path to the CA certificate used for Vault communication. If unspecified, this will fallback to the default system CA bundle, which varies by OS and version.

• ca_path (string: "") - Specifies an optional path to a folder containing CA certificates to be used for Vault communication. If unspecified, this will fallback to the default system CA bundle, which varies by OS and version.

• cert_file (string: "") - Specifies the path to the certificate used for Vault communication. This must be set if tls_require_and_verify_client_cert is enabled in Vault.

• key_file (string: "") - Specifies the path to the private key used for Vault communication. If this is set then you need to also set cert_file. This must be set if tls_require_and_verify_client_cert is enabled in Vault.

• namespace (string: "") - Specifies the Vault namespace used by the Vault integration. If non-empty, this namespace will be used on all Vault API calls.

• tls_server_name (string: "") - Specifies an optional string used to set the SNI host when connecting to Vault via TLS.

• tls_skip_verify (bool: false) - Specifies if SSL peer validation should be enforced.

  It is strongly discouraged to disable SSL verification. Instead, you should install a custom CA bundle and validate against it. Disabling SSL verification can allow an attacker to easily compromise your cluster.

• token (string: "") - Specifies the parent Vault token to use to derive child tokens for jobs requesting tokens. Only required on Nomad servers. Nomad client agents use the allocation's token when contacting Vault. Visit the Vault Integration Guide to see how to generate an appropriate token in Vault.

  It is strongly discouraged to place the token as a configuration parameter like this, since the token could be checked into source control accidentally. Users should set the VAULT_TOKEN environment variable when starting the agent instead.

vault Examples

The following examples only show the vault blocks. Remember that the vault block is only valid in the placements listed above.

Nomad Server

This example shows an example Vault configuration for a Nomad server:

vault {
  enabled     = true
  ca_path     = "/etc/certs/ca"
  cert_file   = "/var/certs/vault.crt"
  key_file    = "/var/certs/vault.key"

  # Address to communicate with Vault. The below is the default address if
  # unspecified.
  address     = "https://vault.service.consul:8200"

  # Embedding the token in the configuration is discouraged. Instead users
  # should set the VAULT_TOKEN environment variable when starting the Nomad
  # agent
  token       = "debecfdc-9ed7-ea22-c6ee-948f22cdd474"

  # Setting the create_from_role option causes Nomad to create tokens for tasks
  # via the provided role. This allows the role to manage what policies are
  # allowed and disallowed for use by tasks.
  create_from_role = "nomad-cluster"
}

Nomad Client

This example shows an example Vault configuration for a Nomad client:

vault {
  enabled     = true
  address     = "https://vault.service.consul:8200"
  ca_path     = "/etc/certs/ca"
  cert_file   = "/var/certs/vault.crt"
  key_file    = "/var/certs/vault.key"
}

The key difference is that the token is not necessary on the client.

vault Configuration Reloads

The Vault configuration can be reloaded on servers. This can be useful if a new token needs to be given to the servers without having to restart them. A reload can be accomplished by sending the process a SIGHUP signal.