Vault documentation: updated unseal information (#15446)

* updated unseal info

* Update architecture.mdx

fixed spelling error

* updated based on feedback

* added new image

* Update website/content/docs/commands/operator/init.mdx

Co-authored-by: Yoko Hyakuna <yoko@hashicorp.com>

* Updates for accuracy

Co-authored-by: Yoko Hyakuna <yoko@hashicorp.com>
This commit is contained in:
Loann Le
2022-05-16 14:44:23 -07:00
committed by GitHub
parent 302ebee61f
commit 61dbf65673
3 changed files with 22 additions and 17 deletions

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@@ -14,16 +14,13 @@ The `operator init` command initializes a Vault server. Initialization is the
process by which Vault's storage backend is prepared to receive data. Since
Vault servers share the same storage backend in HA mode, you only need to
initialize one Vault to initialize the storage backend.
During initialization, Vault generates an in-memory root key and applies
Shamir's secret sharing algorithm to disassemble that root key into a
configuration number of key shares such that a configurable subset of those key
shares must come together to regenerate the root key. These keys are often
called "unseal keys" in Vault's documentation.
This command cannot be run against already-initialized Vault cluster.
For more information on sealing and unsealing, please the [seal concepts page](/docs/concepts/seal).
During initialization, Vault generates a root key, which is stored in the storage backend alongside all other Vault data. The root key itself is encrypted and requires an _unseal key_ to decrypt it.
The default Vault configuration uses [Shamir's Secret Sharing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shamir%27s_Secret_Sharing) to split the root key into a configured number of shards (referred as key shares, or unseal keys). A certain threshold of shards is required to reconstruct the root key, which is then used to decrypt the Vault's encryption key.
Refer to the [Seal/Unseal](/docs/concepts/seal#seal-unseal) documentation for further details.
## Examples

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@@ -33,16 +33,20 @@ When the Vault server is started, it must be provided with a storage backend so
that data is available across restarts. The HTTP API similarly must be started
by the Vault server on start so that clients can interact with it.
Once started, the Vault is in a _sealed_ state. Before any operation can be
performed on the Vault it must be unsealed. This is done by providing the unseal
keys. When the Vault is initialized it generates an encryption key which is used
to protect all the data. That key is protected by a root key. By default,
Vault uses a technique known as [Shamir's secret sharing
algorithm](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shamir's_Secret_Sharing) to split the
root key into 5 shares, any 3 of which are required to reconstruct the master
key.
When a Vault server is started, it starts in a _sealed_ state. Before any
operation can be performed on the Vault, it must be _unsealed_. This is done by
providing the unseal keys. When the Vault is initialized, it generates an
encryption key which is used to protect all Vault data. This key is protected by
a root key. By default, Vault uses [Shamir's Secret
Sharing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shamir%27s_Secret_Sharing) to split the
root key into a configured number of shards (referred as key shares or unseal
keys). A certain threshold of shards is required to reconstruct the root key,
which is then used to decrypt the Vault's encryption key.
[![Vault Shamir Secret Sharing Algorithm](/img/vault-shamir-secret-sharing.svg)](/img/vault-shamir-secret-sharing.svg)
![Unseal keys](/img/unseal.png)
Refer to the [Seal/Unseal](/docs/concepts/seal#seal-unseal) documentation for
further details.
The number of shares and the minimum threshold required can both be specified.
Shamir's technique can be disabled, and the root key can be used directly for
@@ -51,6 +55,10 @@ data in the storage backend, and enters the _unsealed_ state. Once unsealed,
Vault loads all of the configured audit devices, auth methods, and secrets
engines.
-> The default Vault configuration uses a Shamir seal; however, Vault can be [auto
unseal](/docs/concepts/seal#auto-unseal) by a trusted cloud key management
system (KMS) or hardware security module (HSM) to increase security.
The configuration of those audit devices, auth methods, and secrets engines must
be stored in Vault since they are security sensitive. Only users with the
correct permissions should be able to modify them, meaning they cannot be

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