Azure Key Vault - Secrets and Key Management

Azure Key Vault provides secure storage for secrets, cryptographic keys, and certificates. Applications authenticate with Azure AD and retrieve credentials at runtime, eliminating the need to store sensitive values in code or configuration files.

What is Azure Key Vault?

Azure Key Vault is a cloud service for securely storing and accessing secrets, encryption keys, and certificates. It centralizes secret management, reducing the risk of accidental exposure and simplifying credential rotation across applications.

Key Vault integrates with Azure AD for authentication, ensuring that only authorized applications and users can access stored secrets. All access is logged, providing an audit trail for compliance requirements.

Core Features

• Secrets management: Store and retrieve passwords, connection strings, and API keys
• Key management: Create and control encryption keys (software or HSM-backed)
• Certificate management: Store certificates with automatic renewal from integrated CAs
• Access control: Azure AD authentication with RBAC or access policies
• Audit logging: Track all operations through Azure Monitor

Typical Use Cases

Key Vault is essential for any application that uses credentials or encryption. Common scenarios include storing database connection strings, managing API keys for third-party services, handling SSL certificates, and providing encryption keys for data protection at rest.

Benefits

• Eliminates secrets in source code and config files
• Centralized rotation reduces credential sprawl
• HSM options meet compliance requirements (FIPS 140-2)
• Native integration with Azure services and SDKs

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between Standard and Premium tiers?

Standard tier uses software-protected keys. Premium tier stores keys in FIPS 140-2 Level 2 validated Hardware Security Modules (HSMs), required for certain compliance certifications.

How do applications authenticate to Key Vault?

Applications use Azure AD credentials. For Azure services, Managed Identity provides automatic credential management. For external apps, service principals or user credentials authenticate through Azure AD.

Can Key Vault trigger secret rotation?

Key Vault can send events when secrets approach expiration. You can use Azure Functions or Logic Apps to automate rotation workflows for databases, storage accounts, and other services.

How does Key Vault differ from Azure Managed HSM?

Key Vault provides multi-tenant secret and key management. Managed HSM offers dedicated, single-tenant HSMs for organizations that need exclusive control over cryptographic hardware.

Integration with innFactory

As a Microsoft Solutions Partner, innFactory helps you implement Azure Key Vault: secret management strategy, access control design, and integration with your applications.