ansible/docs/guides/vault.md
ilia 69a39e5e5b Add POTE app project support and improve IP conflict detection (#3)
## Summary

This PR adds comprehensive support for deploying the **POTE** application project via Ansible, along with improvements to IP conflict detection and a new app stack provisioning system for Proxmox-managed LXC containers.

## Key Features

### 🆕 New Roles
- **`roles/pote`**: Python/venv deployment role for POTE (PostgreSQL, cron jobs, Alembic migrations)
- **`roles/app_setup`**: Generic app deployment role (Node.js/systemd)
- **`roles/base_os`**: Base OS hardening role

### 🛡️ Safety Improvements
- IP uniqueness validation within projects
- Proxmox-side IP conflict detection
- Enhanced error messages for IP conflicts

### 📦 New Playbooks
- `playbooks/app/site.yml`: End-to-end app stack deployment
- `playbooks/app/provision_vms.yml`: Proxmox guest provisioning
- `playbooks/app/configure_app.yml`: OS + application configuration

## Security
-  All secrets stored in encrypted vault.yml
-  Deploy keys excluded via .gitignore
-  No plaintext secrets committed

## Testing
-  POTE successfully deployed to dev/qa/prod environments
-  All components validated (Git, PostgreSQL, cron, migrations)

Co-authored-by: ilia <ilia@levkin.ca>
Reviewed-on: #3
2026-01-01 11:19:54 -05:00

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Markdown

# Ansible Vault Guide
Ansible Vault encrypts sensitive data like passwords and API keys while keeping them usable in playbooks.
## Quick Start
### Create Vault
```bash
make edit-group-vault
```
### Add Secrets
When editor opens, add your secrets:
```yaml
---
# Authentication Keys
vault_tailscale_auth_key: "tskey-auth-..."
vault_proxmox_password: "super-secret"
# API Keys
vault_github_token: "ghp_..."
vault_docker_hub_token: "dckr_..."
# Passwords
vault_db_password: "complex-password"
vault_vm_cipassword: "vm-user-password"
# SSH Keys
vault_ssh_public_key: "ssh-ed25519 AAAA..."
```
### Use in Playbooks
Reference vault variables with `{{ vault_variable_name }}`:
```yaml
tailscale_auth_key: "{{ vault_tailscale_auth_key }}"
database_password: "{{ vault_db_password }}"
```
## File Structure
```
inventories/production/
├── group_vars/
│ └── all/
│ ├── main.yml # Plain text configuration
│ └── vault.yml # Encrypted secrets (edit with make edit-group-vault)
└── host_vars/
├── dev01.yml # Host-specific plain text
└── dev01/
└── vault.yml # Host-specific secrets (edit with make edit-vault HOST=dev01)
```
## Common Commands
```bash
# Edit group vault (production inventory)
make edit-group-vault
# Edit host-specific vault
make edit-vault HOST=dev01
# View decrypted contents
ansible-vault view inventories/production/group_vars/all/vault.yml
# Change vault password
ansible-vault rekey inventories/production/group_vars/all/vault.yml
```
## Password Management
### Option 1: Password File (Recommended for Automation)
```bash
echo "your-vault-password" > ~/.ansible-vault-pass
chmod 600 ~/.ansible-vault-pass
```
### Option 2: Interactive (More Secure)
Add `--ask-vault-pass` to commands or let Makefile handle it.
## Best Practices
### What to Encrypt
**Put in Vault:**
- API keys and tokens
- Passwords and passphrases
- Private keys and certificates
- Database credentials
- Any sensitive configuration
**Keep in Plain Text:**
- Non-sensitive configuration
- Default settings
- Public information
- Documentation
### Naming Convention
Prefix vault variables with `vault_` for clarity:
- `vault_db_password` → encrypted in vault
- `db_host` → plain text in all.yml
### Security Tips
1. Never commit unencrypted secrets
2. Use different vault passwords per environment
3. Rotate vault passwords periodically
4. Limit vault file access (chmod 600)
5. Use git-crypt or similar for additional protection
## Troubleshooting
### "Attempting to decrypt but no vault secrets found"
- Ensure vault password file exists: `~/.ansible-vault-pass`
- Check file permissions: `chmod 600 ~/.ansible-vault-pass`
### "ERROR! Decryption failed"
- Wrong password - verify vault password
- Corrupted vault file - recreate from secure storage
### Variables not being replaced
- Check variable naming matches exactly
- Ensure vault file is in correct location
- Verify vault file is properly encrypted
## Related Documentation
- [Tailscale Setup](./tailscale.md) - Uses vault for auth keys
- [Security Best Practices](../reference/security.md) - Overall security guidelines