Managing key rings

You can use Hyper Protect Crypto Services to create a group of keys for a target group of users that require the same Cloud Identity and Access Management (IAM) access permissions.

As an account admin, you can bundle the keys in your Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance into groups called key rings. A key ring is a collection of keys in your service instance that require the same IAM access permissions. For example, if you have a group of team members who need a particular type of access to a specific group of keys, you can create a key ring for those keys and assign the appropriate IAM access policy to the target user group. The users that are assigned access to the key ring can create and manage the resources that exist within the key ring.

Key rings are also useful in cases where it is important for one business unit to have access to a set of keys that another business unit cannot have. An account admin can create key rings for each business unit and assign the appropriate level of access to the appropriate users. In the case where the account admin would like to delegate platform management of a specific key ring to someone else, they can assign a user a platform administrator role at the key ring level. The sub administrator will then be able to manage the key ring and grant access to the appropriate users.

You can grant access to key rings within a Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance by using the UI, IAM API, or IAM CLI.

Before you create a key ring for your Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance, keep in mind the following considerations:

Every Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance comes with a default key ring.

Each newly created Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance comes with a generated key ring with an ID of default. All keys that are not associated with a specified key ring exist within the default key ring.
Key rings can hold root keys and standard keys, but not EP11 keys.

Key rings can contain both root and standard keys. There is no limit on how many keys can exist within a key ring. Key rings don't apply to Enterprise PKCS #11 (EP11) keys.
A key only can belong to one key ring at a time.

A key can belong to only one key ring. Key ring assignment happens upon key creation. If a key ring ID is not passed in upon creation, the key will belong to the default key ring. You can update the key ring after the key creation.
You can create up to five keystores in a service instance for free, including key rings and EP11 keystores. The maximum number of key rings for a service instance is 50.

Each additional key ring or EP11 keystore is charged with a tiered pricing starting at $225 USD per month. For more information about pricing, see the pricing sample.

Creating key rings

Before you can group keys into a key ring, you need to create a key ring first. You can use either the UI or the key management service API to create a key ring.

You can create up to five keystores in a service instance for free, including key rings and EP11 keystores. Each additional key ring or EP11 keystore is charged with a tiered pricing starting at $225 USD per month.

Creating key rings with the UI

Create a key ring with the UI by completing the following steps:

Log in to the UI.
Go to Menu > Resource list to view a list of your resources.
From your IBM Cloud resource list, select your provisioned instance of Hyper Protect Crypto Services.
To create a new key ring, select the KMS key rings tab in the side menu.
In the Key management service key rings table, click Add key ring.

You can create up to five keystores in a service instance for free, including key rings and EP11 keystores. Each additional key ring or EP11 keystore is charged with a tiered pricing starting at $225 USD per month.
Enter the Key ring ID and click Add key ring.

Creating key rings with the API

Create a key ring by making a POST call to the following endpoint.

https://<instance_ID>.api.<region>.hs-crypto.appdomain.cloud/api/v2/key_rings

Retrieve your authentication credentials to work with keys in the service.

Create a key ring by running the following curl command.

$ curl -X POST \
    "https://<instance_ID>.api.<region>.hs-crypto.appdomain.cloud/api/v2/key_rings/<key_ring_id>" \
    -H "authorization: Bearer <IAM_token>" \
    -H "bluemix-instance: <instance_ID>" \
    -H "correlation-id: <correlation_ID>"

Replace the variables in the example request according to the following table.

Table 1. Describes the variables needed to create a key ring with the key management service API
Variable	Description
`region`	Required. The region abbreviation, such as `us-south`, that represents the geographic area where your Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance resides. For more information, see Regional service endpoints.
`port`	Required. The port number of the API endpoint.
`key_ring_id`	Required. The unique identifier for the key ring that you would like to create.
`IAM_token`	Required. Your IBM Cloud access token. Include the full contents of the `IAM` token, including the Bearer value, in the `curl` request. For more information, see Retrieving an access token.
`instance_ID`	Required. The unique identifier that is assigned to your Hyper Protect Crypto Services service instance. For more information, see Retrieving an instance ID.
`correlation_ID`	The unique identifier that is used to track and correlate transactions.

A successful POST api/v2/key_rings request returns an HTTP 201 Created response, which indicates that the key ring is created and is now available for holding standard and root keys.

Transferring a key to a different key ring

As requirements change and new team members are brought into an org, you might create new key rings to reflect these organizational changes. After creating the key rings, it might be necessary to move a key from an existing key ring to a new key ring that has different IAM permissions. For example, you might be onboarding a team that will need specific access to a key that belongs to a custom, non-default key ring. You can create a new key ring that is dedicated to the onboarding team. Since keys can only be associated with one key ring at a time, you need to move the key to the new key ring.

After transferring a key to a different key ring, it can take up to ten minutes for the change to take effect.

Transferring a key to a different key ring with the UI

You can transfer a key to a different key ring with the UI by completing the following steps:

Log in to the UI.
Go to Menu > Resource list to view a list of your resources.
From your IBM Cloud resource list, select your provisioned instance of Hyper Protect Crypto Services.
Select the KMS keys tab in the side menu to open the Keys table.
Find the key that you want to transfer from the list and click the Actions icon to open the option list.
Click Change key ring.
Select the key ring ID that you want to move the key to and click Change key ring.

Transferring a key to a different key ring with the API

Transfer a key to a different key ring by making a PATCH call to the following endpoint.

https://<instance_ID>.api.<region>.hs-crypto.appdomain.cloud/api/v2/keys/<key_ID>

Retrieve your authentication credentials to work with keys in the service.

To update the key ring of a key, you must have at least Manager service access to the key and the target key ring. To learn how IAM roles map to Hyper Protect Crypto Services service actions, check out Service access roles.

Update the key ring of a key by running the following curl command.

$ curl -X PATCH \
  "https://<instance_ID>.api.<region>.hs-crypto.appdomain.cloud/api/v2/keys/<key_ID>" \
  -H 'accept: application/vnd.ibm.kms.key+json' \
  -H 'authorization: Bearer <IAM_token>' \
  -H 'bluemix-instance: <instance_ID>' \
  -H 'content-type: application/vnd.ibm.kms.key+json' \
  -H "x-kms-key-ring: <original_key_ring_ID>" \
  -H "correlation-id: <correlation_ID>" \
  -d '{
    "keyRingID": "<new_key_ring_ID>"
  }'

Replace the variables in the example request according to the following table.

Table 2. Describes the variables needed to update a key's key ring with the key management service API
Variable	Description
`region`	Required. The region abbreviation, such as `us-south`, that represents the geographic area where your Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance resides. For more information, see Regional service endpoints.
`port`	Required. The port number of the API endpoint.
`IAM_token`	Required. Your IBM Cloud access token. Include the full contents of the `IAM` token, including the Bearer value, in the `curl` request. For more information, see Retrieving an access token.
`instance_ID`	Required. The unique identifier that is assigned to your Hyper Protect Crypto Services service instance. For more information, see Retrieving an instance ID.
`original_key_ring_ID`	Optional. The unique identifier of the key ring that the key belongs to. If unspecified, Hyper Protect Crypto Services will search for the key in every key ring that is associated with the specified instance. Therefore, it is suggested to specify the key ring ID for a more optimized request. Note: If you create a key without an `x-kms-key-ring` header, the key ring for the key is: `default`.
`correlation_ID`	The unique identifier that is used to track and correlate transactions.
`new_key_ring_ID`	Required. The unique identifier for the target key ring that you want to move the key to.

A successful PATCH api/v2/keys/key_ID request returns the key's metadata, including the ID of the key ring that the key now belongs to.

{
 "metadata": {
     "collectionType": "application/vnd.ibm.kms.key+json",
     "collectionTotal": 1
 },
 "resources": [
     {
         "type": "application/vnd.ibm.kms.key+json",
         "id": "02fd6835-6001-4482-a892-13bd2085f75d",
         "name": "test-root-key",
         "aliases": [
             "alias-1",
             "alias-2"
           ],
         "description": "A test root key",
         "state": 1,
         "extractable": false,
         "keyRingID": "new-key-ring",
         "crn": "crn:v1:bluemix:public:hs-crypto:us-south:a/f047b55a3362ac06afad8a3f2f5586ea:12e8c9c2-a162-472d-b7d6-8b9a86b815a6:key:02fd6835-6001-4482-a892-13bd2085f75d",
         "imported": false,
         "creationDate": "2020-03-12T03:37:32Z",
         "createdBy": "...",
         "algorithmType": "AES",
         "algorithmMetadata": {
             "bitLength": "256",
             "mode": "CBC_PAD"
         },
         "algorithmBitSize": 256,
         "algorithmMode": "CBC_PAD",
         "lastUpdateDate": "2020-03-12T03:37:32Z",
         "keyVersion": {
             "id": "2291e4ae-a14c-4af9-88f0-27c0cb2739e2",
             "creationDate": "2020-03-12T03:37:32Z"
         },
         "dualAuthDelete": {
             "enabled": false
         },
         "deleted": false
     }
 ]
}

Granting access to a key ring

You can grant access to a key ring within a Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance by using the UI, IAM API, or CLI.

Review roles and permissions to learn how IBM Cloud IAM roles map to Hyper Protect Crypto Services actions.

To assign access to a key ring with the UI, complete the following steps:

From the menu bar, click Manage > Access (IAM), and select Users to browse the existing users in your account.
Select the user that you want to assign access to in the table, and click the Actions icon to open a list of options for that user.
From the options menu, click Assign access.
Click Access policy.
Under Service, select Hyper Protect Crypto Services and click Next.
Under Resources, select Specific resources.
Select the Service Instance ID attribute type and enter the ID of the instance where the key ring resides.
Click Add a condition, select the Key Ring ID attribute to enter the ID associated with the key ring, and click Next.
Under Roles and actions, choose a combination of platform and service access roles to assign access for the user and click Next.
(Optional) Under Conditions (optional), click Review to check the access policy.
After confirmation, click Add > Assign.

You must assign the user must at least Reader access to the entire instance in order for them to list, create, and delete key rings within the instance.

Listing key rings

You can browse the key rings that are managed in your provisioned instance of Hyper Protect Crypto Services with the UI or the key management KPI.

Listing key rings with the UI

To browse the key rings with the UI, complete the following steps:

Log in to the UI.
Go to Menu > Resource list to view a list of your resources.
From your IBM Cloud resource list, select your provisioned instance of Hyper Protect Crypto Services.
To browse the key rings, select the KMS key rings tab in the side menu.

The key rings table contains the following information:

Table 3. Describes the columns for the key ring table
Column	Description
Key ring ID	The unique identifier that you specify when you create the key ring.
Last updated	The date and time that the key ring was last updated. This field gets updated when the keyring is created or modified.
Created	The date and time that the key ring was created.

Listing key rings with the API

You can browse the key rings by making a GET call to the following endpoint.

https://<instance_ID>.api.<region>.hs-crypto.appdomain.cloud/api/v2/key_rings

Retrieve your authentication credentials to work with keys in the service.

View general characteristics about your key rings by running the following curl command.

$ curl -X GET \
    "https://<instance_ID>.api.<region>.hs-crypto.appdomain.cloud/api/v2/key_rings" \
    -H "accept: application/vnd.ibm.kms.key_ring+json" \
    -H "authorization: Bearer <IAM_token>" \
    -H "bluemix-instance: <instance_ID>" \
    -H "correlation-id: <correlation_ID>"

Replace the variables in the example request according to the following table.

Table 4. Describes the variables needed to view key rings with the key management service API
Variable	Description
`region`	Required. The region abbreviation, such as `us-south`, that represents the geographic area where your Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance resides. For more information, see Regional service endpoints.
`port`	Required. The port number of the API endpoint.
`IAM_token`	Required. Your IBM Cloud access token. Include the full contents of the `IAM` token, including the Bearer value, in the `curl` request. For more information, see Retrieving an access token.
`instance_ID`	Required. The unique identifier that is assigned to your Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance. For more information, see Retrieving an instance ID.
`correlation_ID`	The unique identifier that is used to track and correlate transactions.

A successful GET api/v2/key_rings request returns a collection of key rings that are available in your Hyper Protect Crypto Services service instance.

{
    "metadata": {
        "collectionType": "application/vnd.ibm.kms.key_ring+json",
        "collectionTotal": 2
    },
    "resources": [
        {
            "id": "default"
        },
        {
            "id": "Sample Key Ring 2",
            "creationDate": "2020-03-12T11:00:06Z",
            "createdBy": "..."
        }
    ]
}

Deleting key rings

You can delete a key ring with the UI or with the key management service API.

The default key ring cannot be deleted. You are also not able to delete a key ring if the key ring contains at least one key, regardless of the key state (including keys in the Destroyed state).

Deleting key rings with the UI

To delete a key ring with the UI, complete the following steps:

Log in to the UI.
Go to Menu > Resource list to view a list of your resources.
From your IBM Cloud resource list, select your provisioned instance of Hyper Protect Crypto Services.
Select the KMS key rings tab in the side menu to browse the key rings.
Find the key ring that you want to delete and click the Deletion icon at the end of the row.
Confirm the deletion and click Delete key ring.

Deleting key rings with the API

You can delete a key ring by making a DELETE call to the following endpoint.

https://<instance_ID>.api.<region>.hs-crypto.appdomain.cloud/api/v2/key_rings/<key_ring_id>

Retrieve your authentication credentials to work with keys in the service.
Retrieve the ID of the key ring that you want to delete.

You can find the ID for a key ring in your Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance by retrieving a list of your key rings.

Run the following curl command to delete the key ring.

$ curl -X DELETE \
    "https://<instance_ID>.api.<region>.hs-crypto.appdomain.cloud/api/v2/key_rings/<key_ring_id>" \
    -H "authorization: Bearer <IAM_token>" \
    -H "bluemix-instance: <instance_ID>" \
    -H "prefer: <return_preference>"

Replace the variables in the example request according to the following table.

Table 5. Describes the variables needed to delete keys with the key management service API
Variable	Description
`region`	Required. The region abbreviation, such as `us-south`, that represents the geographic area where your Hyper Protect Crypto Services instance resides. For more information, see Regional service endpoints.
`port`	Required. The port number of the API endpoint.
`key_ring_id`	Required. The unique identifier for the key ring that you would like to delete.
`IAM_token`	Required. Your IBM Cloud access token. Include the full contents of the `IAM` token, including the Bearer value, in the `curl` request. For more information, see Retrieving an access token.
`instance_ID`	Required. The unique identifier that is assigned to your Hyper Protect Crypto Services service instance. For more information, see Retrieving an instance ID.

A successful request returns an HTTP 204 No Content response, which indicates that the key ring is successfully deleted.