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Creating a comprehensive solution blueprint for managing client certificates involves several steps and considerations. Below is a detailed blueprint outline that addresses the needs of an organization to manage and use client certificates in a controlled and secure manner.

Solution Blueprint: Managing Client Certificates in Azure Key Vault

Overview

This blueprint covers:

  1. The roles and responsibilities of different functions in the organization.
  2. The process of issuing, storing, and renewing certificates.
  3. Secure access to certificates for workloads/applications in Azure landing zones.
  4. Two deployment options for Key Vault management.

1. Roles and Responsibilities

  • Certificate Issuing Team (CIT):

    • Full control over the certificate issuance and renewal process.
    • Management of on-premises certificate authority (CA).
    • Management of Azure Key Vault configurations.

  • Application Teams:

    • Consumers of certificates.
    • Management of workloads/applications in Azure landing zones.
    • Access to their specific certificates only.

2. Process Flow

  1. Issuance and Storage of Certificates:

    • CIT uses an on-premises CA to issue client certificates.
    • Certificates are configured to be non-exportable and stored securely in Azure Key Vault.

  2. Certificate Renewal:

    • CIT handles the renewal process.
    • Renewed certificates are updated in the Azure Key Vault.

  3. Access Control:

    • Application identities are granted access to only their respective certificates in Azure Key Vault.
    • Strict RBAC policies ensure that only authorized applications can access their certificates.

3. Secure Access in Azure Landing Zones

  • Each landing zone is designed according to the Cloud Adoption Framework.
  • Application identities are assigned through Azure AD.
  • Policies ensure that workloads in landing zones have isolated access to their respective certificates.

4. Deployment Options for Key Vault Management

Option A: Segregated Key Vaults within Centralized Management

  1. Segregated Key Vaults:

    • CIT manages the creation and renewal of certificates.
    • Each application has its own dedicated Key Vault within a centralized landing zone.

  2. Access Delegation:

    • Only the application identity for a specific workload/application is granted access to its dedicated Key Vault.
    • Azure RBAC is used to enforce access policies, ensuring that only authorized applications can access their certificates.

  3. Diagram:

    +----------------------------------------+
| Centralized Key Vault Landing Zone     |
|                                        |
| +----------------------------------+   |
| | Key Vault for AppA               |   |
| | - CertificateA                   |   |
| +----------------------------------+   |
|                                        |
| +----------------------------------+   |
| | Key Vault for AppB               |   |
| | - CertificateB                   |   |
| +----------------------------------+   |
+----------------------------------------+
           |                           |
           |                           |
+----------+--------+       +----------+--------+
| AppA Landing Zone  |       | AppB Landing Zone  |
|                    |       |                    |
| +---------------+  |       | +---------------+  |
| | Workload/AppA |  |       | | Workload/AppB |  |
| +---------------+  |       | +---------------+  |
+--------------------+       +--------------------+

Option B: Distributed Key Vault Management

  1. Distributed Key Vaults:

    • CIT deploys individual Key Vaults into each landing zone as needed.
    • Each landing zone has its own Key Vault managed as a managed service.

  2. Access Delegation:

    • Each Key Vault is configured with access policies for the respective applications in that landing zone.
    • Example Policy: KeyVaultA in LandingZoneA only grants access to AppA.

  3. Diagram:

    +-------------------+  +-------------------+
| Landing Zone A    |  | Landing Zone B    |
|                   |  |                   |
| +-------------+   |  | +-------------+   |
| | Key VaultA  |   |  | | Key VaultB  |   |
| | - CertA     |   |  | | - CertB     |   |
| +-------------+   |  | +-------------+   |
|    |              |  |    |              |
|    |              |  |    |              |
| +---------------+ |  | +---------------+ |
| | Workload/AppA | |  | | Workload/AppB | |
| +---------------+ |  | +---------------+ |
+-------------------+  +-------------------+

5. Detailed Steps

Certificate Issuance and Storage

  1. Issuance:

    • CIT uses the on-premises CA to issue the client certificate for AppA.
    • Ensure the certificate is non-exportable.

  2. Storage:

    • Import the certificate into the dedicated Key Vault for AppA.
    • Repeat for other applications, ensuring each has a separate Key Vault.

Certificate Renewal

  1. Renewal:

    • CIT renews certificates using the on-premises CA.
    • Update the renewed certificates in the corresponding Azure Key Vault.

  2. Notification:

    • Set up notifications for upcoming certificate expirations.
    • Automate renewal processes where possible.

Access Control Configuration

  1. RBAC and Policies:

    • Create an Azure AD identity for each application (e.g., AppAIdentity for AppA).
    • Assign the Key Vault Certificate User role to AppAIdentity for the Key Vault containing CertificateA.
    • Ensure no other identities have access to this Key Vault.

  2. Example Policy Configuration for AppA:

    • Key Vault Name: KeyVault-AppA
    • Assigned Role: Key Vault Certificate User
    • Assigned Identity: AppAIdentity

  3. Monitoring and Auditing:

    • Enable logging and monitoring for each Key Vault.
    • Regularly audit access policies and certificate usage.

Conclusion

This blueprint ensures secure and controlled management of client certificates, providing the necessary flexibility for different organizational structures and needs. By centralizing or distributing Key Vault management, the organization can choose the most suitable approach to meet their requirements while ensuring robust security and compliance. The revised Option A ensures alignment with the principle of least privilege by segregating access to certificates, enhancing security, and maintaining centralized control.