Secrets C Reference Documentation
Secrets
Current Version: 11.0.0
Provides a unified API for managing secrets stored in the following locations:
- Windows Credentials Manager
- Apple Keychain
- AWS Secrets Manager
- Azure Key Vault
- IBM Cloud Secrets Manager
- Oracle Cloud Secrets
- Doppler Secrets
- In-Memory Secrets
Create/Dispose
HCkSecrets instance = CkSecrets_Create(); // ... CkSecrets_Dispose(instance);
Creates an instance of the HCkSecrets object and returns a handle ("void *" pointer). The handle is passed in the 1st argument for the functions listed on this page.
Objects created by calling CkSecrets_Create must be freed by calling this method. A memory leak occurs if a handle is not disposed by calling this function. Also, any handle returned by a Chilkat "C" function must also be freed by the application by calling the appropriate Dispose method, such as CkSecrets_Dispose.
Callback Functions
Provides the opportunity for a method call to be aborted. If TRUE is returned, the operation in progress is aborted.
Return FALSE to allow the current method call to continue.
This callback function is called periodically based on the value of the HeartbeatMs property.
(If HeartbeatMs is 0, then no callbacks are made.) As an example, to make 5 AbortCheck callbacks per second, set the HeartbeatMs property equal to 200.
See Also:C Example using Callback Functions
Provides the percentage completed for any method that involves network communications or time-consuming processing (assuming it is a method where a percentage completion can be measured). This callback is only called when it is possible to know a percentage completion, and when it makes sense to express the operation as a percentage completed. The pctDone argument will have a value from 1 to 100. For methods that complete very quickly, the number of PercentDone callbacks will vary, but the final callback should have a value of 100. For long running operations, no more than one callback per percentage point will occur (for example: 1, 2, 3, ... 98, 99, 100).
This callback counts as an AbortCheck callback, and takes the place of the AbortCheck event when it fires.
The return value indicates whether the method call should be aborted, or whether it should proceed. Return TRUE to abort, and FALSE to proceed.
This is a general callback that provides name/value information about what is happening at certain points during a method call. To see the information provided in ProgressInfo callbacks, if any, write code to handle this event and log the name/value pairs. Most are self-explanatory.
Called in the background thread when an asynchronous task completes. (Note: When an async method is running, all callbacks are in the background thread.)
Properties
AutoSplit
void CkSecrets_putAutoSplit(HCkSecrets cHandle, BOOL newVal);
The AutoSplit property is specific to "local_manager" secrets on Windows. The Windows Credentials Manager supports a maximum of 2560 bytes per secret. If a secret exceeds this size, it will be automatically compressed and split when created or updated, and automatically recomposed when retrieved.
A secret can be split into a maximum of 10 parts.
The default value is TRUE.
Compression
void CkSecrets_putCompression(HCkSecrets cHandle, BOOL newVal);
If set to TRUE, then the contents of the secret will be stored compressed. The default value of this property is FALSE.
DebugLogFilePath
void CkSecrets_putDebugLogFilePath(HCkSecrets cHandle, const char *newVal);
const char *CkSecrets_debugLogFilePath(HCkSecrets cHandle);
If set to a file path, this property logs the LastErrorText of each Chilkat method or property call to the specified file. This logging helps identify the context and history of Chilkat calls leading up to any crash or hang, aiding in debugging.
Enabling the VerboseLogging property provides more detailed information. This property is mainly used for debugging rare instances where a Chilkat method call causes a hang or crash, which should generally not happen.
Possible causes of hangs include:
- A timeout property set to 0, indicating an infinite timeout.
- A hang occurring within an event callback in the application code.
- An internal bug in the Chilkat code causing the hang.
LastErrorHtml
const char *CkSecrets_lastErrorHtml(HCkSecrets cHandle);
Provides HTML-formatted information about the last called method or property. If a method call fails or behaves unexpectedly, check this property for details. Note that information is available regardless of the method call's success.
topLastErrorText
const char *CkSecrets_lastErrorText(HCkSecrets cHandle);
Provides plain text information about the last called method or property. If a method call fails or behaves unexpectedly, check this property for details. Note that information is available regardless of the method call's success.
LastErrorXml
const char *CkSecrets_lastErrorXml(HCkSecrets cHandle);
Provides XML-formatted information about the last called method or property. If a method call fails or behaves unexpectedly, check this property for details. Note that information is available regardless of the method call's success.
topLastMethodSuccess
void CkSecrets_putLastMethodSuccess(HCkSecrets cHandle, BOOL newVal);
Indicates the success or failure of the most recent method call: TRUE means success, FALSE means failure. This property remains unchanged by property setters or getters. This method is present to address challenges in checking for null or Nothing returns in certain programming languages.
Location
void CkSecrets_putLocation(HCkSecrets cHandle, const char *newVal);
const char *CkSecrets_location(HCkSecrets cHandle);
The location of the secrets. Possible values are:
- "local_manager" - On Windows this is the Credentials Manager. On MacOS and iOS it is the Keychain. This is not yet an option on Linux or Android.
- "aws_secrets_manager" - AWS Secrets Manager
- "azure_key_vault" - Azure Key Vault
- "ibm_cloud" - IBM Cloud Secrets Manager
- "oracle_cloud" - Oracle Cloud Secrets
- "doppler" - Doppler Secrets
- "memory" - In-Memory Secrets
The default location is the "local_manager". On Linux and Android, "local_manager" will behave the same as "memory".
topUncommonOptions
void CkSecrets_putUncommonOptions(HCkSecrets cHandle, const char *newVal);
const char *CkSecrets_uncommonOptions(HCkSecrets cHandle);
This is a catch-all property to be used for uncommon needs. This property defaults to the empty string and should typically remain empty.
topUtf8
void CkSecrets_putUtf8(HCkSecrets cHandle, BOOL newVal);
When set to TRUE, all const char * arguments and return values are interpreted as UTF-8 strings. When set to FALSE, they are interpreted as ANSI strings.
In Chilkat v11.0.0 and later, the default value is TRUE. Before v11.0.0, it was FALSE.
VerboseLogging
void CkSecrets_putVerboseLogging(HCkSecrets cHandle, BOOL newVal);
If set to TRUE, then the contents of LastErrorText (or LastErrorXml, or LastErrorHtml) may contain more verbose information. The default value is FALSE. Verbose logging should only be used for debugging. The potentially large quantity of logged information may adversely affect peformance.
Version
const char *CkSecrets_version(HCkSecrets cHandle);
Methods
DeleteSecret
Deletes a secret. Cloud secrets managers will typically disable the secret and schedule the secret for deletion after some number of days.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
DeleteSecretAsync (1)
Creates an asynchronous task to call the DeleteSecret method with the arguments provided.
Returns NULL on failure
GetSecretBd
Fetches a binary secret and returns the content in bd.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
GetSecretBdAsync (1)
Creates an asynchronous task to call the GetSecretBd method with the arguments provided.
Returns NULL on failure
GetSecretJson
Fetches a JSON secret and returns the content in jsonOut.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
GetSecretJsonAsync (1)
Creates an asynchronous task to call the GetSecretJson method with the arguments provided.
Returns NULL on failure
GetSecretSb
Fetches a string secret and returns the content in sb.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
GetSecretSbAsync (1)
Creates an asynchronous task to call the GetSecretSb method with the arguments provided.
Returns NULL on failure
GetSecretStr
const char *CkSecrets_getSecretStr(HCkSecrets cHandle, HCkJsonObject jsonId);
Fetches a string secret and returns the content of the secret.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
GetSecretStrAsync (1)
Creates an asynchronous task to call the GetSecretStr method with the arguments provided.
Returns NULL on failure
ListSecrets
Lists secrets matching the wildcarded or exact values passed in json. The results of the query are returned in jsonOut.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
ListSecretsAsync (1)
Creates an asynchronous task to call the ListSecrets method with the arguments provided.
Returns NULL on failure
SetBootstrapSecret
Accessing a cloud-based secrets manager requires authentication credentials, which cannot be stored in the manager itself. Instead, they must be securely stored locally.
One solution is to store the authentication credentials as a secret in the Windows Credentials Manager or Apple Keychain. These credentials serve as the "bootstrap secret" for authenticating with the cloud-based secrets manager.
jsonId contains the name of the bootstrap secret. secretContent contains the bootstrap's secret content.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
UpdateSecretBd
Creates a binary secret if it does not yet exist, or updates an existing secret. The name of the secret is specified in jsonId, and the binary content of the secret in secret.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
UpdateSecretBdAsync (1)
Creates an asynchronous task to call the UpdateSecretBd method with the arguments provided.
Returns NULL on failure
UpdateSecretJson
Creates a JSON secret if it does not yet exist, or updates an existing secret. The name of the secret is specified in jsonId, and the JSON content of the secret in secret.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
UpdateSecretJsonAsync (1)
Creates an asynchronous task to call the UpdateSecretJson method with the arguments provided.
Returns NULL on failure
UpdateSecretSb
Creates a string secret if it does not yet exist, or updates an existing secret. The name of the secret is specified in jsonId, and the string content of the secret in sb.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
UpdateSecretSbAsync (1)
Creates an asynchronous task to call the UpdateSecretSb method with the arguments provided.
Returns NULL on failure
UpdateSecretStr
Creates a string secret if it does not yet exist, or updates an existing secret. The name of the secret is specified in jsonId, and the string content of the secret in secret.
Returns TRUE for success, FALSE for failure.
UpdateSecretStrAsync (1)
Creates an asynchronous task to call the UpdateSecretStr method with the arguments provided.
Returns NULL on failure