fix(kms): resolve Vault auth from the environment at startup and add Kubernetes auth (#6095)

docs/operations/kms-backend-security.md

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 
 RustFS ships several KMS backends. They differ not only in deployment effort but in **where master key material lives and who can read it**. Pick a backend based on the confidentiality boundary you need, not on the name alone.
 
-For how the Vault backends authenticate (static token, AppRole, Vault Agent token file) and how credential refresh and the fail-closed window behave, see the [Vault KMS authentication runbook](vault-kms-authentication.md). For what may be claimed about the cryptographic implementations themselves, see [Cryptographic compliance positioning](kms-cryptographic-compliance.md). For which RustFS identities may manage or use a given key, see [Per-key KMS authorization](kms-per-key-authorization.md). If you are migrating from MinIO, read [Migrating from MinIO: encrypted objects do not carry over](#migrating-from-minio-encrypted-objects-do-not-carry-over) first.
+For how the Vault backends authenticate (static token, AppRole, Kubernetes, Vault Agent token file) and how credential refresh and the fail-closed window behave, see the [Vault KMS authentication runbook](vault-kms-authentication.md). For what may be claimed about the cryptographic implementations themselves, see [Cryptographic compliance positioning](kms-cryptographic-compliance.md). For which RustFS identities may manage or use a given key, see [Per-key KMS authorization](kms-per-key-authorization.md). If you are migrating from MinIO, read [Migrating from MinIO: encrypted objects do not carry over](#migrating-from-minio-encrypted-objects-do-not-carry-over) first.
 
 ## Backend comparison
 

docs/operations/vault-kms-authentication.md

@@ -8,9 +8,12 @@ This runbook covers how the RustFS Vault KMS backends (KV2 and Transit) authenti
 | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
 | Static token | `Token` | Whatever the operator provisioned; RustFS never renews it | None | Development; short-lived experiments |
 | AppRole | `AppRole` | Lease-bound token obtained by login; renewed by RustFS | Renew at half TTL, re-login on failure | Production without a Vault Agent sidecar |
+| Kubernetes | `Kubernetes` | Lease-bound token obtained by login; renewed by RustFS | Renew at half TTL, re-login on failure | Production on Kubernetes, with no credential to distribute |
 | Agent token file | `TokenFile` | Owned by Vault Agent; RustFS only re-reads the sink file | File re-read once per poll interval | Production with a Vault Agent (or equivalent) managing auth |
 
-Exactly one method must be configured. Setting `RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_TOKEN_FILE` together with `RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_APPROLE_ROLE_ID` or an explicit `RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_TOKEN` is rejected at startup with a configuration error, because the effective identity would be ambiguous.
+Exactly one method must be configured. Setting `RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_TOKEN_FILE` together with any other method, or `RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_KUBERNETES_ROLE` together with `RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_APPROLE_ROLE_ID`, is rejected at startup with a configuration error, because the effective identity would be ambiguous. A leftover `RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_TOKEN` alongside a configured login method is tolerated and ignored, so a stale variable cannot silently downgrade the identity.
+
+All of these are read the same way whether the service is started with `RUSTFS_KMS_ENABLE=true` or configured later through `POST /rustfs/admin/v3/kms/configure`.
 
 The default `dev-token` fallback for `RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_TOKEN` is rejected outside explicit development mode (`RUSTFS_KMS_ALLOW_INSECURE_DEV_DEFAULTS=true`), as are plain-HTTP Vault addresses and disabled TLS verification.
 
@@ -56,7 +59,44 @@ Deliver the SecretID out of band — a secrets-manager-mounted file, an init-con
 
 The secret_id file is re-read on every login attempt, so rotating the SecretID is a two-step operation with no restart: generate a new SecretID (`vault write -f auth/approle/role/rustfs-kms/secret-id`), atomically replace the file, then revoke the old SecretID accessor. The already-issued token keeps renewing; the new SecretID is only needed at the next full re-login.
 
-An empty or missing secret_id file fails the login attempt immediately (no Vault round trip) and is retried on the normal refresh cadence, so repairing the file heals the backend without a restart.
+An empty or missing secret_id file fails the login attempt immediately (no Vault round trip). At startup the error is fatal — provider construction fails and the process exits — so a file missing at boot is recovered by restarting the process, not by an in-process retry. Once RustFS is running, the same failure is retried on the normal refresh cadence, so repairing the file mid-run heals the backend without a restart.
+
+## Kubernetes authentication
+
+On Kubernetes this is the method to prefer: the pod's own ServiceAccount is the identity, so there is no credential to distribute, rotate, or leak into a Secret.
+
+### Vault-side setup
+
+```shell
+vault auth enable kubernetes
+
+vault write auth/kubernetes/config \
+    kubernetes_host="https://$KUBERNETES_SERVICE_HOST:$KUBERNETES_SERVICE_PORT"
+
+vault write auth/kubernetes/role/rustfs \
+    bound_service_account_names=rustfs \
+    bound_service_account_namespaces=rustfs \
+    token_policies=rustfs-kms \
+    token_ttl=1h
+```
+
+As with AppRole, keep `token_ttl` comfortably above the RustFS per-attempt timeout (default 30s).
+
+### RustFS configuration
+
+```shell
+RUSTFS_KMS_BACKEND=vault-transit            # or "vault" for the KV2 backend
+RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_ADDRESS=https://vault.vault.svc.cluster.local:8200
+RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_KUBERNETES_ROLE=rustfs
+# Optional, defaults to "kubernetes":
+# RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_KUBERNETES_MOUNT=kubernetes
+# Optional, defaults to the kubelet's projected token path:
+# RUSTFS_KMS_VAULT_KUBERNETES_JWT_PATH=/var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/token
+```
+
+RustFS logs in at startup and renews the token at half its TTL, falling back to a fresh login exactly as AppRole does. The ServiceAccount token is re-read from disk on every login rather than cached, so a projected token the kubelet rotates is picked up without a restart.
+
+A missing or empty token file fails the login attempt immediately (no Vault round trip). At startup the error is fatal — provider construction fails and the process exits — so a token projected late during a slow pod start is recovered by the pod restart loop, not by an in-process retry. Once RustFS is running, a token file that goes missing or turns empty is retried on the normal refresh cadence and heals the backend on its own.
 
 ## Vault Agent token file
 
@@ -101,13 +141,13 @@ If the agent stops refreshing the file that is fine — RustFS re-reads the same
 
 ## Fail-closed window
 
-For lease-bound credentials (AppRole tokens, token files), `current()` refuses to hand out a token that is within the safety window of its expiry and has not been refreshed. Requests then fail with `KMS credentials unavailable: ...` instead of being sent with a token that could lapse mid-flight and fail unpredictably on the Vault side.
+For lease-bound credentials (AppRole and Kubernetes tokens, token files), `current()` refuses to hand out a token that is within the safety window of its expiry and has not been refreshed. Requests then fail with `KMS credentials unavailable: ...` instead of being sent with a token that could lapse mid-flight and fail unpredictably on the Vault side.
 
 - Default window: one per-attempt timeout (`RUSTFS_KMS_TIMEOUT_SECS`, default 30s) — a request issued now can legitimately stay in flight that long, so the token must outlive it.
-- Override: `refresh_safety_window_secs` on the `AppRole` or `TokenFile` auth configuration.
+- Override: `refresh_safety_window_secs` on the `AppRole`, `Kubernetes` or `TokenFile` auth configuration.
 - Static tokens never trip the window: they carry no lease and are assumed valid until Vault says otherwise.
 
-The window is a symptom threshold, not the fault itself: by the time it trips, refresh has been failing for roughly half the token TTL (AppRole) or two poll intervals (token file).
+The window is a symptom threshold, not the fault itself: by the time it trips, refresh has been failing for roughly half the token TTL (AppRole, Kubernetes) or two poll intervals (token file).
 
 ### Troubleshooting
 
@@ -117,6 +157,8 @@ The window is a symptom threshold, not the fault itself: by the time it trips, r
 | Renewal succeeded but re-login later fails | `Vault token renewal failed; falling back to a fresh login` followed by login errors | SecretID expired/revoked or AppRole role changed; rotate the secret_id file |
 | Token file mode error at startup or during polls | `has insecure permissions` in the error | Fix the sink `mode` (0600) and the file owner; the next poll heals the provider |
 | Token file missing/empty errors | `Failed to read Vault token file` / `token file ... is empty` | Vault Agent down or sink misconfigured; restart the agent, the next poll heals the provider |
-| Startup fails immediately with a configuration error naming two env vars | — | Two auth methods configured at once; keep exactly one of token, AppRole, token file |
+| Kubernetes login fails with a permission error | `Vault Kubernetes login failed` | The pod's ServiceAccount is not in the role's `bound_service_account_names`/`_namespaces`, or `auth/kubernetes/config` names the wrong API server |
+| Kubernetes ServiceAccount token errors | `Failed to read Kubernetes ServiceAccount token` / `ServiceAccount token ... is empty` | The token is not projected into the pod (check `automountServiceAccountToken` and the volume mount); the next refresh cycle heals the provider |
+| Startup fails immediately with a configuration error naming two env vars | — | Two auth methods configured at once; keep exactly one of token, AppRole, Kubernetes, token file |
 
 When diagnosing, confirm three clocks/lifetimes in order: the Vault token TTL (`vault token lookup` with the token's accessor), the RustFS refresh cadence (half TTL or the poll interval), and the fail-closed window. The renewal task logs every failed cycle, so a silent gap in warnings combined with `CredentialsUnavailable` errors points at the process clock or a paused runtime rather than Vault.