pilfer

Decrypt all ansible vault files in a project in-place recursively for viewing/editing, then re-encrypt them all at once when you're done.

Optionally decrypt/re-encrypt all encrypted variables in-place, or re-key an entire tree after a password exposure.

Quick start

Requires Python 3.10+ and Ansible.

pipx install pilfer
cd your-ansible-project
pilfer open
# edit or search plaintext
pilfer close

Unchanged files are restored to their original ciphertext automatically.

Install

pipx install pilfer   # recommended
pip install pilfer    # or direct pip

See Installation for standalone script, source install, and ansible.cfg setup.

Features

• Python 3.10+ - Typed modern Python; CI covers 3.10–3.13
• ansible.cfg integration - Automatically reads vault_password_file from your ansible.cfg
• Change detection - Only re-encrypts files that were actually modified (using SHA256)
• Safe operation - Preserves original encrypted content for unchanged files
• No third-party dependencies - Uses Ansible's official vault implementation directly
• Binary data preservation - Preserves exact line endings and formatting (critical for certificates)
• Inline encrypt_string support - Opt-in via pilfer open --include-encrypted-vars; decrypts YAML !vault scalars in place (with # pilfer:vault:N markers); close always re-encrypts whatever the session opened
• Fail-closed sessions - Refuses double-open, keeps session state if close partially fails, non-zero exit codes on errors

Usage

pilfer [open|close|rekey] [-p VAULT_PASSWORD_FILE] [--include-encrypted-vars] [--allow-removals]

Basic Usage

Option 1: From a clone (no pipx)

• Clone this repository (or install editable: pip install -e .)
• From your Ansible project directory, run python /path/to/pilfer/pilfer.py open
• Edit/search plaintext as needed
• Run python /path/to/pilfer/pilfer.py close to re-encrypt any changed files
• pilfer.py is a thin entry point; the implementation lives in the pilfer/ package

Option 2: Installed via pipx (Recommended)

• Install pilfer via pipx: pipx install pilfer
• Run pilfer open to decrypt all vaulted files recursively
• Edit/search plaintext as needed
• Run pilfer close to re-encrypt any changed files

Any unchanged files will be returned to their original state.

Re-key an entire tree (inline !vault included by default): pilfer rekey --old-vault-password-file OLD --new-vault-password-file NEW --dry-run.

Inline encrypted variables (encrypt_string / !vault)

Whole-file vaults are opened by default. Inline !vault scalars are opt-in:

# Open whole-file vaults AND inline encrypt_string values
pilfer open --include-encrypted-vars

# Edit values in place. pilfer rewrites each !vault block like:
#   db_password: "the-secret"  # pilfer:vault:0
#
# Do NOT remove the `# pilfer:vault:N` comment - close uses it to find
# and re-encrypt each value. Do NOT commit while those markers are present
# (plaintext secrets + session metadata would land in git).

pilfer close   # no flag needed; re-encrypts everything this session opened

close always re-encrypts session entries (whole-file and inline). The --include-encrypted-vars flag is only meaningful on open.

If you delete an entire opened variable line (key + value + marker), close refuses by default (ambiguous delete vs accident). Confirm with:

pilfer close --allow-removals

which then prints:

🔍 Detected removal of 1 encrypted vars:
  - db_password

Do not strip only the # pilfer:vault:N comment while leaving the key - close will refuse so plaintext is not stranded. Renaming the key and dropping the marker is also refused if the secret value is still present in the file (including in comments).

Vault Password File Detection

The script automatically detects your vault password file in this order:

1. Command line argument: -p /path/to/vault/file
2. ansible.cfg: Reads vault_password_file from [defaults] section
3. Common locations:
   • ~/.ansible-vault/.vault-file
   • ../../vault_password_file
   • .vault_password
   • vault_password_file

Examples

Using the installed version:

# Use ansible.cfg vault_password_file setting (recommended)
pilfer open

# Specify custom vault password file
pilfer open -p ~/.my-vault-password

# Also decrypt inline !vault / encrypt_string values
pilfer open --include-encrypted-vars

# Close and re-encrypt modified files (and any opened inline vars)
pilfer close

Using the standalone script:

# Use ansible.cfg vault_password_file setting (recommended)
python pilfer.py open

# Specify custom vault password file
python pilfer.py open -p ~/.my-vault-password

# Also decrypt inline !vault / encrypt_string values
python pilfer.py open --include-encrypted-vars

# Close and re-encrypt modified files
python pilfer.py close

Installation

Option 1: Standalone Script (No Installation Required)

Download and use the standalone script directly:

# Download the standalone script
curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/aioue/pilfer/main/pilfer.py

# Make it executable (required for ./pilfer.py usage)
chmod +x pilfer.py

# Use it directly
./pilfer.py open
# OR
python pilfer.py open

Option 2: Install via pipx (Recommended for Regular Use)

Python 3.10+ is required. Install pilfer using pipx for isolated CLI tool management:

# Install pilfer via pipx (recommended)
pipx install pilfer

# Verify installation
pilfer --help

Alternative Installation Methods

If you prefer other installation methods:

# Install from source (in development mode)
git clone https://github.com/aioue/pilfer.git
cd pilfer
pip install -e .

# Direct pip installation (not recommended for CLI tools)
pip install pilfer

Requirements

Pilfer requires Ansible to be available. If not already installed:

# Using pipx (recommended for CLI tools)
pipx install ansible

# Using pip
pip install ansible

# System package manager
# Ubuntu/Debian:
sudo apt update && sudo apt install ansible

# RHEL/CentOS/Fedora:
sudo dnf install ansible

# macOS:
brew install ansible

ansible.cfg Setup (Recommended)

Add to your ansible.cfg:

[defaults]
vault_password_file = ~/.ansible-vault/.vault-file

This eliminates the need to manually configure vault password paths.

Development and Publishing

For Developers

To set up for development:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/aioue/pilfer.git
cd pilfer

# Install in development mode
pip install -e .

# Make changes and test
pilfer --help

Publishing to PyPI

Recommended: use conventional commits (feat:, fix:, docs:) so auto-generated release notes stay readable. Bump the version in pyproject.toml, pilfer/__init__.py, and pilfer.py, then commit, push, and tag:

# Bump version in pyproject.toml, pilfer/__init__.py, and pilfer.py first
git commit -am "chore(release): X.Y.Z"
git push origin master
git tag vX.Y.Z
git push origin vX.Y.Z

# Optional: preview notes locally before tagging
./scripts/release-notes.sh

The Release workflow validates versions, runs tests, creates a GitHub release (summary + auto-generated notes since the previous tag), and publishes to PyPI via trusted publishing. See .github/workflows/README.md for one-time PyPI setup.

Manual fallback (TestPyPI or local publish):

pip install build twine
chmod +x build_and_publish.sh
./build_and_publish.sh test   # TestPyPI
./build_and_publish.sh prod   # production PyPI

The build script will:

1. Clean previous builds
2. Build the package using modern Python packaging
3. Upload to PyPI/TestPyPI using twine
4. Provide installation instructions

Rotating the vault password

pilfer close is not password rotation - it refuses a different password than the one used for open (anti re-key). To rotate every vault target in the tree (including inline !vault spans):

# Plan / decrypt-check only
pilfer rekey \
  --old-vault-password-file ~/.ansible-vault/.vault-file \
  --new-vault-password-file /tmp/new-vault-pass \
  --dry-run

# Re-key ciphertext (prompts: type REKEY). Inline spans included by default.
pilfer rekey \
  --old-vault-password-file ~/.ansible-vault/.vault-file \
  --new-vault-password-file /tmp/new-vault-pass

# After 100% success, optionally archive the old password file and install the new
# one at the old path (chmod 600):
pilfer rekey ... --rotate-password-file

Refuse to rekey while a pilfer session is open. Nested git checkouts are skipped (run pilfer rekey from those directories separately). Prefer --dry-run first. A mid-run failure can leave a split-password tree; re-run the same rekey command to resume (files already on the new password are skipped). --rotate-password-file is refused with --no-include-encrypted-vars, and also when nested git checkouts were skipped, so the live password file is not rotated while ciphertext remains on the old password. Stale .pilfer-rekey-* staging files are ignored as vault targets and removed only after confirmed mutating rekey (never on --dry-run).

Safety

Pilfer fails closed: if it cannot prove a secret is safely re-encrypted or intentionally removed, it keeps the session and .vault/ backups and exits non-zero. It does not invent fixes for ambiguous edits.

Failure modes this protects against

• Silent re-key on close with a different password than open
• Double-open destroying encrypted backups under .vault/
• Orphan plaintext after deleting vaultedFileList.json (markers, .vault/, or *.pilfer-open sidecars still block re-open)
• Stranded plaintext after stripping markers, renaming keys, or relocating secrets (including into comments)
• Crash mid-decrypt leaving unmarked plaintext (open sidecars are written before plaintext)

Surprising-by-design behaviors

• Interrupted close retries: whole-file targets only count as already done when working bytes match the open backup, or the file is vault ciphertext decryptable with the session password (not an arbitrary foreign vault blob).
• close is progressive - files that succeed are encrypted and dropped from the session; failures stay plaintext until you fix and retry. Not an all-or-nothing transaction.
• Intentional var removal requires pilfer close --allow-removals.
• Short secrets can block close if the same bytes appear elsewhere in the file (docs/comments) - fail closed.
• Nested git checkouts are skipped; run pilfer from those roots if needed.
• Legacy unbound sessions can close only if the password decrypts the session backups (then pilfer binds a v2 fingerprint); otherwise remove the session list and re-open.
• Incomplete open (session list written, crash before decrypt) is cleared on the next open only when listed paths still look like vault ciphertext and there are no backups/sidecars - so you are not told to close ciphertext. If the session list remains but files are already plaintext (artifacts deleted), open still refuses.
• *.pilfer-open sidecars sit beside opened files (whole-file opens have no # pilfer:vault: markers).

Gitignore

vaultedFileList.json
.vault/
**/*.pilfer-open

Pre-commit hook (suggested)

Block commits while a session is open:

# .git/hooks/pre-commit (chmod +x)
if [ -e vaultedFileList.json ] || [ -d .vault ] \
  || find . -name '*.pilfer-open' -print -quit 2>/dev/null | grep -q .; then
  echo "pilfer session open (vaultedFileList.json / .vault / *.pilfer-open); run pilfer close first"
  exit 1
fi
# Optional: also refuse # pilfer:vault: markers from --include-encrypted-vars
if git grep -n '# pilfer:vault:' -- '*.yml' '*.yaml' >/dev/null 2>&1; then
  echo "files still contain # pilfer:vault: markers; run pilfer close first"
  exit 1
fi

Recovery

• Session present (vaultedFileList.json) → fix the reported issue → pilfer close again.
• Session deleted but markers / .vault / *.pilfer-open remain → restore vaultedFileList.json from backup if you have it and close, or manually re-encrypt / restore secrets before open.

License

This project is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3 or later (GPLv3+). See PILFER_LICENSE.txt for the complete license text, or the official GNU website.

The package declares GPL-3.0-or-later in metadata; the license file is named PILFER_LICENSE.txt to avoid setuptools auto-detection clashes during builds.

Credits

Borrows heavily from the excellent, but no longer supported Ansible Toolkit.