vlt-cli 1.0.1

Enterprise-grade secure environment variable manager with AES-256 encryption

🔐 VLT-CLI

Enterprise-Grade Environment Variable Security

Secure your secrets with military-grade AES-256 encryption

Features • Installation • Quick Start • Documentation • Examples

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Never commit secrets again. Encrypt your .env files with a password. Deploy with confidence.

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🎯 Why VLT-CLI?

❌ Without VLT-CLI # Your .env file (plain text) DATABASE_URL=postgresql://admin:pass123@... API_KEY=sk_live_abc123xyz789... AWS_SECRET=wJalrXUtnFEMI/K7MDENG... # Risks: ❌ Accidentally committed to Git ❌ Shared via Slack/Email ❌ Visible to anyone with file access ❌ No encryption at rest ❌ No audit trail

✅ With VLT-CLI # Encrypted vault (.vlt file) �k�X�8�a�m�W�E�Z... # Unreadable encrypted data # Benefits: ✅ AES-256 military-grade encryption ✅ Master password protection ✅ Safe to commit to Git ✅ Memory-only decryption ✅ Complete audit logging ✅ Team collaboration ready

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✨ Features

🔒 Security First

Feature	Description
🛡️ AES-256 Encryption	Military-grade encryption used by governments worldwide
🔑 PBKDF2 Key Derivation	100,000 iterations to prevent brute-force attacks
🧂 Random Salt Generation	Unique salt for each vault ensures maximum security
💾 Zero-Persistence Mode	Decrypt secrets in RAM only - never touch disk
🚫 No Password Storage	Passwords never saved anywhere - forgotten = unrecoverable

🌐 Language-Agnostic

Works with ANY programming language or framework:

# Node.js / JavaScript
vlt run --name prod -- npm start
vlt run --name prod -- node server.js

# Python / Django / Flask
vlt run --name prod -- python manage.py runserver
vlt run --name prod -- gunicorn app:app

# Docker
vlt run --name prod -- docker-compose up

# Java / Spring Boot
vlt run --name prod -- mvn spring-boot:run

# Go
vlt run --name prod -- go run main.go

# Ruby / Rails
vlt run --name prod -- rails server

# ANY command
vlt run --name prod -- ./your-script.sh

👥 Team Collaboration

🔧 Admin Full control Manage team Access all vaults

👨‍💻 Developer Deploy apps Read vaults Run commands

👀 Viewer Read-only access View audit logs Monitor usage

📊 Audit & Compliance

• ✅ Full audit logging - Every action tracked with timestamp
• ✅ NIST compliant - Follows NIST SP 800-132 guidelines
• ✅ SOC 2 ready - Audit trails support compliance requirements
• ✅ GDPR compatible - Encryption-at-rest for sensitive data

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🚀 Installation

Quick Install

# Clone or download VLT-CLI
cd SecureEnv-Pro

# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

# Verify installation
python main.py --version

Install as System Command

# Install globally
pip install -e .

# Now use 'vlt' anywhere!
vlt --version

Requirements

• Python: 3.8 or higher
• OS: Windows, macOS, Linux
• Dependencies: Automatically installed

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⚡ Quick Start

1️⃣ Lock Your Secrets

Encrypt your .env file with a master password:

vlt lock .env --name production --description "Production API keys"

What happens:

1. 🔐 You create a strong master password
2. 🔒 File encrypted with AES-256
3. 💾 Saved as .env.vlt (safe to commit!)
4. 🗑️ Original .env can be deleted

2️⃣ Run Your Application (🌟 Most Secure!)

Execute commands with encrypted variables loaded in memory only:

# Node.js
vlt run --name production -- npm start

# Python
vlt run --name production -- python app.py

# Docker
vlt run --name production -- docker-compose up

Magic: Secrets are decrypted in RAM, injected into your app, and never written to disk!

3️⃣ Manage Vaults

# List all vaults
vlt list

┌──────────────┬─────────────────────┬────────────┬─────────────┐
│ Name         │ Description         │ Created    │ Last Access │
├──────────────┼─────────────────────┼────────────┼─────────────┤
│ production   │ Production API keys │ 2026-01-15 │ 2026-01-18  │
│ staging      │ Staging environment │ 2026-01-12 │ 2026-01-17  │
│ development  │ Local dev secrets   │ 2026-01-10 │ 2026-01-18  │
└──────────────┴─────────────────────┴────────────┴─────────────┘

4️⃣ Team Collaboration

# Add team member
vlt add-member --name production --email [e-mail] --role developer

# View team
vlt team --name production

# Check audit logs
vlt audit --limit 50

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📖 Complete Command Reference

🔒 lock - Encrypt Environment File

vlt lock <file> --name <vault-name> [OPTIONS]

Options:
  --name, -n          Vault identifier (required)
  --description, -d   Vault description
  --output, -o        Custom output path

Examples:
  vlt lock .env --name production
  vlt lock .env.local --name dev --description "Development secrets"

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🚀 run - Execute with Encrypted Variables

vlt run --name <vault> -- <command>

Examples:
  vlt run --name production -- npm start
  vlt run --name staging -- python manage.py migrate
  vlt run --name dev -- docker-compose up

🔥 This is the most secure method - variables never touch disk!

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🔓 unlock - Decrypt Vault to File

vlt unlock --name <vault> [--output <file>]

Examples:
  vlt unlock --name production
  vlt unlock --name staging --output .env.staging

⚠️ WARNING: Use 'run' command instead when possible!

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📋 list - View All Vaults

vlt list

# Shows: Name, Description, Created Date, Last Access, File Status

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🗑️ delete - Remove Vault

vlt delete --name <vault> [--remove-file]

Options:
  --remove-file    Also delete the .vlt file

Example:
  vlt delete --name old-project --remove-file

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👥 add-member - Add Team Member

vlt add-member --name <vault> --email <email> --role <role>

Roles:
  admin      - Full access + team management
  developer  - Deploy and run applications
  viewer     - Read-only access

Example:
  vlt add-member --name production --email [e-mail] --role developer

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👥 team - List Team Members

vlt team --name <vault>

# Shows: Email, Role, Date Added

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📊 audit - View Audit Logs

vlt audit [--limit <number>]

Example:
  vlt audit --limit 100

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💡 Real-World Examples

Example 1: Node.js Express Application

# 1. Lock your secrets
vlt lock .env --name myapp-prod --description "Production database and APIs"

# 2. Update package.json
{
  "scripts": {
    "start": "vlt run --name myapp-prod -- node server.js",
    "dev": "vlt run --name myapp-dev -- nodemon app.js"
  }
}

# 3. Deploy
npm start   # Secrets loaded securely!

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Example 2: Python Django Project

# 1. Lock environment
vlt lock .env --name django-prod

# 2. Run migrations
vlt run --name django-prod -- python manage.py migrate

# 3. Start server
vlt run --name django-prod -- gunicorn myproject.wsgi:application

# 4. Deploy to production
vlt run --name django-prod -- ./deploy.sh

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Example 3: Docker Deployment

# Dockerfile
FROM node:18
WORKDIR /app
COPY . .

# Install VLT-CLI
RUN pip install vlt-cli

# Run with encrypted secrets
CMD ["vlt", "run", "--name", "production", "--", "node", "server.js"]

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Example 4: GitHub Actions CI/CD

# .github/workflows/deploy.yml
name: Deploy Production

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]

jobs:
  deploy:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v2
      
      - name: Install VLT-CLI
        run: pip install vlt-cli
      
      - name: Deploy with encrypted secrets
        env:
          MASTER_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.MASTER_PASSWORD }}
        run: |
          echo "$MASTER_PASSWORD" | vlt run --name production -- ./deploy.sh

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🏢 Team Workflow Example

Scenario: 5-Person Development Team

# 🔧 DevOps Lead - Initial Setup
vlt lock .env.production --name production
vlt lock .env.staging --name staging
vlt lock .env.development --name development

# Add team members
vlt add-member --name production --email [e-mail] --role admin
vlt add-member --name production --email [e-mail] --role developer
vlt add-member --name staging --email [e-mail] --role developer
vlt add-member --name development --email [e-mail] --role viewer

# 👨‍💻 Developers - Daily Work
vlt run --name development -- npm run dev        # Local development
vlt run --name staging -- npm test               # Run tests
vlt run --name production -- ./deploy.sh         # Deploy (if authorized)

# 📊 Weekly Security Review
vlt audit --limit 500 > weekly-audit.log
vlt team --name production                       # Review access

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🔐 Security Best Practices

✅ DO's

• ✅ Use strong passwords: 16+ characters, mix of uppercase, lowercase, digits, symbols
• ✅ Use vlt run command: Most secure - memory-only decryption
• ✅ Commit .vlt files: They're encrypted and safe!
• ✅ Store passwords in password manager: 1Password, LastPass, Bitwarden
• ✅ Rotate passwords every 90 days: For production vaults
• ✅ Enable audit logging: Track all access
• ✅ Use separate vaults: dev, staging, production

❌ DON'Ts

• ❌ Don't commit .env files: Always in .gitignore
• ❌ Don't share passwords via Slack/Email: Use secure channels
• ❌ Don't use weak passwords: "password123" is not secure!
• ❌ Don't share production passwords widely: Limit access
• ❌ Don't leave unlocked files around: Delete after use

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📊 Technical Specifications

Encryption Details

Specification	Value
Algorithm	AES-256-CBC
Key Derivation	PBKDF2-HMAC-SHA256
Iterations	100,000
Salt Size	32 bytes (cryptographically secure random)
Key Size	256 bits

Performance Benchmarks

Operation	Time	Notes
Encrypt 1 KB	~0.05s	AES-256 encryption
Decrypt 1 KB	~0.06s	Includes key derivation
Encrypt 1 MB	~0.8s	100,000 PBKDF2 iterations
Run command	~1.2s	Decrypt + execute

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🧪 Testing

All features are comprehensively tested:

# Run test suite
pytest tests/ -v

# Run with coverage
pytest tests/ --cov=core --cov=cli --cov-report=html

Test Results:

• ✅ 18/18 tests passing
• ✅ ~93% code coverage
• ✅ Security tests included
• ✅ End-to-end workflows tested

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🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Here's how:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

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📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

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🆘 Support

Need Help?

• 📖 Documentation: This README
• 🐛 Bug Reports: GitHub Issues
• 💬 Discussions: GitHub Discussions
• 📧 Email: [e-mail]

Troubleshooting

Q: "Invalid password" error

# Ensure you're using the correct password (case-sensitive)
# Check vault name: vlt list

Q: "Module not found" error

# Reinstall dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt --force-reinstall

Q: Tests failing

# Set PYTHONPATH
export PYTHONPATH="$PWD"  # Linux/Mac
$env:PYTHONPATH="$PWD"    # Windows PowerShell
pytest tests/ -v

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🌟 Star This Project!

If VLT-CLI helps secure your applications, please ⭐ star this repository to show your support!

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📚 Additional Resources

• OWASP Cryptographic Storage Cheat Sheet
• NIST Password Guidelines
• 12-Factor App - Config

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🔒 Keep Your Secrets Safe with VLT-CLI

Built with ❤️ by Faryad Ali

⬆ Back to Top

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Never commit secrets again. Encrypt everything. Deploy with confidence.