using-sops

Using sops

Repositories that use this layout commit their secrets to git as sops-encrypted dotenv files, one per deployment environment: secrets/dev.env, secrets/prod.env. The files decrypt with age identities. There is no .env, no secrets service, and no session to log in to. Every checkout, worktree, and cloud sandbox has the encrypted files at clone; the only input anywhere is an age private key.

pnpm secrets (tools/secrets.ts) is the only interface. Do not call sops directly in a repo that has the wrapper.

Identities

Identity	Scope	Where the private key lives	Decrypts
agent	user-wide	~/.config/sops/age/keys.txt on every machine agents run on; SOPS_AGE_KEY in cloud sandboxes	dev.env
personal	user-wide	the user's password manager	every file
prod	per project	that project's production platform only	prod.env

.sops.yaml lists recipients by public key. Encrypting needs no private key; decrypting or editing needs one recipient's private key. agent and personal are local-development keys shared by every project; prod is minted per project so one leaked deploy variable exposes one project.

Agent workflow

Dev secrets are yours to manage without asking:

pnpm secrets show dev                    # everything, decrypted
pnpm secrets get dev STRIPE_KEY
pnpm secrets set dev STRIPE_KEY sk_test_1
pnpm secrets unset dev STRIPE_KEY
pnpm secrets exec dev -- node apps/worker/src/main.ts

exec puts the decrypted values in the child's environment (over the shell's), removes SOPS_AGE_KEY* from it, forwards signals, and exits with the child's status.

Prod secrets need elevation. When a task requires reading or writing prod.env:

1. Check for .age/elevated in this checkout. If present, prod commands work; carry on.
2. If absent, ask the user to run, in a terminal of their own: op read 'op://Personal/age-personal/private key' | pnpm secrets elevate (or however their password manager prints the key). Say why you need it.
3. Elevation is per checkout and lasts until .age/elevated is deleted. Do not copy it into another worktree.

When you add a variable, add it to the env schema and to every secrets/<env>.env you can decrypt. If you cannot decrypt prod, say so in the PR: the typed env check fails the prod boot until the value is set, which is the intended signal.

Never write an AGE-SECRET-KEY-... into a tracked file, a log, or a commit. Never put personal or prod in a cloud environment.

Human setup

For the one-time steps (generating keys, installing sops and age, wiring the agent key into agent tools and cloud sandboxes, configuring the prod platform, and rotating keys), read references/setup.md. When the user asks to be reminded of the steps, walk them through that file in order.

For the sops and age behavior the design relies on (identity union, updatekeys, exec-env limitations, dotenv quirks), read references/sops-notes.md.