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Encryption Keys

Every object is encrypted at rest with AES-256-GCM, always; there is nothing to turn on. Each object has its own data key, and that key is wrapped with the installation's key encryption key (KEK). The KEK is generated on the first start and kept in the database.

flowchart LR
    O[Object] -->|encrypted with| D[Data key, one per object]
    D -->|wrapped with| K[KEK, in the database]
    K -->|exported in| B[Recovery bundle + passphrase]

The recovery bundle

The bundle is a passphrase-protected copy of every KEK version. If the database is lost, it is the only way to read the objects again.

  1. Settings → Security → Encryption Recovery Bundle.
  2. Type a passphrase twice; at least the minimum length the form asks for.
  3. Download bundle, and store the file and the passphrase outside the server, apart from each other.

The console shows a banner until a bundle has been downloaded. Download a new one after every rotation.

Danger

MaxIOFS does not keep the passphrase. A bundle without it cannot be opened.

Rotate the key

Settings → Security → Rotate key creates a new KEK version:

  • New objects use it at once.
  • Existing objects are re-wrapped to it in the background. Their data is not re-encrypted, only their small data keys. Progress shows under Background Encryption.
  • Everything stays readable during and after.

Rotate on a schedule your policy asks for, or when someone who had access to the database leaves. Then download a fresh bundle.

In a cluster

All nodes share the KEK: a node gets it when it joins, and a rotation reaches every node. Objects move between nodes still encrypted.

Customer-provided keys (SSE-C)

A client can send its own key with each request instead. MaxIOFS encrypts the object with it and keeps no copy, so:

  • it is blocked by default on every bucket; allow it in the bucket's Settings → Security & Access;
  • it is accepted only over HTTPS;
  • the console cannot download, share or rename such objects, and replication does not copy them; the client must send the same key to read them.

Other secrets

OAuth client secrets, LDAP bind passwords, replication keys and share link keys are also stored encrypted in the database, with a secret kept there too. The API never returns them.