{"id":2262,"date":"2025-10-09T17:36:23","date_gmt":"2025-10-09T16:36:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thomas-kopton.de\/vblog\/?p=2262"},"modified":"2025-10-09T17:36:23","modified_gmt":"2025-10-09T16:36:23","slug":"retrieve-passwords-from-vcf-fleet-manager-vcf-operations-cloud-proxy-example","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thomas-kopton.de\/vblog\/?p=2262","title":{"rendered":"Retrieve Passwords from VCF Fleet Manager: VCF Operations Cloud Proxy Example"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

One of the great things about an all-encompassing Private Cloud<\/mark> solution like VMware Cloud Foundation<\/mark> (VCF<\/mark>) is how much it automates for you. From automatically installing or updating VCF Operations Cloud Proxies<\/mark> to managing critical passwords like the root user’s within the VCF Fleet Manager<\/mark>, VCF aims to streamline your operations. But what happens when you actually need that root password? How do you retrieve it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this post, I’ll walk you through the process of accessing passwords<\/mark> stored in the VCF Fleet Manager’s secure vault<\/mark>, specifically demonstrating with the root user for a VCF Operations Cloud Proxy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

VCF Fleet Management Passwords<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Within the VCF Fleet Manager, Fleet Management Passwords<\/mark> is VCF’s answer to automated, secure credential handling. It centralizes, generates, and manages critical passwords\u2014like those for VCF Operations Cloud Proxies\u2014in a protected vault, reducing manual effort and bolstering security across your private cloud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 01: VCF Fleet Management – Passwords.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

While the VCF Fleet Manager handles password management for crucial components behind the scenes, you won’t typically “retrieve” existing plaintext passwords directly from its interface. Instead, the Fleet Management Passwords feature is where you proactively\u00a0manage<\/em>\u00a0these credentials. This means you can\u00a0update<\/em>\u00a0or remediate<\/em> passwords when necessary. If you need to\u00a0regain access<\/em>\u00a0to a system whose password is managed by VCF, it involves a specific REST API<\/mark> based process, which is what we’ll explore \u2013 not simply pulling it from a vault.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fleet Management API<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Moving beyond manual clicks in the UI, the\u00a0VCF Fleet Management API\u00a0<\/mark>is your gateway to unparalleled automation. It exposes the capabilities of the Fleet Manager through a set of programmatic endpoints, allowing you to script complex workflows and integrate VCF management into your existing automation frameworks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the next screenshot we can see how to access the VCF Fleet Management Swagger UI<\/mark>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 02: VCF Fleet Management – API access.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In the API Explorer we can choose between the public<\/mark> and the private API<\/mark>, as shown in the following screenshot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 03: VCF Fleet Management – Swagger API UI.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Retrieving Password<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

The process for\u00a0retrieving\u00a0a password stored in VCF’s secure vault \u2013 specifically, the\u00a0root<\/code>\u00a0user for our VCF Operations Cloud Proxy in this example \u2013 involves two three phases:<\/p>\n\n\n\n