---
title: Filesystem secret stores
description: Configure PingIDM filesystem secret stores to map directory files to secrets, with support for PLAIN, PEM, BASE64, and BASE64URL encoding
component: pingidm
version: 7.5
page_id: pingidm:security-guide:secret-stores-filesystem
canonical_url: https://docs.pingidentity.com/pingidm/8.1/security-guide/secret-stores-filesystem.html
llms_txt: https://docs.pingidentity.com/pingidm/llms.txt
docs_for_agents: https://developer.pingidentity.com/build-with-ai/docs-for-agents.md
superseded_by: https://docs.pingidentity.com/pingidm/8.1/security-guide/secret-stores-filesystem.html
section_ids:
  example_create_a_new_user_type: "Example: Create a new user type"
  configure_purpose_versions: Configure purpose versions
---

# Filesystem secret stores

A filesystem secret store maps to a directory storing an arbitrary number of files that each contain one secret. When filesystem secret stores are used, IDM reads the contents of a file with a name matching the `secretId` field in the secret store's mapping list.

Filesystem secret stores are useful to provide secrets from third-party secret stores like AWS Secrets Manager or Google Secrets Manager. They can also be used to separate your secrets from your configuration files.

Filesystem secret stores may be encoded with the following encoding schemes:

* PLAIN

* PEM

* BASE64

* BASE64URL

The following configuration is an example of a filesystem secret store which is configured to use the `/secrets` directory and contains a mapping for the `idm.admin.password` secret:

```json
{
    "name":"secretVolume",
    "class": "org.forgerock.openidm.secrets.config.FileSystemStore",
    "config": {
        "format": "PLAIN",
        "directory": "&{idm.install.dir}/secrets",
        "mappings": [
          {
            "secretId": "idm.admin.password",
            "types": [
              "GENERIC"
            ]
          }
        ]
    }
}
```

## Example: Create a new user type

The following example creates a new type of static user, `openidm-super`, with a new secret, `idm.super.password`, kept in the filesystem secret store. To configure the user:

1. In `conf/authentication.json`, add the following new user configuration:

   ```json
   {
       "name": "STATIC_USER",
       "properties": {
           "queryOnResource": "internal/user",
           "username": "openidm-super",
           "password": {
               "$purpose": {
                   "name": "idm.super.password"
               }
           },
           "defaultUserRoles": [
               "internal/role/openidm-authorized",
               "internal/role/openidm-admin"
           ],
           "enabled": true
       }
   }
   ```

2. In `conf/secrets.json`, add a new mapping for the `idm.super.password` secret:

   ```json
   {
       "secretId": "idm.super.password",
       "format": "PLAIN",
       "types": [
           "GENERIC"
       ]
   }
   ```

   |   |                                                                                                                                                    |
   | - | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
   |   | The `format` parameter is optional. It only needs to be used if the secret is encoded using a different scheme than the rest of the secret volume. |

3. In the directory that you have configured to be your filesystem secret store, create a file named `idm.super.password` and populate it with your secret data.

## Configure purpose versions

The filesystem secret store supports multiple versions of the same purpose. To configure this, specify the `versionSuffix` property in the store's definition in `conf/secrets.json`. The following example adds the `.v` suffix to a purpose called `idm.pem.purpose`:

```json
{
  "name": "pemStore",
  "class": "org.forgerock.openidm.secrets.config.FileSystemStore",
  "config": {
    "format": "PEM",
    "directory": "&{idm.install.dir}/secrets",
    "versionSuffix": ".v",
    "mappings": [
      {
        "secretId": "idm.pem.purpose",
        "types": [
          "ENCRYPT",
          "DECRYPT"
        ]
      }
    ]
  }
}
```

Once `versionSuffix` is defined, you can version your purpose files by adding it to the file name. Following the example above, the files could be named `idm.pem.purpose.v1`, `idm.pem.purpose.v2`, and so on. The highest version number is the active secret.