Secrets Manager Feature Matrix

This table compares BV with common alternatives:

Legend:

Yes = built-in
Partial = possible but indirect or policy-based
No = not supported
Managed = provider-operated service
Customer = customer operates infrastructure

Overview

Capability BV AWS Secrets Manager HashiCorp Vault Azure Key Vault Google Secret Manager
Service model Managed Managed Customer / Managed (HCP) Managed Managed
Cloud independent Yes No Yes No No
On-prem capable Yes (deployable) No Yes No No
Public HTTPS API Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Machine-to-machine focus Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Cryptography model

Capability BV AWS Vault Azure Google
Envelope encryption Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Explicit key hierarchy Yes No Partial No No
Dedicated key service separate from data service Yes No No No No
Keys never stored with ciphertext Yes No No No No
Per-customer cryptographic isolation Yes Partial (IAM/KMS) Partial (namespaces/policies) Partial Partial
Operator-controlled root key Yes No Partial (unseal keys) No No
Temporary in-memory unwrap only Yes No Partial No No

Operational characteristics

Capability BV AWS Vault Azure Google
Fully managed by provider Yes Yes No (unless HCP) Yes Yes
Customer runs servers No No Yes No No
Manual root-of-trust ceremony Yes No Yes (unseal) No No
Works outside single cloud Yes No Yes No No
Minimal configuration surface Yes Yes No Yes Yes

Feature scope

Capability BV AWS Vault Azure Google
Static secret storage Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Dynamic secret generation No No Yes No No
PKI / certificate engine No No Yes No No
Plugin/extension system No No Yes No No
General security platform No No Yes No No
Narrow focused design Yes Partial No Partial Partial

Isolation model

Capability BV AWS Vault Azure Google
Isolation by cryptographic keys Yes Partial Partial Partial Partial
Isolation primarily by IAM/policy No Yes Yes Yes Yes
Separate key and storage services Yes No No No No
Blast radius limited by key tree Yes No Partial No No

Typical fit

Scenario BV AWS Vault Azure Google
Cloud-agnostic deployments Strong Weak Strong Weak Weak
Minimal operational overhead Strong Strong Weak Strong Strong
Complex integrations required Weak Partial Strong Partial Partial
Strict key custody requirements Strong Weak Partial Weak Weak
Simple secret storage only Strong Strong Partial Strong Strong

Notes