---
layout: docs
page_title: Snowflake - Database - Secrets Engines
description: |-
  Snowflake is one of the supported plugins for the database secrets engine.
  This plugin generates database credentials dynamically based on configured
  roles for Snowflake hosted databases.
---

# Snowflake Database Secrets Engine

Snowflake is one of the supported plugins for the database secrets engine. This
plugin generates database credentials dynamically based on configured roles for
Snowflake hosted databases, and also supports [Static
Roles](/docs/secrets/databases#static-roles).

See the [database secrets engine](/docs/secrets/databases) docs for
more information about setting up the database secrets engine.

The Snowflake secrets engine uses
[gosnowflake](https://pkg.go.dev/github.com/snowflakedb/gosnowflake).

A properly formatted data source name (DSN) needs to be provided during configuration of the
database. This DSN is typically formatted with the following options:

```text
  {{username}}:{{password}}@account/db_name
```

`{{username}}` and `{{password}}` will typically be used as is during configuration. The
special formatting is replaced by the username and password options passed to the configuration
for initial connection.

`account` is your Snowflake account identifier. You can find out more about this value by reading
the `server` section of
[this document](https://docs.snowflake.com/en/user-guide/odbc-parameters.html#connection-parameters).

`db_name` is the name of a database in your snowflake instance.

Please note: the user being utilized should have `ACCOUNT_ADMIN` privileges, and should be different
from the root user you were provided when making your Snowflake account. This allows you to rotate
the root credentials and still be able to access your account should something go awry.

## Capabilities

| Plugin Name                 | Root Credential Rotation | Dynamic Roles | Static Roles | Username Customization |
| --------------------------- | ------------------------ | ------------- | ------------ | ---------------------- |
| `snowflake-database-plugin` | Yes                      | Yes           | Yes          | Yes (1.8+)             |

## Setup

1.  Enable the database secrets engine if it is not already enabled:

    ```text
    $ vault secrets enable database
    Success! Enabled the database secrets engine at: database/
    ```

    By default, the secrets engine will enable at the name of the engine. To
    enable the secrets engine at a different path, use the `-path` argument.

1.  Configure Vault with the proper plugin and connection information:

    ```text
    $ vault write database/config/my-snowflake-database \
        plugin_name=snowflake-database-plugin \
        allowed_roles="my-role" \
        connection_url="{{username}}:{{password}}@ecxxxx.west-us-1.azure/db_name" \
        username="vaultuser" \
        password="vaultpass"
    ```

1.  Configure a role that maps a name in Vault to an SQL statement to execute to
    create the database credential:

    ```text
    $ vault write database/roles/my-role \
        db_name=my-snowflake-database \
        creation_statements="CREATE USER {{name}} PASSWORD = '{{password}}' DAYS_TO_EXPIRY = {{expiration}} DEFAULT_ROLE=myrole;
            GRANT ROLE myrole TO USER {{name}};" \
        default_ttl="1h" \
        max_ttl="24h"
    Success! Data written to: database/roles/my-role
    ```

## Usage

After the secrets engine is configured and a user/machine has a Vault token with
the proper permission, it can generate credentials.

1.  Generate a new credential by reading from the `/creds` endpoint with the name
    of the role:

    ```text
    $ vault read database/creds/my-role
    Key                Value
    ---                -----
    lease_id           database/creds/my-role/2f6a614c-4aa2-7b19-24b9-ad944a8d4de6
    lease_duration     1h
    lease_renewable    true
    password           SsnoaA-8Tv4t34f41baD
    username           v_root_my_role_fU0jqEy4wMNoAY2h60yd_1610561532
    ```

## API

The full list of configurable options can be seen in the [Snowflake database
plugin API](/api/secret/databases/snowflake) page.

For more information on the database secrets engine's HTTP API please see the
[Database secrets engine API](/api/secret/databases) page.