Agent skill
aws-sdk-java-v2-kms
Provides AWS Key Management Service (KMS) patterns using AWS SDK for Java 2.x. Use when creating/managing encryption keys, encrypting/decrypting data, generating data keys, digital signing, key rotation, or integrating encryption into Spring Boot applications.
Install this agent skill to your Project
npx add-skill https://github.com/giuseppe-trisciuoglio/developer-kit/tree/main/plugins/developer-kit-java/skills/aws-sdk-java-v2-kms
SKILL.md
AWS SDK for Java 2.x - AWS KMS (Key Management Service)
Overview
Provides AWS KMS patterns using AWS SDK for Java 2.x. Covers key management, encryption/decryption, envelope encryption, digital signatures, and Spring Boot integration.
Instructions
- Set Up IAM Permissions - Grant kms:* actions with least privilege
- Create KMS Client - Instantiate KmsClient with region and credentials
- Create Keys - Use createKey() → Verify key state is ENABLED before proceeding
- Set Key Policies - Define key usage permissions → Test access before production
- Encrypt Data - Use encrypt() for data <4KB; Verify ciphertext is not empty
- Envelope Encryption - For larger data, use generateDataKey() → Verify data key generation succeeded
- Digital Signatures - Create signing keys → Verify signatureValid=true after sign/verify
- Key Rotation - Enable auto-rotation → Confirm rotation schedule is active
When to Use
- Creating/managing symmetric encryption keys for data protection
- Implementing envelope encryption for large data
- Generating data keys for local encryption with KMS-managed keys
- Setting up digital signatures with asymmetric keys
- Integrating encryption into Spring Boot applications
Dependencies
Maven
<dependency>
<groupId>software.amazon.awssdk</groupId>
<artifactId>kms</artifactId>
</dependency>
Gradle
implementation 'software.amazon.awssdk:kms:2.x.x'
Client Setup
Basic Synchronous Client
import software.amazon.awssdk.regions.Region;
import software.amazon.awssdk.services.kms.KmsClient;
KmsClient kmsClient = KmsClient.builder()
.region(Region.US_EAST_1)
.build();
Basic Asynchronous Client
import software.amazon.awssdk.services.kms.KmsAsyncClient;
KmsAsyncClient kmsAsyncClient = KmsAsyncClient.builder()
.region(Region.US_EAST_1)
.build();
Advanced Client Configuration
KmsClient kmsClient = KmsClient.builder()
.region(Region.of(System.getenv("AWS_REGION")))
.credentialsProvider(DefaultCredentialsProvider.create())
.overrideConfiguration(c -> c.retryPolicy(RetryPolicy.builder()
.numRetries(3)
.build()))
.build();
Basic Key Management
Create Encryption Key
public String createEncryptionKey(KmsClient kmsClient, String description) {
CreateKeyRequest request = CreateKeyRequest.builder()
.description(description)
.keyUsage(KeyUsageType.ENCRYPT_DECRYPT)
.build();
CreateKeyResponse response = kmsClient.createKey(request);
return response.keyMetadata().keyId();
}
Describe Key
public KeyMetadata getKeyMetadata(KmsClient kmsClient, String keyId) {
DescribeKeyRequest request = DescribeKeyRequest.builder()
.keyId(keyId)
.build();
return kmsClient.describeKey(request).keyMetadata();
}
Enable/Disable Key
public void toggleKeyState(KmsClient kmsClient, String keyId, boolean enable) {
if (enable) {
kmsClient.enableKey(EnableKeyRequest.builder().keyId(keyId).build());
} else {
kmsClient.disableKey(DisableKeyRequest.builder().keyId(keyId).build());
}
}
Basic Encryption and Decryption
Encrypt Data
public String encryptData(KmsClient kmsClient, String keyId, String plaintext) {
SdkBytes plaintextBytes = SdkBytes.fromString(plaintext, StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
EncryptRequest request = EncryptRequest.builder()
.keyId(keyId)
.plaintext(plaintextBytes)
.build();
EncryptResponse response = kmsClient.encrypt(request);
return Base64.getEncoder().encodeToString(
response.ciphertextBlob().asByteArray());
}
Decrypt Data
public String decryptData(KmsClient kmsClient, String ciphertextBase64) {
byte[] ciphertext = Base64.getDecoder().decode(ciphertextBase64);
SdkBytes ciphertextBytes = SdkBytes.fromByteArray(ciphertext);
DecryptRequest request = DecryptRequest.builder()
.ciphertextBlob(ciphertextBytes)
.build();
DecryptResponse response = kmsClient.decrypt(request);
return response.plaintext().asString(StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
}
Envelope Encryption Pattern
Generate and Use Data Key
public DataKeyResult encryptWithEnvelope(KmsClient kmsClient, String masterKeyId, byte[] data) {
try {
GenerateDataKeyRequest keyRequest = GenerateDataKeyRequest.builder()
.keyId(masterKeyId)
.keySpec(DataKeySpec.AES_256)
.build();
GenerateDataKeyResponse keyResponse = kmsClient.generateDataKey(keyRequest);
// Validate response
if (keyResponse.plaintext() == null || keyResponse.ciphertextBlob() == null) {
throw new IllegalStateException("Data key generation returned null");
}
byte[] encryptedData = encryptWithAES(data, keyResponse.plaintext().asByteArray());
// Clear plaintext key from memory
Arrays.fill(keyResponse.plaintext().asByteArray(), (byte) 0);
return new DataKeyResult(encryptedData, keyResponse.ciphertextBlob().asByteArray());
} catch (KmsException e) {
throw new RuntimeException("Envelope encryption failed: " + e.awsErrorDetails().errorCode(), e);
}
}
public byte[] decryptWithEnvelope(KmsClient kmsClient, DataKeyResult encryptedEnvelope) {
try {
DecryptRequest keyDecryptRequest = DecryptRequest.builder()
.ciphertextBlob(SdkBytes.fromByteArray(encryptedEnvelope.encryptedKey()))
.build();
DecryptResponse keyDecryptResponse = kmsClient.decrypt(keyDecryptRequest);
// Validate response
if (keyDecryptResponse.plaintext() == null) {
throw new IllegalStateException("Key decryption returned null");
}
byte[] decryptedData = decryptWithAES(
encryptedEnvelope.encryptedData(),
keyDecryptResponse.plaintext().asByteArray());
// Clear plaintext key from memory
Arrays.fill(keyDecryptResponse.plaintext().asByteArray(), (byte) 0);
return decryptedData;
} catch (KmsException e) {
throw new RuntimeException("Envelope decryption failed: " + e.awsErrorDetails().errorCode(), e);
}
}
Digital Signatures
Create Signing Key and Sign Data
public String createAndSignData(KmsClient kmsClient, String description, String message) {
// Create signing key
CreateKeyRequest keyRequest = CreateKeyRequest.builder()
.description(description)
.keySpec(KeySpec.RSA_2048)
.keyUsage(KeyUsageType.SIGN_VERIFY)
.build();
CreateKeyResponse keyResponse = kmsClient.createKey(keyRequest);
String keyId = keyResponse.keyMetadata().keyId();
// Sign data
SignRequest signRequest = SignRequest.builder()
.keyId(keyId)
.message(SdkBytes.fromString(message, StandardCharsets.UTF_8))
.signingAlgorithm(SigningAlgorithmSpec.RSASSA_PSS_SHA_256)
.build();
SignResponse signResponse = kmsClient.sign(signRequest);
return Base64.getEncoder().encodeToString(
signResponse.signature().asByteArray());
}
Verify Signature
public boolean verifySignature(KmsClient kmsClient,
String keyId,
String message,
String signatureBase64) {
byte[] signature = Base64.getDecoder().decode(signatureBase64);
VerifyRequest verifyRequest = VerifyRequest.builder()
.keyId(keyId)
.message(SdkBytes.fromString(message, StandardCharsets.UTF_8))
.signature(SdkBytes.fromByteArray(signature))
.signingAlgorithm(SigningAlgorithmSpec.RSASSA_PSS_SHA_256)
.build();
VerifyResponse verifyResponse = kmsClient.verify(verifyRequest);
return verifyResponse.signatureValid();
}
Spring Boot Integration
Configuration Class
@Configuration
public class KmsConfiguration {
@Bean
public KmsClient kmsClient() {
return KmsClient.builder()
.region(Region.US_EAST_1)
.build();
}
@Bean
public KmsAsyncClient kmsAsyncClient() {
return KmsAsyncClient.builder()
.region(Region.US_EAST_1)
.build();
}
}
Encryption Service
@Service
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class KmsEncryptionService {
private final KmsClient kmsClient;
@Value("${kms.encryption-key-id}")
private String keyId;
public String encrypt(String plaintext) {
try {
EncryptRequest request = EncryptRequest.builder()
.keyId(keyId)
.plaintext(SdkBytes.fromString(plaintext, StandardCharsets.UTF_8))
.build();
EncryptResponse response = kmsClient.encrypt(request);
return Base64.getEncoder().encodeToString(
response.ciphertextBlob().asByteArray());
} catch (KmsException e) {
throw new RuntimeException("Encryption failed", e);
}
}
public String decrypt(String ciphertextBase64) {
try {
byte[] ciphertext = Base64.getDecoder().decode(ciphertextBase64);
DecryptRequest request = DecryptRequest.builder()
.ciphertextBlob(SdkBytes.fromByteArray(ciphertext))
.build();
DecryptResponse response = kmsClient.decrypt(request);
return response.plaintext().asString(StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
} catch (KmsException e) {
throw new RuntimeException("Decryption failed", e);
}
}
}
Examples
Basic Encryption Example
public class BasicEncryptionExample {
public static void main(String[] args) {
KmsClient kmsClient = KmsClient.builder()
.region(Region.US_EAST_1)
.build();
// Create key
String keyId = createEncryptionKey(kmsClient, "Example encryption key");
System.out.println("Created key: " + keyId);
// Encrypt and decrypt
String plaintext = "Hello, World!";
String encrypted = encryptData(kmsClient, keyId, plaintext);
String decrypted = decryptData(kmsClient, encrypted);
System.out.println("Original: " + plaintext);
System.out.println("Decrypted: " + decrypted);
}
}
Envelope Encryption Example
public class EnvelopeEncryptionExample {
public static void main(String[] args) {
KmsClient kmsClient = KmsClient.builder()
.region(Region.US_EAST_1)
.build();
String masterKeyId = "alias/your-master-key";
String largeData = "This is a large amount of data that needs encryption...";
byte[] data = largeData.getBytes(StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
// Encrypt using envelope pattern
DataKeyResult encryptedEnvelope = encryptWithEnvelope(
kmsClient, masterKeyId, data);
// Decrypt
byte[] decryptedData = decryptWithEnvelope(
kmsClient, encryptedEnvelope);
String result = new String(decryptedData, StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
System.out.println("Decrypted: " + result);
}
}
Best Practices
Security
- Always use envelope encryption for large data - Encrypt data locally and only encrypt the data key with KMS
- Use encryption context - Add contextual information to track and audit usage
- Never log sensitive data - Avoid logging plaintext or encryption keys
- Implement proper key lifecycle - Enable automatic rotation and set deletion policies
- Use separate keys for different purposes - Don't reuse keys across multiple applications
Performance
- Cache encrypted data keys - Reduce KMS API calls by caching data keys
- Use async operations - Leverage async clients for non-blocking I/O
- Reuse client instances - Don't create new clients for each operation
- Implement connection pooling - Configure proper connection pooling settings
Error Handling
- Implement retry logic - Handle throttling exceptions with exponential backoff
- Check key states - Verify key is enabled before performing operations
- Use circuit breakers - Prevent cascading failures during KMS outages
- Log errors comprehensively - Include KMS error codes and context
References
For detailed implementation patterns, advanced techniques, and comprehensive examples:
- @references/technical-guide.md - Complete technical implementation patterns
- @references/spring-boot-integration.md - Spring Boot integration patterns
- @references/testing.md - Testing strategies and examples
- @references/best-practices.md - Security and operational best practices
Related Skills
@aws-sdk-java-v2-core - Core AWS SDK patterns and configuration@aws-sdk-java-v2-dynamodb - DynamoDB integration patterns@aws-sdk-java-v2-secrets-manager - Secrets management patterns@spring-boot-dependency-injection - Spring dependency injection patterns
External References
Constraints and Warnings
- Data Size Limit: Direct encryption limited to 4KB; use envelope encryption for larger data
- Key Usage Limits: KMS has quotas on API calls per second
- Key Material: Imported key material cannot be managed by AWS for rotation
- Key Deletion: Key deletion requires 7-30 day waiting period
- Regional Boundaries: KMS keys cannot be used across regions
- Cost Considerations: KMS charges per API call and for key storage
- Asymmetric Keys: Not all regions support asymmetric key types
- Key Policies: Changes to key policies require careful IAM review
- Envelope Encryption: Proper implementation required for data key security
- Logging: Enable CloudTrail to audit all KMS API usage
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