Deep Dive into Azure Integration with Google Cloud Platform: Workload Identity Federation

Secure Integration of services between Azure and Google Cloud Platform

This is part-1 of the multi-part series of blogs about secure integration between Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Platform.

As businesses continue to embrace the power of cloud computing, they often find themselves managing multiple cloud providers to meet their diverse requirements. Azure and Google Cloud Platform (GCP) are two giants in the cloud industry, each offering a range of services and features. Many organizations are now looking for ways to seamlessly integrate Azure and GCP to harness the capabilities of both platforms. In this technical blog post, we’ll delve deep into the topic of Azure integration with GCP using Workload Identity Federation, with a special focus on eliminating the need for service account keys.

Why Workload Identity Federation?

Workload Identity Federation is a powerful feature that enables seamless and secure integration between Azure and GCP without relying on service account keys. This method enhances the security of your cloud environment, reduces the risk of exposure due to key mismanagement, and simplifies the process of managing access control between the two cloud platforms.

The Workload Identity Federation Setup

Before diving into the technical details, it’s essential to understand the key components and how they fit together in the Azure-GCP integration with Workload Identity Federation:

1. Azure Active Directory (Azure AD): This is the identity and access management service provided by Microsoft Azure.
2. Google Cloud Identity Platform: The authentication and authorization service offered by Google Cloud Platform.
3. Azure Managed Identity: A secure service principal managed by Azure that can be assigned to Azure resources.
4. Google Cloud Service Account: A service account in GCP that represents the identity used to access Google Cloud resources.
5. Kubernetes Engine Cluster: The cloud-native container orchestration solution in Google Cloud.

Implementation Steps

Now, let’s deep dive into the steps involved in setting up Azure integration with GCP using Workload Identity Federation, with a focus on eliminating the need for service account keys.

Step 1: Configure Azure Active Directory

First, create an enterprise application in Azure AD and configure it to support Workload Identity Federation.

# PowerShell script to create the enterprise application
$enterpriseApp = New-AzureADApplication -DisplayName "GCP Federation"
$servicePrincipal = New-AzureADServicePrincipal -AppId $enterpriseApp.AppId

Step 2: Configure Google Cloud Identity Platform

In GCP, set up an identity pool that maps the Azure AD users or groups to Google Cloud identities.

# Use the gcloud command-line tool to create an identity pool
gcloud iam workload-identity-pools create azure-pool \
  --location=global \
  --description="Azure AD Identity Pool"

Step 3: Assign Azure Managed Identity

Assign the Azure managed identity to your Azure resources. This identity will be used to authenticate with GCP. In this example we are assigning the managed identity to a VM.

# Assign Azure managed identity to Azure resource
az vm identity assign -g MyResourceGroup -n MyVM

Step 4: Map Azure Managed Identity to GCP Service Account

Map the Azure managed identity to a GCP service account. This mapping establishes the connection between the two cloud platforms.

# Use the gcloud command-line tool to map Azure managed identity to GCP service account
gcloud iam workload-identity-pools providers add-iam-policy-binding azure-pool \
  --location=global \
  --member="serviceAccount:my-azure-identity@my-gcp-project.iam.gserviceaccount.com" \
  --role="roles/iam.workloadIdentityUser"

Conclusion

Azure integration with Google Cloud Platform using Workload Identity Federation offers a robust and secure approach for connecting these two cloud environments without relying on service account keys. This not only enhances security but also simplifies access management. By following the steps outlined in this blog post, you can take advantage of the benefits of both Azure and GCP while maintaining a secure and efficient cloud ecosystem.

In the rapidly evolving world of cloud computing, staying up-to-date with the latest features and best practices is crucial. By exploring advanced topics like Workload Identity Federation, you can ensure your cloud infrastructure is not only functional but also secure and optimized for the future.