Step-by-Step Guide to Creating a VM with a User-Managed Service Account

It will be important to state that Virtual Machines (VMs) are recognized as one of the components that are most crucial to the contemporary clouds. Several questions should be answered while creating a VM, and among them, security and access problems are critical. Among them, the first one is the user-managed service account that provides extremely precise regulating of the permissions; thus, the security aspect is considerably enhanced.

Here, the user will be instructed on how to set up and run an environment with a user-managed service account and VM.

Prerequisites:

- Access to a cloud hosting platform (e.g., Google Cloud Platform, Amazon Web Services, or Microsoft Azure)

- Basic understanding of cloud computing concepts

- Familiarity with command-line interfaces

Step 1: Choose Your Cloud Platform

Choose the cloud platform you want to use before you start. Although Google Cloud Platform (GCP) will be used as an example in this book, the main ideas also apply to other significant cloud providers.

Step 2: Set Up Your Cloud Environment

1. Create a new project in your cloud console if you haven't already.

2. Enable the necessary APIs for VM management and IAM (Identity and Access Management).

Step 3: Create a User-Managed Service Account

1. Open your cloud console and navigate to the IAM & Admin area.

2. Select "Service Accounts" from the sidebar on the left.

3. Select "Create Service Account" from the menu.

4. Give your service account a name and description.

5. Click "Create" to generate the account.

Step 4: Assign Roles to the Service Account

1. In the service account details page, click on the "Permissions" tab.

2. Click "Add Member" and enter the service account's email address.

3. Assign the necessary roles for VM management, such as "Compute Instance Admin" and "Service Account User."

4. Click "Save" to apply the permissions.

Step 5: Generate a Key for the Service Account

1. In the service account details page, click on the "Keys" tab.

2. Click "Add Key" and choose "Create new key."

3. Select the key type (JSON is recommended for most use cases).

4. Click "Create" to generate and download the key file.

Step 6: Prepare Your Local Environment

1. Install the cloud provider's command-line tool (e.g., Google Cloud SDK for GCP).

2. Authenticate your CLI tool using the service account key:

   ```

   gcloud auth activate-service-account --key-file=PATH_TO_YOUR_KEY_FILE.json

   ```

3. Set the project ID:

   ```

   gcloud config set project YOUR_PROJECT_ID

  ``

Step 7: Create the VM

1. Use the cloud provider's CLI to create a new VM. For GCP, you can use the following command:

   ```

   gcloud compute instances create VM_NAME \

       --zone=ZONE \

       --machine-type=MACHINE_TYPE \

       --image-family=IMAGE_FAMILY \

       --image-project=IMAGE_PROJECT \

       --service-account=SERVICE_ACCOUNT_EMAIL

   ```

   Replace the placeholders with your specific details.

2. Wait for the VM creation process to complete. This may take a few minutes.

Step 8: Configure VM Access

1. Set up SSH access to your VM:

   ```

   gcloud compute ssh VM_NAME --zone=ZONE

   ```

2. Follow the prompts to generate an SSH key if you haven't already.

Step 9: Verify Service Account Configuration

1. Once connected to your VM via SSH, verify the service account configuration:

   ```

   curl -H "Metadata-Flavor: Google" \

   http://metadata.google.internal/computeMetadata/v1/instance/service-accounts/default/email

   ```

2. The output should match the email of your user-managed service account.

Step 10: Test Service Account Permissions

1. Try performing an action that your service account is authorized for, such as listing storage buckets:

   ```

   gsutil ls

   ```

2. If the command succeeds, your service account is correctly configured.

Step 11: Implement Best Practices

1. Regularly rotate the service account key:

   - Generate a new key in the cloud console.

   - Update any applications or scripts using the old key.

   - Delete the old key from the cloud console.

2. Use the principle of least privilege:

   - Regularly review and adjust the roles assigned to your service account.

   - Remove any unnecessary permissions to minimize potential security risks.

3. Enable audit logging:

   - In your cloud console, navigate to the logging section.

   - Enable audit logs for your VM and service account activities.

4. Implement network security:

   - Configure firewall rules to restrict access to your VM.

   - Use Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) networks to isolate your VM if necessary.

5. Keep your VM and software up to date:

   - Regularly apply security patches and updates to your VM's operating system.

   - Update any software running on the VM to the latest secure versions.

Conclusion:

The method of creating a VM with a user-managed service account is an effective means of improving security and processes governed by the user in the cloud environment. Thus, reading this guide, you have been introduced to creating a service account along with relevant roles for it, generating authentication keys, and working with the VM with the help of this account. Do not forget about key rotation as often as possible, the principle of least privilege, and having updated systems for efficient and secure cloud services.