name: gcp-services version: "1.0" description: > Configure GCP IAM, Secret Manager, and VPC networking with security best practices. PROACTIVELY activate for: (1) setting up service accounts and IAM permissions, (2) managing secrets in Secret Manager, (3) configuring VPC and firewall rules. Triggers: "iam", "secret manager", "vpc" core-integration: techniques: primary: ["structured_decomposition"] secondary: [] contracts: input: "none" output: "none" patterns: "none" rubrics: "none"
GCP Services Skill (IAM, Secret Manager, Networking)
Metadata (Tier 1)
Keywords: iam, service account, secret manager, vpc, firewall, permissions, least privilege, policy, network
File Patterns: .tf (google_project_iam_, google_secret_*, google_compute_network)
Modes: gcp_dev, deployment
Instructions (Tier 2)
IAM Least Privilege
Service Account Creation
gcloud iam service-accounts create SERVICE-sa \
--display-name="Service Account for SERVICE"
Grant Minimal Permissions
# Secret Manager access
gcloud projects add-iam-policy-binding PROJECT \
--member="serviceAccount:SERVICE-sa@PROJECT.iam.gserviceaccount.com" \
--role="roles/secretmanager.secretAccessor"
# Cloud SQL client
gcloud projects add-iam-policy-binding PROJECT \
--member="serviceAccount:SERVICE-sa@PROJECT.iam.gserviceaccount.com" \
--role="roles/cloudsql.client"
NEVER Use Basic Roles
- roles/owner
- roles/editor
- roles/viewer (on service accounts)
Use predefined roles (roles/run.invoker) Use custom roles for specific needs
Secret Manager
Create Secret
echo -n "SECRET_VALUE" | gcloud secrets create SECRET_NAME --data-file=-
Grant Access
gcloud secrets add-iam-policy-binding SECRET_NAME \
--member="serviceAccount:SA@PROJECT.iam.gserviceaccount.com" \
--role="roles/secretmanager.secretAccessor"
Access in Cloud Run
# As environment variable (less secure)
gcloud run deploy SERVICE --update-secrets=VAR=secret:version
# As mounted file (more secure)
gcloud run deploy SERVICE --update-secrets=/secrets/file=secret:version
Best Practices
- Pin to specific versions in production (not :latest)
- Enable rotation for sensitive secrets
- Use automatic replication unless data residency required
- Never pass secrets via environment variables in logs
VPC & Firewall
Create Custom VPC
gcloud compute networks create NETWORK \
--subnet-mode=custom
gcloud compute networks subnets create SUBNET \
--network=NETWORK \
--region=REGION \
--range=10.0.0.0/24
Firewall Rules (Deny by Default)
# Allow HTTPS from anywhere
gcloud compute firewall-rules create allow-https \
--network=NETWORK \
--allow=tcp:443 \
--source-ranges=0.0.0.0/0
# Allow SSH from specific bastion
gcloud compute firewall-rules create allow-ssh-bastion \
--network=NETWORK \
--allow=tcp:22 \
--source-ranges=10.0.1.0/24 \
--target-tags=ssh-enabled
VPC Connector for Cloud Run
gcloud compute networks vpc-access connectors create CONNECTOR \
--network=NETWORK \
--region=REGION \
--range=10.8.0.0/28
Anti-Patterns
- Using default VPC in production
- Overly permissive firewall rules (0.0.0.0/0 on SSH)
- Service account keys (use Workload Identity)
- Secrets in environment variables
- Basic IAM roles on service accounts