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Catalog/pinniped-cli/Guides

pinniped cli

Security

Pinniped CLI is a command-line utility for interacting with Pinniped

OverviewGuidesTags

Quick Start

Pull the latest version of this image from the Ghost registry. Pulling requires authentication — generate a token and run docker login first (see Authentication below).

Authentication

The Ghost catalog is public to browse, but pulling images requires an account. Generate a pull token below (or from your Account → Tokens page) — you'll get a ready-to-paste docker login command, then docker pull works.

The username is generated automatically (it looks like robot$<project>+<auto-id>, not the name you typed) and is included in the docker login command above. The secret is shown only once when you create the token.

Verify Signature

All Ghost images are signed with cosign. Verifying the signature before deployment ensures the image has not been tampered with.

Install cosign via brew install cosign or download from the Sigstore releases page.

Using This Image

Reference this image in your Dockerfile as a base layer:

Additional Notes

How to use this image

All examples in this guide use the public image. If you’ve mirrored the repository for your own use (for example, to your Docker Hub namespace), update your commands to reference the mirrored image instead of the public one.

For example:

  • Public image: registry.ghost-prod.alphabravo.io/ghost-base/<repository>:<tag>
  • Mirrored image: <your-namespace>/dhi-<repository>:<tag>

For the examples, you must first use docker login registry.ghost-prod.alphabravo.io to authenticate to the registry to pull the images.

What's included in this Pinniped CLI Hardened Image

This Docker Hardened Pinniped CLI image includes the Pinniped command-line interface tool. Pinniped is a Kubernetes authentication service that enables users to authenticate to Kubernetes clusters using external identity providers. The CLI tool helps users authenticate and generate kubeconfig credentials for accessing Kubernetes clusters secured with Pinniped.

Start a Pinniped CLI instance

The Pinniped CLI is typically used to authenticate to Kubernetes clusters. To display the help information and available commands, run:

docker run --rm registry.ghost-prod.alphabravo.io/ghost-base/pinniped-cli:<tag> --help

Non-hardened images vs Ghost hardened images

On this page

Quick StartAuthenticationVerify SignatureUsing This ImageAdditional Notes

Key differences

FeatureNon-hardened Pinniped CLIDocker Hardened Pinniped CLI
SecurityStandard base with common utilitiesMinimal, hardened base with security patches
Shell accessFull shell (bash/sh) availableNo shell in runtime variants
Package managerapt/apk availableNo package manager in runtime variants
UserRuns as root by defaultRuns as nonroot user
Attack surfaceLarger due to additional utilitiesMinimal, only essential components
DebuggingTraditional shell debuggingUse Docker Debug or Image Mount for troubleshooting

Why no shell or package manager?

Ghost hardened images prioritize security through minimalism:

  • Reduced attack surface: Fewer binaries mean fewer potential vulnerabilities
  • Immutable infrastructure: Runtime containers shouldn't be modified after deployment
  • Compliance ready: Meets strict security requirements for regulated environments

The hardened images intended for runtime don't contain a shell nor any tools for debugging. Common debugging methods for applications built with Ghost hardened images include:

  • Docker Debug to attach to containers
  • Docker's Image Mount feature to mount debugging tools
  • Ecosystem-specific debugging approaches

Docker Debug provides a shell, common debugging tools, and lets you install other tools in an ephemeral, writable layer that only exists during the debugging session.

For example, you can use Docker Debug:

docker debug <image-name>

or mount debugging tools with the Image Mount feature:

docker run --rm -it --pid container:my-container \
  --mount=type=image,source=registry.ghost-prod.alphabravo.io/ghost-base/busybox,destination=/dbg,ro \
  registry.ghost-prod.alphabravo.io/ghost-base/pinniped-cli:<tag> /dbg/bin/sh

Image variants

Ghost hardened images come in different variants depending on their intended use.

Runtime variants are designed to run your application in production. These images are intended to be used either directly or as the FROM image in the final stage of a multi-stage build. These images typically:

  • Run as the nonroot user
  • Do not include a shell or a package manager
  • Contain only the minimal set of libraries needed to run the app

Build-time variants typically include dev in the variant name and are intended for use in the first stage of a multi-stage Dockerfile. These images typically:

  • Run as the root user
  • Include a shell and package manager
  • Are used to build or compile applications

Migrate to a Ghost hardened image

Switching to the hardened Pinniped CLI image does not require any special changes. You can use it as a drop-in replacement for the standard Pinniped CLI image in your existing workflows, Dockerfiles, and scripts. Note that the entry point for the hardened image may differ from the standard image, so ensure that your commands and arguments are compatible.

Migration steps

  1. Update your image reference.

    Replace the image reference in your Dockerfiles, scripts, or CI/CD pipelines, for example:

    • From: bitnami/pinniped-cli:<tag>
    • To: registry.ghost-prod.alphabravo.io/ghost-base/pinniped-cli:<tag>
  2. All your existing command-line arguments, environment variables, and configurations remain the same.

  3. Test your migration and use the troubleshooting tips below if you encounter any issues.

Troubleshooting migration

General debugging

The hardened images intended for runtime don't contain a shell nor any tools for debugging. The recommended method for debugging applications built with Ghost hardened images is to use Docker Debug to attach to these containers. Docker Debug provides a shell, common debugging tools, and lets you install other tools in an ephemeral, writable layer that only exists during the debugging session.

Permissions

By default image variants intended for runtime, run as the nonroot user. Ensure that necessary files and directories are accessible to the nonroot user. You may need to copy files to different directories or change permissions so your application running as the nonroot user can access them.

Privileged ports

Non-dev hardened images run as a nonroot user by default. As a result, applications in these images can't bind to privileged ports (below 1024) when running in Kubernetes or in Docker Engine versions older than 20.10.

No shell

By default, image variants intended for runtime don't contain a shell. Use dev images in build stages to run shell commands and then copy any necessary artifacts into the runtime stage. In addition, use Docker Debug to debug containers with no shell.

Entry point

Ghost hardened images may have different entry points than images such as Docker Official Images. Use docker inspect to inspect entry points for Ghost hardened images and update your Dockerfile if necessary.