vlt

A file vault for protecting files at rest.

Threat model

• Protects files at rest when the vault is locked.
• Does not protect against malware or an unlocked session.
• Does not consider memory-based attacks if unlocked.
• File names, contents and directory structure are hidden. The number of files and their approximate sizes are not.
• Does not detect rollback: anyone who can write to the vault directory can swap in an older, valid copy of the manifest, header or an object.

Usage

vlt init my.vault                          # prints the recovery key once
vlt add  my.vault report.pdf --as tax/2025.pdf
vlt add  my.vault ~/photos                 # directories: recursive, all or nothing
vlt ls   my.vault tax
vlt get  my.vault tax/2025.pdf -o out.pdf  # `-o -` for stdout
vlt get  my.vault photos -o restored/      # into a new directory
vlt mv   my.vault tax archive/tax
vlt rm   my.vault tax/2025.pdf             # `-r` for a directory
vlt fsck my.vault --verify                 # `gc` cleans up after crashes

Files keep their mtime and permission bits (never setuid/setgid). Symlinks are skipped, and empty directories aren't stored.

License

Licensed under either of

• Apache License, Version 2.0 (LICENSE-APACHE)
• MIT license (LICENSE-MIT)

at your option.

Unless you explicitly state otherwise, any contribution intentionally submitted for inclusion in this work by you, as defined in the Apache-2.0 license, shall be dual licensed as above, without any additional terms or conditions.