VA-003 Compare and configure secrets engines Practice Question
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit.
```
$ vault secrets enable -path=postgres database
Success! Enabled the database secrets engine at: postgres/
$ vault write postgres/config/my-postgres-database \
plugin_name=postgresql-database-plugin \
allowed_roles="my-role" \
connection_url="postgresql://{{username}}:{{password}}@localhost:5432/mydb" \
username="admin" \
password="password"
Success! Data written to: postgres/config/my-postgres-database
$ vault write postgres/roles/my-role \
db_name=my-postgres-database \
creation_statements="CREATE ROLE \"{{name}}\" WITH LOGIN PASSWORD '{{password}}' VALID UNTIL '{{expiration}}'; GRANT SELECT ON ALL TABLES IN SCHEMA public TO \"{{name}}\";" \
default_ttl="1h" \
max_ttl="24h"
Success! Data written to: postgres/roles/my-role
```A DevOps engineer creates the configuration above. After testing, they notice that the generated database credentials are not being revoked after the TTL expires. What is the most likely cause?
⚠ Common exam trap
HashiCorp often tests the misconception that `creation_statements` control both creation and revocation, or that the secrets engine path affects functionality, when the real issue is the missing root rotation step that enables Vault to maintain a valid admin session for cleanup operations.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The database configuration uses a connection_url with template variables but provides static admin credentials, not root rotation
The database secrets engine requires root credential rotation to enable automatic revocation of generated credentials. When the `connection_url` uses template variables like `{{username}}` and `{{password}}` but the admin credentials are static (not rotated via `rotate_root`), Vault cannot track the actual root password. Without root rotation, Vault lacks the ability to execute `REVOKE` commands after TTL expiry because it cannot authenticate to the database with the current root credentials to perform cleanup.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The creation_statements do not include the REVOKE command
Why it's wrong here
Revocation is handled by Vault, not by the creation_statements. Vault uses a separate revocation statement if configured, or the root credentials to drop the user.
- ✗
The role definition has a syntax error in the creation_statements
Why it's wrong here
The creation_statements are syntactically correct for PostgreSQL.
- ✓
The database configuration uses a connection_url with template variables but provides static admin credentials, not root rotation
Why this is correct
Without root credentials rotation, Vault cannot revoke dynamically created users because it uses the same admin credentials to manage them. The root credentials should be rotated first.
- ✗
The secrets engine is enabled at a path other than 'database/'
Why it's wrong here
The path 'postgres/' is non-default but valid; revocation works regardless of path.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This VA-003 practice question is part of Courseiva's free HashiCorp certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the VA-003 exam.