Manage GCP Runtime Config IAM Policies

The gcp:runtimeconfig/configIamPolicy:ConfigIamPolicy resource, part of the Pulumi GCP provider, manages IAM policies for Runtime Configurator configs, controlling who can read or modify configuration data. This guide focuses on three approaches: authoritative policy replacement, role-level binding management, and individual member grants.

GCP provides three related resources for managing config IAM: ConfigIamPolicy (replaces the entire policy), ConfigIamBinding (manages all members for one role), and ConfigIamMember (adds individual members). ConfigIamPolicy cannot be used with the other two resources, as they will conflict over policy state. ConfigIamBinding and ConfigIamMember can coexist if they manage different roles. The examples are intentionally small. Combine them with your own Runtime Configurator configs and project structure.

Replace the entire IAM policy for a config

When you need complete control over who can access a config, define the entire IAM policy from scratch using a policy data source.

import * as pulumi from "@pulumi/pulumi";
import * as gcp from "@pulumi/gcp";

const admin = gcp.organizations.getIAMPolicy({
    bindings: [{
        role: "roles/viewer",
        members: ["user:jane@example.com"],
    }],
});
const policy = new gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamPolicy("policy", {
    project: config.project,
    config: config.name,
    policyData: admin.then(admin => admin.policyData),
});

import pulumi
import pulumi_gcp as gcp

admin = gcp.organizations.get_iam_policy(bindings=[{
    "role": "roles/viewer",
    "members": ["user:jane@example.com"],
}])
policy = gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamPolicy("policy",
    project=config["project"],
    config=config["name"],
    policy_data=admin.policy_data)

package main

import (
	"github.com/pulumi/pulumi-gcp/sdk/v9/go/gcp/organizations"
	"github.com/pulumi/pulumi-gcp/sdk/v9/go/gcp/runtimeconfig"
	"github.com/pulumi/pulumi/sdk/v3/go/pulumi"
)

func main() {
	pulumi.Run(func(ctx *pulumi.Context) error {
		admin, err := organizations.LookupIAMPolicy(ctx, &organizations.LookupIAMPolicyArgs{
			Bindings: []organizations.GetIAMPolicyBinding{
				{
					Role: "roles/viewer",
					Members: []string{
						"user:jane@example.com",
					},
				},
			},
		}, nil)
		if err != nil {
			return err
		}
		_, err = runtimeconfig.NewConfigIamPolicy(ctx, "policy", &runtimeconfig.ConfigIamPolicyArgs{
			Project:    pulumi.Any(config.Project),
			Config:     pulumi.Any(config.Name),
			PolicyData: pulumi.String(admin.PolicyData),
		})
		if err != nil {
			return err
		}
		return nil
	})
}

using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using Pulumi;
using Gcp = Pulumi.Gcp;

return await Deployment.RunAsync(() => 
{
    var admin = Gcp.Organizations.GetIAMPolicy.Invoke(new()
    {
        Bindings = new[]
        {
            new Gcp.Organizations.Inputs.GetIAMPolicyBindingInputArgs
            {
                Role = "roles/viewer",
                Members = new[]
                {
                    "user:jane@example.com",
                },
            },
        },
    });

    var policy = new Gcp.RuntimeConfig.ConfigIamPolicy("policy", new()
    {
        Project = config.Project,
        Config = config.Name,
        PolicyData = admin.Apply(getIAMPolicyResult => getIAMPolicyResult.PolicyData),
    });

});

package generated_program;

import com.pulumi.Context;
import com.pulumi.Pulumi;
import com.pulumi.core.Output;
import com.pulumi.gcp.organizations.OrganizationsFunctions;
import com.pulumi.gcp.organizations.inputs.GetIAMPolicyArgs;
import com.pulumi.gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamPolicy;
import com.pulumi.gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamPolicyArgs;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Map;
import java.io.File;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Paths;

public class App {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Pulumi.run(App::stack);
    }

    public static void stack(Context ctx) {
        final var admin = OrganizationsFunctions.getIAMPolicy(GetIAMPolicyArgs.builder()
            .bindings(GetIAMPolicyBindingArgs.builder()
                .role("roles/viewer")
                .members("user:jane@example.com")
                .build())
            .build());

        var policy = new ConfigIamPolicy("policy", ConfigIamPolicyArgs.builder()
            .project(config.project())
            .config(config.name())
            .policyData(admin.policyData())
            .build());

    }
}

resources:
  policy:
    type: gcp:runtimeconfig:ConfigIamPolicy
    properties:
      project: ${config.project}
      config: ${config.name}
      policyData: ${admin.policyData}
variables:
  admin:
    fn::invoke:
      function: gcp:organizations:getIAMPolicy
      arguments:
        bindings:
          - role: roles/viewer
            members:
              - user:jane@example.com

The getIAMPolicy data source constructs a policy document from bindings, which ConfigIamPolicy then applies to the config. This approach is authoritative: it replaces any existing policy. The policyData property accepts the serialized policy from the data source.

Grant a role to multiple members

Teams often need to grant the same role to several users or service accounts without affecting other role assignments.

import * as pulumi from "@pulumi/pulumi";
import * as gcp from "@pulumi/gcp";

const binding = new gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamBinding("binding", {
    project: config.project,
    config: config.name,
    role: "roles/viewer",
    members: ["user:jane@example.com"],
});

import pulumi
import pulumi_gcp as gcp

binding = gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamBinding("binding",
    project=config["project"],
    config=config["name"],
    role="roles/viewer",
    members=["user:jane@example.com"])

package main

import (
	"github.com/pulumi/pulumi-gcp/sdk/v9/go/gcp/runtimeconfig"
	"github.com/pulumi/pulumi/sdk/v3/go/pulumi"
)

func main() {
	pulumi.Run(func(ctx *pulumi.Context) error {
		_, err := runtimeconfig.NewConfigIamBinding(ctx, "binding", &runtimeconfig.ConfigIamBindingArgs{
			Project: pulumi.Any(config.Project),
			Config:  pulumi.Any(config.Name),
			Role:    pulumi.String("roles/viewer"),
			Members: pulumi.StringArray{
				pulumi.String("user:jane@example.com"),
			},
		})
		if err != nil {
			return err
		}
		return nil
	})
}

using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using Pulumi;
using Gcp = Pulumi.Gcp;

return await Deployment.RunAsync(() => 
{
    var binding = new Gcp.RuntimeConfig.ConfigIamBinding("binding", new()
    {
        Project = config.Project,
        Config = config.Name,
        Role = "roles/viewer",
        Members = new[]
        {
            "user:jane@example.com",
        },
    });

});

package generated_program;

import com.pulumi.Context;
import com.pulumi.Pulumi;
import com.pulumi.core.Output;
import com.pulumi.gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamBinding;
import com.pulumi.gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamBindingArgs;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Map;
import java.io.File;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Paths;

public class App {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Pulumi.run(App::stack);
    }

    public static void stack(Context ctx) {
        var binding = new ConfigIamBinding("binding", ConfigIamBindingArgs.builder()
            .project(config.project())
            .config(config.name())
            .role("roles/viewer")
            .members("user:jane@example.com")
            .build());

    }
}

resources:
  binding:
    type: gcp:runtimeconfig:ConfigIamBinding
    properties:
      project: ${config.project}
      config: ${config.name}
      role: roles/viewer
      members:
        - user:jane@example.com

ConfigIamBinding manages all members for a single role authoritatively. The members array lists everyone who should have the specified role. Other roles on the config remain unchanged, but this resource replaces the member list for its role.

Add a single member to a role

When you need to grant access to one additional user without managing the full member list, a non-authoritative member binding preserves existing assignments.

import * as pulumi from "@pulumi/pulumi";
import * as gcp from "@pulumi/gcp";

const member = new gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamMember("member", {
    project: config.project,
    config: config.name,
    role: "roles/viewer",
    member: "user:jane@example.com",
});

import pulumi
import pulumi_gcp as gcp

member = gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamMember("member",
    project=config["project"],
    config=config["name"],
    role="roles/viewer",
    member="user:jane@example.com")

package main

import (
	"github.com/pulumi/pulumi-gcp/sdk/v9/go/gcp/runtimeconfig"
	"github.com/pulumi/pulumi/sdk/v3/go/pulumi"
)

func main() {
	pulumi.Run(func(ctx *pulumi.Context) error {
		_, err := runtimeconfig.NewConfigIamMember(ctx, "member", &runtimeconfig.ConfigIamMemberArgs{
			Project: pulumi.Any(config.Project),
			Config:  pulumi.Any(config.Name),
			Role:    pulumi.String("roles/viewer"),
			Member:  pulumi.String("user:jane@example.com"),
		})
		if err != nil {
			return err
		}
		return nil
	})
}

using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using Pulumi;
using Gcp = Pulumi.Gcp;

return await Deployment.RunAsync(() => 
{
    var member = new Gcp.RuntimeConfig.ConfigIamMember("member", new()
    {
        Project = config.Project,
        Config = config.Name,
        Role = "roles/viewer",
        Member = "user:jane@example.com",
    });

});

package generated_program;

import com.pulumi.Context;
import com.pulumi.Pulumi;
import com.pulumi.core.Output;
import com.pulumi.gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamMember;
import com.pulumi.gcp.runtimeconfig.ConfigIamMemberArgs;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Map;
import java.io.File;
import java.nio.file.Files;
import java.nio.file.Paths;

public class App {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Pulumi.run(App::stack);
    }

    public static void stack(Context ctx) {
        var member = new ConfigIamMember("member", ConfigIamMemberArgs.builder()
            .project(config.project())
            .config(config.name())
            .role("roles/viewer")
            .member("user:jane@example.com")
            .build());

    }
}

resources:
  member:
    type: gcp:runtimeconfig:ConfigIamMember
    properties:
      project: ${config.project}
      config: ${config.name}
      role: roles/viewer
      member: user:jane@example.com

ConfigIamMember adds one member to a role without affecting other members who already have that role. This is the least disruptive approach: it only adds the specified member, leaving all other IAM bindings unchanged.

Beyond these examples

These snippets focus on specific IAM management approaches: authoritative vs non-authoritative IAM management, and policy, binding, and member-level control. They’re intentionally minimal rather than full access control configurations.

The examples reference pre-existing infrastructure such as Runtime Configurator config resources and GCP projects with appropriate permissions. They focus on IAM policy configuration rather than provisioning the underlying configs.

To keep things focused, common IAM patterns are omitted, including:

Conditional IAM bindings (condition blocks)
Custom role definitions
Service account creation and management
Audit logging configuration

These omissions are intentional: the goal is to illustrate how each IAM resource type is wired, not provide drop-in access control modules. See the Runtime Configurator ConfigIamPolicy resource reference for all available configuration options.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Resource Selection & Conflicts

Can I use ConfigIamPolicy together with ConfigIamBinding or ConfigIamMember?

No, ConfigIamPolicy cannot be used with ConfigIamBinding or ConfigIamMember because they will conflict over policy control. Choose one approach: use ConfigIamPolicy for full policy management, or use ConfigIamBinding/ConfigIamMember for granular role and member management.

Can I use ConfigIamBinding and ConfigIamMember together?

Yes, but only if they manage different roles. ConfigIamBinding and ConfigIamMember will conflict if they both grant privileges to the same role.

Which IAM resource should I use for my Runtime Config?

Use ConfigIamPolicy when you need full control over the entire IAM policy (authoritative). Use ConfigIamBinding to manage all members for a specific role while preserving other roles. Use ConfigIamMember to add individual members without affecting existing members (non-authoritative).

Configuration & Usage

How do I generate the policyData for ConfigIamPolicy?

Use the gcp.organizations.getIAMPolicy data source to generate policyData, as shown in the examples. Pass the resulting policy data to the policyData property.

Import & Migration

How do I import a custom IAM role?

Use the full role name format: projects/my-project/roles/my-custom-role for project-level roles or organizations/my-org/roles/my-custom-role for organization-level roles.

Using a different cloud?

Explore security guides for other cloud providers:

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