SASL/PLAIN Mechanism

SASL/PLAIN is a straightforward authentication method that uses a username and password for client authentication. It is widely supported and easy to configure, making it a common choice for securing Kafka clusters. However, since credentials are sent in plaintext, SASL/PLAIN must always be paired with TLS/SSL encryption to ensure secure communication.

Configuring the Connection

To connect to a Kafka client using the SASL/PLAIN mechanism, add a sasl object to the options property of the Kafka client binding in the zilla.yml file. The sasl object must include the mechanism property set to plain, along with username and password properties.

bindings:
...
  south_kafka_client:
    type: kafka
    kind: client
    options:
      servers:
        - ${{env.KAFKA_BOOTSTRAP_SERVER}}
      sasl:
        mechanism: plain
        username: ${{env.SASL_USERNAME}}
        password: ${{env.SASL_PASSWORD}}
    exit: south_tls_client
  south_tls_client:
    type: tls
    kind: client
    exit: south_tcp_client
  south_tcp_client:
    type: tcp
    kind: client