Hello,
Currently, the only way to “view” a vault file is to run the edit command:
ansible-vault edit
The side effect of running the edit is that the file is re-copied in place even
if no changes are made, triggering the changed indicator on the file if the
project is checked into any SCM (Subversion etc).
Vault needs a view command to be able to view the contents of a vault
file without causing any changes to the file. Often it is required to view
a vault in order to make sure the contents are correct and determine
whether any changes to the vault file need to be made.
Ideally “ansible-vault edit” should also not change the file if the contents
are not actually changed, but this may not be possible due to the
way security and copy-in-place is implemented.
Regards,
–Ed