diff --git a/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_mas_config b/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_mas_config
index 252393bf10..e3a6753b1a 100644
--- a/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_mas_config
+++ b/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_mas_config
@@ -47,8 +47,8 @@ IDP/LDAP Configuration (required if MAS_CONFIG_TYPE is "ldap-default"):
   --ldap-basedn ${COLOR_YELLOW}LDAP_BASEDN${TEXT_RESET}                       The baseDN for the LDAP server
   --ldap-userid-map ${COLOR_YELLOW}LDAP_USERID_MAP${TEXT_RESET}               LDAP UserId map
   --ldap-certificate-file ${COLOR_YELLOW}LDAP_CERTIFICATE_FILE${TEXT_RESET}   Path to file containing CA Certificate for LDAP server
-  --ldap-bind-dn ${COLOR_YELLOW}LDAP_BIND_DN${TEXT_RESET}                     DN for LDAP server authentication
-  --ldap-bind-password ${COLOR_YELLOW}LDAP_BIND_PASSWORD${TEXT_RESET}         Password for LDAP server authenticaiton
+  --ldap-bind-dn ${COLOR_YELLOW}LDAP_BIND_DN${TEXT_RESET}                     DN for LDAP server authentication (Optional, if secret is already set in SM)
+  --ldap-bind-password ${COLOR_YELLOW}LDAP_BIND_PASSWORD${TEXT_RESET}         Password for LDAP server authenticaiton (Optional, if secret is already set in SM)
 
 JDBC Configuration (required if MAS_CONFIG_TYPE is "jdbc"):
   --jdbc-type ${COLOR_YELLOW}JDBC_TYPE${TEXT_RESET}                           Set to 'incluster-db2' when wanting to use the gitops configured, via gitops-db2u-database, db2u cluster (defaults to incluster-db2)
@@ -67,8 +67,8 @@ SMTP Configuration (required if MAS_CONFIG_TYPE is "smtp"):
   --smtp-default-sender-name ${COLOR_YELLOW}SMTP_DEFAULT_SENDER_NAME${TEXT_RESET}                         The default sender name
   --smtp-default-recipient-email ${COLOR_YELLOW}SMTP_DEFAULT_RECIPIENT_EMAIL${TEXT_RESET}                 The default recipient email
   --smtp-default-should-email-passwords ${COLOR_YELLOW}SMTP_DEFAULT_SHOULD_EMAIL_PASSWORDS${TEXT_RESET}   true or false on sending email passwords
-  --smtp-username ${COLOR_YELLOW}SMTP_USERNAME${TEXT_RESET}                                               Username for SMTP server authentication
-  --smtp-password ${COLOR_YELLOW}SMTP_PASSWORD${TEXT_RESET}          
+  --smtp-username ${COLOR_YELLOW}SMTP_USERNAME${TEXT_RESET}                                               Username for SMTP server authentication (Optional, if secret is already set in SM)
+  --smtp-password ${COLOR_YELLOW}SMTP_PASSWORD${TEXT_RESET}                                               Password for SMTP server authentication (Optional, if secret is already set in SM)
 
 Automatic GitHub Push:
   -P, --github-push ${COLOR_YELLOW}GITHUB_PUSH${TEXT_RESET}        Enable automatic push to GitHub
@@ -350,8 +350,6 @@ function gitops_mas_config_noninteractive() {
       [[ -z "$LDAP_BASEDN" ]] && gitops_mas_config_help "LDAP_BASEDN is not set"
       [[ -z "$LDAP_USERID_MAP" ]] && gitops_mas_config_help "LDAP_USERID_MAP is not set"
       [[ -z "$LDAP_CERTIFICATE_FILE" ]] && gitops_mas_config_help "LDAP_CERTIFICATE_FILE is not set"
-      [[ -z "$LDAP_BIND_DN" ]] && gitops_mas_config_help "LDAP_BIND_DN is not set"
-      [[ -z "$LDAP_BIND_PASSWORD" ]] && gitops_mas_config_help "LDAP_BIND_PASSWORD is not set"
     fi
 
     if [ "${MAS_CONFIG_TYPE}" == "jdbc" ]; then
@@ -380,8 +378,6 @@ function gitops_mas_config_noninteractive() {
       [[ -z "$SMTP_DEFAULT_SENDER_NAME" ]] && gitops_mas_config_help "SMTP_DEFAULT_SENDER_NAME is not set"
       [[ -z "$SMTP_DEFAULT_RECIPIENT_EMAIL" ]] && gitops_mas_config_help "SMTP_DEFAULT_RECIPIENT_EMAIL is not set"
       [[ -z "$SMTP_DEFAULT_SHOULD_EMAIL_PASSWORDS" ]] && gitops_mas_config_help "SMTP_DEFAULT_SHOULD_EMAIL_PASSWORDS is not set"
-      [[ -z "$SMTP_USERNAME" ]] && gitops_mas_config_help "SMTP_USERNAME is not set"
-      [[ -z "$SMTP_PASSWORD" ]] && gitops_mas_config_help "SMTP_PASSWORD is not set"
     fi
   fi # [ "${CONFIG_ACTION}" == "upsert" ]
 
@@ -628,8 +624,10 @@ function gitops_mas_config() {
       export MONGO_SECRET_FILE=$TEMP_DIR/mongo-secret.json
       sm_login
       if [ $MONGODB_PROVIDER == 'yaml' ]; then
+        sm_verify_secret_exists ${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}mongo
         sm_get_secret_file ${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}mongo $MONGO_SECRET_FILE
       elif [ $MONGODB_PROVIDER == 'aws' ]; then
+        sm_verify_secret_exists ${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${MAS_INSTANCE_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}mongo
         sm_get_secret_file ${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${MAS_INSTANCE_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}mongo $MONGO_SECRET_FILE
       fi
 
@@ -669,6 +667,7 @@ function gitops_mas_config() {
       fi
       export KAFKA_SECRET_FILE=$TEMP_DIR/kafka-secret.json
       sm_login
+      sm_verify_secret_exists ${SECRET_PREFIX}${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${MAS_INSTANCE_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}kafka
       sm_get_secret_file ${SECRET_PREFIX}${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${MAS_INSTANCE_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}kafka $KAFKA_SECRET_FILE
       jq -r .info $KAFKA_SECRET_FILE > $ADDITIONAL_JINJA_PARAMS_FILE
       export AWS_MSK_SECRET=${SECRET_PREFIX}${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${MAS_INSTANCE_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}kafka
@@ -681,7 +680,11 @@ function gitops_mas_config() {
     if [ "${MAS_CONFIG_TYPE}" == "ldap-default" ]; then
       sm_login
       SECRET_NAME_LDAP=${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${MAS_INSTANCE_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}ldap
-      sm_update_secret $SECRET_NAME_LDAP "{\"bindDN\": \"$LDAP_BIND_DN\", \"bindPassword\": \"$LDAP_BIND_PASSWORD\"}"
+      if [ -z "${LDAP_BIND_DN}" ] || [ -z "${LDAP_BIND_PASSWORD}" ]; then
+        sm_verify_secret_exists $SECRET_NAME_LDAP
+      else
+        sm_update_secret $SECRET_NAME_LDAP "{\"bindDN\": \"$LDAP_BIND_DN\", \"bindPassword\": \"$LDAP_BIND_PASSWORD\"}"
+      fi
       export SECRET_KEY_LDAP_BIND_DN=${SECRET_NAME_LDAP}#bindDN
       export SECRET_KEY_LDAP_BIND_PASSWORD=${SECRET_NAME_LDAP}#bindPassword
       export LDAP_CERTIFICATE_CONTENT=$(<$LDAP_CERTIFICATE_FILE)
@@ -694,6 +697,7 @@ function gitops_mas_config() {
       export SECRET_KEY_OBJECTSTORAGE_INFO=${OBJECTSTORAGE_SECRET}#info
       export COS_SECRET_FILE=$TEMP_DIR/cos-secret.json
       sm_login
+      sm_verify_secret_exists ${OBJECTSTORAGE_SECRET}
       sm_get_secret_file ${OBJECTSTORAGE_SECRET} $COS_SECRET_FILE
 
       jq -r .info $COS_SECRET_FILE > $ADDITIONAL_JINJA_PARAMS_FILE
@@ -756,7 +760,12 @@ function gitops_mas_config() {
     if [ "${MAS_CONFIG_TYPE}" == "smtp" ]; then
       sm_login
       SECRET_NAME_SMTP=${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${MAS_INSTANCE_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}smtp
-      sm_update_secret $SECRET_NAME_SMTP "{\"username\": \"$SMTP_USERNAME\", \"password\": \"$SMTP_PASSWORD\"}"
+      if [ -z "${SMTP_USERNAME}" ] || [ -z "${SMTP_PASSWORD}" ]; then
+        sm_verify_secret_exists $SECRET_NAME_SMTP
+      else
+        sm_update_secret $SECRET_NAME_SMTP "{\"username\": \"$SMTP_USERNAME\", \"password\": \"$SMTP_PASSWORD\"}"
+      fi
+
       export SECRET_KEY_SMTP_USERNAME=${SECRET_NAME_SMTP}#username
       export SECRET_KEY_SMTP_PASSWORD=${SECRET_NAME_SMTP}#password
     fi
diff --git a/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_process_mongo_user b/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_process_mongo_user
index 5a607352d1..a9a643df5b 100644
--- a/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_process_mongo_user
+++ b/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_process_mongo_user
@@ -246,6 +246,7 @@ function gitops_process_mongo_user() {
     export MAS_CONFIG_DIR=$TEMP_DIR
     
     export MONGO_SECRET_FILE=$TEMP_DIR/mongo-secret.json
+    sm_verify_secret_exists ${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}mongo
     sm_get_secret_file ${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}mongo $MONGO_SECRET_FILE
 
     export DOCDB_HOST=$(jq -r .docdb_host $MONGO_SECRET_FILE)
diff --git a/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_suite b/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_suite
index 1387d8a8fb..c4669dfe3b 100644
--- a/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_suite
+++ b/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_suite
@@ -506,6 +506,7 @@ function gitops_suite() {
 
   if [[ "${DNS_PROVIDER}" == "cis" ]]; then
     export CIS_SECRET_FILE=$TEMP_DIR/cis-secret.json
+    sm_verify_secret_exists ${SECRET_NAME_CIS}
     sm_get_secret_file ${SECRET_NAME_CIS} ${CIS_SECRET_FILE}
     IBM_APIKEY_VALUE=$(jq -r .ibm_apikey $CIS_SECRET_FILE)
     echo "IBM_APIKEY_VALUE ${IBM_APIKEY_VALUE:0:4}<snip>"
@@ -522,6 +523,7 @@ function gitops_suite() {
   export MONGO_SECRET_FILE=$TEMP_DIR/mongo-secret.json
   export MONGO_CONFIG_FILE=$TEMP_DIR/mongo-info.yaml
 
+  sm_verify_secret_exists ${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}mongo
   sm_get_secret_file ${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}mongo $MONGO_SECRET_FILE
 
   jq -r .info $MONGO_SECRET_FILE > $MONGO_CONFIG_FILE
@@ -544,6 +546,7 @@ function gitops_suite() {
 
   
   export MONGO_INSTANCE_SECRET_FILE=$TEMP_DIR/mongo-instance-secret.json
+  sm_verify_secret_exists ${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${MAS_INSTANCE_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}mongo
   sm_get_secret_file ${ACCOUNT_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${CLUSTER_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}${MAS_INSTANCE_ID}${SECRETS_KEY_SEPERATOR}mongo $MONGO_INSTANCE_SECRET_FILE
   INSTANCE_MONGO_USERNAME=$(jq -r .username $MONGO_INSTANCE_SECRET_FILE)
   INSTANCE_MONGO_PASSWORD=$(jq -r .password $MONGO_INSTANCE_SECRET_FILE)
diff --git a/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_utils b/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_utils
index 9d855e025b..08c914c034 100644
--- a/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_utils
+++ b/image/cli/mascli/functions/gitops_utils
@@ -136,6 +136,24 @@ function sm_get_secret_file(){
   fi
 }
 
+function sm_verify_secret_exists(){
+  SECRET_NAME=$1
+  if [[ "$AVP_TYPE" == "aws" ]]; then
+    echo "- Verifying Secret $SECRET_NAME exists"
+    set +o pipefail
+    aws secretsmanager describe-secret --secret-id ${SECRET_NAME} --output json
+    if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then 
+      echo "Error: Secret ${SECRET_NAME} does not exist" 
+      exit 1 
+    fi
+    set -o pipefail
+  elif [[ "$AVP_TYPE" == "ibm" ]]; then
+    # echo "IBM SecretsManager not yet supported"
+    echo ""
+    exit 1
+  fi
+}
+
 function sm_update_account_secret() {
   ACCOUNT=$1
   SECRET_NAME=$2