1 This is gnupg.info, produced by makeinfo version 6.5 from gnupg.texi.
3 This is the 'The GNU Privacy Guard Manual' (version 2.3.5-beta20, March
6 (C) 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
7 (C) 2013, 2014, 2015 Werner Koch.
8 (C) 2015, 2016, 2017 g10 Code GmbH.
10 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this
11 document under the terms of the GNU General Public License as
12 published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 3 of the
13 License, or (at your option) any later version. The text of the
14 license can be found in the section entitled "Copying".
15 INFO-DIR-SECTION GNU Utilities
17 * gpg2: (gnupg). OpenPGP encryption and signing tool.
18 * gpgsm: (gnupg). S/MIME encryption and signing tool.
19 * gpg-agent: (gnupg). The secret key daemon.
20 * dirmngr: (gnupg). X.509 CRL and OCSP server.
21 * dirmngr-client: (gnupg). X.509 CRL and OCSP client.
25 File: gnupg.info, Node: Top, Next: Installation, Up: (dir)
27 Using the GNU Privacy Guard
28 ***************************
30 This is the 'The GNU Privacy Guard Manual' (version 2.3.5-beta20, March
33 (C) 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
34 (C) 2013, 2014, 2015 Werner Koch.
35 (C) 2015, 2016, 2017 g10 Code GmbH.
37 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this
38 document under the terms of the GNU General Public License as
39 published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 3 of the
40 License, or (at your option) any later version. The text of the
41 license can be found in the section entitled "Copying".
43 This manual documents how to use the GNU Privacy Guard system as well
44 as the administration and the architecture.
48 * Installation:: A short installation guide.
50 * Invoking GPG-AGENT:: How to launch the secret key daemon.
51 * Invoking DIRMNGR:: How to launch the CRL and OCSP daemon.
52 * Invoking GPG:: Using the OpenPGP protocol.
53 * Invoking GPGSM:: Using the S/MIME protocol.
54 * Invoking SCDAEMON:: How to handle Smartcards.
55 * Specify a User ID:: How to Specify a User Id.
56 * Trust Values:: How GnuPG displays trust values.
58 * Smart Card Tool:: Tool to administrate smart cards.
59 * Helper Tools:: Description of small helper tools.
60 * Web Key Service:: Tools for the Web Key Service.
62 * Howtos:: How to do certain things.
63 * System Notes:: Notes pertaining to certain OSes.
64 * Debugging:: How to solve problems.
66 * Copying:: GNU General Public License says
67 how you can copy and share GnuPG.
68 * Contributors:: People who have contributed to GnuPG.
70 * Glossary:: Short description of terms used.
71 * Option Index:: Index to command line options.
72 * Environment Index:: Index to environment variables and files.
73 * Index:: Index of concepts and symbol names.
76 File: gnupg.info, Node: Installation, Next: Invoking GPG-AGENT, Prev: Top, Up: Top
78 1 A short installation guide
79 ****************************
81 Unfortunately the installation guide has not been finished in time.
82 Instead of delaying the release of GnuPG 2.0 even further, I decided to
83 release without that guide. The chapter on gpg-agent and gpgsm do
84 include brief information on how to set up the whole thing. Please
85 watch the GnuPG website for updates of the documentation. In the
86 meantime you may search the GnuPG mailing list archives or ask on the
87 gnupg-users mailing list for advise on how to solve problems or how to
88 get that whole thing up and running.
90 ** Building the software
92 Building the software is described in the file 'INSTALL'. Given that
93 you are already reading this documentation we can only give some extra
96 To comply with the rules on GNU systems you should have build time
97 configured 'gnupg' using:
99 ./configure --sysconfdir=/etc --localstatedir=/var
101 This is to make sure that system wide configuration files are
102 searched in the directory '/etc' and variable data below '/var'; the
103 default would be to also install them below '/usr/local' where the
104 binaries get installed. If you selected to use the '--prefix=/' you
105 obviously don't need those option as they are the default then.
107 ** Notes on setting a root CA key to trusted
109 X.509 is based on a hierarchical key infrastructure. At the root of
110 the tree a trusted anchor (root certificate) is required. There are
111 usually no other means of verifying whether this root certificate is
112 trustworthy than looking it up in a list. GnuPG uses a file
113 ('trustlist.txt') to keep track of all root certificates it knows about.
114 There are 3 ways to get certificates into this list:
116 * Use the list which comes with GnuPG. However this list only
117 contains a few root certificates. Most installations will need
120 * Let 'gpgsm' ask you whether you want to insert a new root
121 certificate. This feature is enabled by default; you may disable
122 it using the option 'no-allow-mark-trusted' into 'gpg-agent.conf'.
124 * Manually maintain the list of trusted root certificates. For a
125 multi user installation this can be done once for all users on a
126 machine. Specific changes on a per-user base are also possible.
129 File: gnupg.info, Node: Invoking GPG-AGENT, Next: Invoking DIRMNGR, Prev: Installation, Up: Top
134 'gpg-agent' is a daemon to manage secret (private) keys independently
135 from any protocol. It is used as a backend for 'gpg' and 'gpgsm' as
136 well as for a couple of other utilities.
138 The agent is automatically started on demand by 'gpg', 'gpgsm',
139 'gpgconf', or 'gpg-connect-agent'. Thus there is no reason to start it
140 manually. In case you want to use the included Secure Shell Agent you
141 may start the agent using:
143 gpg-connect-agent /bye
145 If you want to manually terminate the currently-running agent, you can
148 gpgconf --kill gpg-agent
150 You should always add the following lines to your '.bashrc' or whatever
151 initialization file is used for all shell invocations:
156 It is important that this environment variable always reflects the
157 output of the 'tty' command. For W32 systems this option is not
160 Please make sure that a proper pinentry program has been installed
161 under the default filename (which is system dependent) or use the option
162 'pinentry-program' to specify the full name of that program. It is
163 often useful to install a symbolic link from the actual used pinentry
164 (e.g. '/usr/local/bin/pinentry-gtk') to the expected one (e.g.
165 '/usr/local/bin/pinentry').
167 *Note Option Index::, for an index to 'GPG-AGENT''s commands and
172 * Agent Commands:: List of all commands.
173 * Agent Options:: List of all options.
174 * Agent Configuration:: Configuration files.
175 * Agent Signals:: Use of some signals.
176 * Agent Examples:: Some usage examples.
177 * Agent Protocol:: The protocol the agent uses.
180 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Commands, Next: Agent Options, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
185 Commands are not distinguished from options except for the fact that
186 only one command is allowed.
189 Print the program version and licensing information. Note that you
190 cannot abbreviate this command.
194 Print a usage message summarizing the most useful command-line
195 options. Note that you cannot abbreviate this command.
198 Print a list of all available options and commands. Note that you
199 cannot abbreviate this command.
202 Run in server mode and wait for commands on the 'stdin'. The
203 default mode is to create a socket and listen for commands there.
205 '--daemon [COMMAND LINE]'
206 Start the gpg-agent as a daemon; that is, detach it from the
207 console and run it in the background.
209 As an alternative you may create a new process as a child of
210 gpg-agent: 'gpg-agent --daemon /bin/sh'. This way you get a new
211 shell with the environment setup properly; after you exit from this
212 shell, gpg-agent terminates within a few seconds.
215 Run in the foreground, sending logs by default to stderr, and
216 listening on provided file descriptors, which must already be bound
217 to listening sockets. This command is useful when running under
218 systemd or other similar process supervision schemes. This option
219 is not supported on Windows.
221 In -supervised mode, different file descriptors can be provided for
222 use as different socket types (e.g. ssh, extra) as long as they
223 are identified in the environment variable 'LISTEN_FDNAMES' (see
224 sd_listen_fds(3) on some Linux distributions for more information
228 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Options, Next: Agent Configuration, Prev: Agent Commands, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
233 Options may either be used on the command line or, after stripping off
234 the two leading dashes, in the configuration file.
237 Reads configuration from FILE instead of from the default per-user
238 configuration file. The default configuration file is named
239 'gpg-agent.conf' and expected in the '.gnupg' directory directly
240 below the home directory of the user. This option is ignored if
241 used in an options file.
244 Set the name of the home directory to DIR. If this option is not
245 used, the home directory defaults to '~/.gnupg'. It is only
246 recognized when given on the command line. It also overrides any
247 home directory stated through the environment variable 'GNUPGHOME'
248 or (on Windows systems) by means of the Registry entry
249 HKCU\SOFTWARE\GNU\GNUPG:HOMEDIR.
251 On Windows systems it is possible to install GnuPG as a portable
252 application. In this case only this command line option is
253 considered, all other ways to set a home directory are ignored.
255 To install GnuPG as a portable application under Windows, create an
256 empty file named 'gpgconf.ctl' in the same directory as the tool
257 'gpgconf.exe'. The root of the installation is then that
258 directory; or, if 'gpgconf.exe' has been installed directly below a
259 directory named 'bin', its parent directory. You also need to make
260 sure that the following directories exist and are writable:
261 'ROOT/home' for the GnuPG home and 'ROOT/usr/local/var/cache/gnupg'
262 for internal cache files.
266 Outputs additional information while running. You can increase the
267 verbosity by giving several verbose commands to 'gpg-agent', such
272 Try to be as quiet as possible.
275 Don't invoke a pinentry or do any other thing requiring human
278 '--faked-system-time EPOCH'
279 This option is only useful for testing; it sets the system time
280 back or forth to EPOCH which is the number of seconds elapsed since
283 '--debug-level LEVEL'
284 Select the debug level for investigating problems. LEVEL may be a
285 numeric value or a keyword:
288 No debugging at all. A value of less than 1 may be used
289 instead of the keyword.
291 Some basic debug messages. A value between 1 and 2 may be
292 used instead of the keyword.
294 More verbose debug messages. A value between 3 and 5 may be
295 used instead of the keyword.
297 Even more detailed messages. A value between 6 and 8 may be
298 used instead of the keyword.
300 All of the debug messages you can get. A value greater than 8
301 may be used instead of the keyword. The creation of hash
302 tracing files is only enabled if the keyword is used.
304 How these messages are mapped to the actual debugging flags is not
305 specified and may change with newer releases of this program. They
306 are however carefully selected to best aid in debugging.
309 Set debug flags. All flags are or-ed and FLAGS may be given in C
310 syntax (e.g. 0x0042) or as a comma separated list of flag names.
311 To get a list of all supported flags the single word "help" can be
312 used. This option is only useful for debugging and the behavior
313 may change at any time without notice.
316 Same as '--debug=0xffffffff'
319 When running in server mode, wait N seconds before entering the
320 actual processing loop and print the pid. This gives time to
323 '--debug-quick-random'
324 This option inhibits the use of the very secure random quality
325 level (Libgcrypt’s 'GCRY_VERY_STRONG_RANDOM') and degrades all
326 request down to standard random quality. It is only used for
327 testing and should not be used for any production quality keys.
328 This option is only effective when given on the command line.
330 On GNU/Linux, another way to quickly generate insecure keys is to
331 use 'rngd' to fill the kernel's entropy pool with lower quality
332 random data. 'rngd' is typically provided by the 'rng-tools'
333 package. It can be run as follows: 'sudo rngd -f -r /dev/urandom'.
336 This option enables extra debug information pertaining to the
337 Pinentry. As of now it is only useful when used along with
341 Don't detach the process from the console. This is mainly useful
345 In '--daemon' mode, gpg-agent detects an already running gpg-agent
346 and does not allow to start a new instance. This option can be
347 used to override this check: the new gpg-agent process will try to
348 take over the communication sockets from the already running
349 process and start anyway. This option should in general not be
356 Format the info output in daemon mode for use with the standard
357 Bourne shell or the C-shell respectively. The default is to guess
358 it based on the environment variable 'SHELL' which is correct in
363 Tell the pinentry to grab the keyboard and mouse. This option
364 should be used on X-Servers to avoid X-sniffing attacks. Any use
365 of the option '--grab' overrides an used option '--no-grab'. The
366 default is '--no-grab'.
369 Append all logging output to FILE. This is very helpful in seeing
370 what the agent actually does. Use 'socket://' to log to socket.
371 If neither a log file nor a log file descriptor has been set on a
372 Windows platform, the Registry entry
373 'HKCU\Software\GNU\GnuPG:DefaultLogFile', if set, is used to
374 specify the logging output.
376 '--no-allow-mark-trusted'
377 Do not allow clients to mark keys as trusted, i.e. put them into
378 the 'trustlist.txt' file. This makes it harder for users to
379 inadvertently accept Root-CA keys.
381 '--allow-preset-passphrase'
382 This option allows the use of 'gpg-preset-passphrase' to seed the
383 internal cache of 'gpg-agent' with passphrases.
385 '--no-allow-loopback-pinentry'
386 '--allow-loopback-pinentry'
387 Disallow or allow clients to use the loopback pinentry features;
388 see the option 'pinentry-mode' for details. Allow is the default.
390 The '--force' option of the Assuan command 'DELETE_KEY' is also
391 controlled by this option: The option is ignored if a loopback
392 pinentry is disallowed.
394 '--no-allow-external-cache'
395 Tell Pinentry not to enable features which use an external cache
398 Some desktop environments prefer to unlock all credentials with one
399 master password and may have installed a Pinentry which employs an
400 additional external cache to implement such a policy. By using
401 this option the Pinentry is advised not to make use of such a cache
402 and instead always ask the user for the requested passphrase.
404 '--allow-emacs-pinentry'
405 Tell Pinentry to allow features to divert the passphrase entry to a
406 running Emacs instance. How this is exactly handled depends on the
407 version of the used Pinentry.
409 '--ignore-cache-for-signing'
410 This option will let 'gpg-agent' bypass the passphrase cache for
411 all signing operation. Note that there is also a per-session
412 option to control this behavior but this command line option takes
415 '--default-cache-ttl N'
416 Set the time a cache entry is valid to N seconds. The default is
417 600 seconds. Each time a cache entry is accessed, the entry's
418 timer is reset. To set an entry's maximum lifetime, use
419 'max-cache-ttl'. Note that a cached passphrase may not be evicted
420 immediately from memory if no client requests a cache operation.
421 This is due to an internal housekeeping function which is only run
424 '--default-cache-ttl-ssh N'
425 Set the time a cache entry used for SSH keys is valid to N seconds.
426 The default is 1800 seconds. Each time a cache entry is accessed,
427 the entry's timer is reset. To set an entry's maximum lifetime,
428 use 'max-cache-ttl-ssh'.
431 Set the maximum time a cache entry is valid to N seconds. After
432 this time a cache entry will be expired even if it has been
433 accessed recently or has been set using 'gpg-preset-passphrase'.
434 The default is 2 hours (7200 seconds).
436 '--max-cache-ttl-ssh N'
437 Set the maximum time a cache entry used for SSH keys is valid to N
438 seconds. After this time a cache entry will be expired even if it
439 has been accessed recently or has been set using
440 'gpg-preset-passphrase'. The default is 2 hours (7200 seconds).
442 '--enforce-passphrase-constraints'
443 Enforce the passphrase constraints by not allowing the user to
444 bypass them using the "Take it anyway" button.
446 '--min-passphrase-len N'
447 Set the minimal length of a passphrase. When entering a new
448 passphrase shorter than this value a warning will be displayed.
451 '--min-passphrase-nonalpha N'
452 Set the minimal number of digits or special characters required in
453 a passphrase. When entering a new passphrase with less than this
454 number of digits or special characters a warning will be displayed.
457 '--check-passphrase-pattern FILE'
458 '--check-sym-passphrase-pattern FILE'
459 Check the passphrase against the pattern given in FILE. When
460 entering a new passphrase matching one of these pattern a warning
461 will be displayed. If FILE does not contain any slashes and does
462 not start with "~/" it is searched in the system configuration
463 directory ('/etc/gnupg'). The default is not to use any pattern
464 file. The second version of this option is only used when creating
465 a new symmetric key to allow the use of different patterns for such
468 Security note: It is known that checking a passphrase against a
469 list of pattern or even against a complete dictionary is not very
470 effective to enforce good passphrases. Users will soon figure up
471 ways to bypass such a policy. A better policy is to educate users
472 on good security behavior and optionally to run a passphrase
473 cracker regularly on all users passphrases to catch the very simple
476 '--max-passphrase-days N'
477 Ask the user to change the passphrase if N days have passed since
478 the last change. With '--enforce-passphrase-constraints' set the
479 user may not bypass this check.
481 '--enable-passphrase-history'
482 This option does nothing yet.
484 '--pinentry-invisible-char CHAR'
485 This option asks the Pinentry to use CHAR for displaying hidden
486 characters. CHAR must be one character UTF-8 string. A Pinentry
487 may or may not honor this request.
489 '--pinentry-timeout N'
490 This option asks the Pinentry to timeout after N seconds with no
491 user input. The default value of 0 does not ask the pinentry to
492 timeout, however a Pinentry may use its own default timeout value
493 in this case. A Pinentry may or may not honor this request.
495 '--pinentry-formatted-passphrase'
496 This option asks the Pinentry to enable passphrase formatting when
497 asking the user for a new passphrase and masking of the passphrase
500 If passphrase formatting is enabled, then all non-breaking space
501 characters are stripped from the entered passphrase. Passphrase
502 formatting is mostly useful in combination with passphrases
503 generated with the GENPIN feature of some Pinentries. Note that
504 such a generated passphrase, if not modified by the user, skips all
505 passphrase constraints checking because such constraints would
506 actually weaken the generated passphrase.
508 '--pinentry-program FILENAME'
509 Use program FILENAME as the PIN entry. The default is installation
510 dependent. With the default configuration the name of the default
511 pinentry is 'pinentry'; if that file does not exist but a
512 'pinentry-basic' exist the latter is used.
514 On a Windows platform the default is to use the first existing
515 program from this list: 'bin\pinentry.exe',
516 '..\Gpg4win\bin\pinentry.exe', '..\Gpg4win\pinentry.exe',
517 '..\GNU\GnuPG\pinentry.exe', '..\GNU\bin\pinentry.exe',
518 'bin\pinentry-basic.exe' where the file names are relative to the
519 GnuPG installation directory.
521 '--pinentry-touch-file FILENAME'
522 By default the filename of the socket gpg-agent is listening for
523 requests is passed to Pinentry, so that it can touch that file
524 before exiting (it does this only in curses mode). This option
525 changes the file passed to Pinentry to FILENAME. The special name
526 '/dev/null' may be used to completely disable this feature. Note
527 that Pinentry will not create that file, it will only change the
528 modification and access time.
530 '--scdaemon-program FILENAME'
531 Use program FILENAME as the Smartcard daemon. The default is
532 installation dependent and can be shown with the 'gpgconf' command.
535 Do not make use of the scdaemon tool. This option has the effect
536 of disabling the ability to do smartcard operations. Note, that
537 enabling this option at runtime does not kill an already forked
540 '--disable-check-own-socket'
541 'gpg-agent' employs a periodic self-test to detect a stolen socket.
542 This usually means a second instance of 'gpg-agent' has taken over
543 the socket and 'gpg-agent' will then terminate itself. This option
544 may be used to disable this self-test for debugging purposes.
546 '--use-standard-socket'
547 '--no-use-standard-socket'
548 '--use-standard-socket-p'
549 Since GnuPG 2.1 the standard socket is always used. These options
550 have no more effect. The command 'gpg-agent
551 --use-standard-socket-p' will thus always return success.
557 '--lc-messages STRING'
558 '--xauthority STRING'
559 These options are used with the server mode to pass localization
564 Ignore requests to change the current 'tty' or X window system's
565 'DISPLAY' variable respectively. This is useful to lock the
566 pinentry to pop up at the 'tty' or display you started the agent.
569 Set the size of the queue for pending connections. The default is
572 '--extra-socket NAME'
573 The extra socket is created by default, you may use this option to
574 change the name of the socket. To disable the creation of the
575 socket use "none" or "/dev/null" for NAME.
577 Also listen on native gpg-agent connections on the given socket.
578 The intended use for this extra socket is to setup a Unix domain
579 socket forwarding from a remote machine to this socket on the local
580 machine. A 'gpg' running on the remote machine may then connect to
581 the local gpg-agent and use its private keys. This enables
582 decrypting or signing data on a remote machine without exposing the
583 private keys to the remote machine.
585 '--enable-extended-key-format'
586 '--disable-extended-key-format'
587 Since version 2.3 keys are created in the extended private key
588 format. Changing the passphrase of a key will also convert the key
589 to that new format. This new key format is supported since GnuPG
590 version 2.1.12 and thus there should be no need to disable it. The
591 disable option allows to revert to the old behavior for new keys;
592 be aware that keys are never migrated back to the old format.
593 However if the enable option has been used the disable option won't
594 have an effect. The advantage of the extended private key format
595 is that it is text based and can carry additional meta data.
597 '--enable-ssh-support'
598 '--enable-putty-support'
600 The OpenSSH Agent protocol is always enabled, but 'gpg-agent' will
601 only set the 'SSH_AUTH_SOCK' variable if this flag is given.
603 In this mode of operation, the agent does not only implement the
604 gpg-agent protocol, but also the agent protocol used by OpenSSH
605 (through a separate socket). Consequently, it should be possible
606 to use the gpg-agent as a drop-in replacement for the well known
609 SSH Keys, which are to be used through the agent, need to be added
610 to the gpg-agent initially through the ssh-add utility. When a key
611 is added, ssh-add will ask for the password of the provided key
612 file and send the unprotected key material to the agent; this
613 causes the gpg-agent to ask for a passphrase, which is to be used
614 for encrypting the newly received key and storing it in a gpg-agent
617 Once a key has been added to the gpg-agent this way, the gpg-agent
618 will be ready to use the key.
620 Note: in case the gpg-agent receives a signature request, the user
621 might need to be prompted for a passphrase, which is necessary for
622 decrypting the stored key. Since the ssh-agent protocol does not
623 contain a mechanism for telling the agent on which display/terminal
624 it is running, gpg-agent's ssh-support will use the TTY or X
625 display where gpg-agent has been started. To switch this display
626 to the current one, the following command may be used:
628 gpg-connect-agent updatestartuptty /bye
630 Although all GnuPG components try to start the gpg-agent as needed,
631 this is not possible for the ssh support because ssh does not know
632 about it. Thus if no GnuPG tool which accesses the agent has been
633 run, there is no guarantee that ssh is able to use gpg-agent for
634 authentication. To fix this you may start gpg-agent if needed
635 using this simple command:
637 gpg-connect-agent /bye
639 Adding the '--verbose' shows the progress of starting the agent.
641 The '--enable-putty-support' is only available under Windows and
642 allows the use of gpg-agent with the ssh implementation 'putty'.
643 This is similar to the regular ssh-agent support but makes use of
644 Windows message queue as required by 'putty'.
646 '--ssh-fingerprint-digest'
648 Select the digest algorithm used to compute ssh fingerprints that
649 are communicated to the user, e.g. in pinentry dialogs. OpenSSH
650 has transitioned from using MD5 to the more secure SHA256.
652 '--auto-expand-secmem N'
653 Allow Libgcrypt to expand its secure memory area as required. The
654 optional value N is a non-negative integer with a suggested size in
655 bytes of each additionally allocated secure memory area. The value
656 is rounded up to the next 32 KiB; usual C style prefixes are
657 allowed. For an heavy loaded gpg-agent with many concurrent
658 connection this option avoids sign or decrypt errors due to out of
659 secure memory error returns.
661 '--s2k-calibration MILLISECONDS'
662 Change the default calibration time to MILLISECONDS. The given
663 value is capped at 60 seconds; a value of 0 resets to the
664 compiled-in default. This option is re-read on a SIGHUP (or
665 'gpgconf --reload gpg-agent') and the S2K count is then
669 Specify the iteration count used to protect the passphrase. This
670 option can be used to override the auto-calibration done by
671 default. The auto-calibration computes a count which requires by
672 default 100ms to mangle a given passphrase. See also
675 To view the actually used iteration count and the milliseconds
676 required for an S2K operation use:
678 gpg-connect-agent 'GETINFO s2k_count' /bye
679 gpg-connect-agent 'GETINFO s2k_time' /bye
681 To view the auto-calibrated count use:
683 gpg-connect-agent 'GETINFO s2k_count_cal' /bye
686 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Configuration, Next: Agent Signals, Prev: Agent Options, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
691 There are a few configuration files needed for the operation of the
692 agent. By default they may all be found in the current home directory
693 (*note option --homedir::).
696 This is the standard configuration file read by 'gpg-agent' on
697 startup. It may contain any valid long option; the leading two
698 dashes may not be entered and the option may not be abbreviated.
699 This file is also read after a 'SIGHUP' however only a few options
700 will actually have an effect. This default name may be changed on
701 the command line (*note option --options::). You should backup
705 This is the list of trusted keys. You should backup this file.
707 Comment lines, indicated by a leading hash mark, as well as empty
708 lines are ignored. To mark a key as trusted you need to enter its
709 fingerprint followed by a space and a capital letter 'S'. Colons
710 may optionally be used to separate the bytes of a fingerprint; this
711 enables cutting and pasting the fingerprint from a key listing
712 output. If the line is prefixed with a '!' the key is explicitly
713 marked as not trusted.
715 Here is an example where two keys are marked as ultimately trusted
716 and one as not trusted:
718 # CN=Wurzel ZS 3,O=Intevation GmbH,C=DE
719 A6935DD34EF3087973C706FC311AA2CCF733765B S
721 # CN=PCA-1-Verwaltung-02/O=PKI-1-Verwaltung/C=DE
722 DC:BD:69:25:48:BD:BB:7E:31:6E:BB:80:D3:00:80:35:D4:F8:A6:CD S
724 # CN=Root-CA/O=Schlapphuete/L=Pullach/C=DE
725 !14:56:98:D3:FE:9C:CA:5A:31:6E:BC:81:D3:11:4E:00:90:A3:44:C2 S
727 Before entering a key into this file, you need to ensure its
728 authenticity. How to do this depends on your organisation; your
729 administrator might have already entered those keys which are
730 deemed trustworthy enough into this file. Places where to look for
731 the fingerprint of a root certificate are letters received from the
732 CA or the website of the CA (after making 100% sure that this is
733 indeed the website of that CA). You may want to consider
734 disallowing interactive updates of this file by using the *note
735 option --no-allow-mark-trusted::. It might even be advisable to
736 change the permissions to read-only so that this file can't be
737 changed inadvertently.
739 As a special feature a line 'include-default' will include a global
740 list of trusted certificates (e.g. '/etc/gnupg/trustlist.txt').
741 This global list is also used if the local list is not available.
743 It is possible to add further flags after the 'S' for use by the
747 Relax checking of some root certificate requirements. As of
748 now this flag allows the use of root certificates with a
749 missing basicConstraints attribute (despite that it is a MUST
750 for CA certificates) and disables CRL checking for the root
754 If validation of a certificate finally issued by a CA with
755 this flag set fails, try again using the chain validation
759 The CA is allowed to issue certificates for qualified
760 signatures. This flag has an effect only if used in the
761 global list. This is now the preferred way to mark such CA;
762 the old way of having a separate file 'qualified.txt' is still
766 This file is used when support for the secure shell agent protocol
767 has been enabled (*note option --enable-ssh-support::). Only keys
768 present in this file are used in the SSH protocol. You should
771 The 'ssh-add' tool may be used to add new entries to this file; you
772 may also add them manually. Comment lines, indicated by a leading
773 hash mark, as well as empty lines are ignored. An entry starts
774 with optional whitespace, followed by the keygrip of the key given
775 as 40 hex digits, optionally followed by the caching TTL in seconds
776 and another optional field for arbitrary flags. A non-zero TTL
777 overrides the global default as set by '--default-cache-ttl-ssh'.
779 The only flag support is 'confirm'. If this flag is found for a
780 key, each use of the key will pop up a pinentry to confirm the use
781 of that key. The flag is automatically set if a new key was loaded
782 into 'gpg-agent' using the option '-c' of the 'ssh-add' command.
784 The keygrip may be prefixed with a '!' to disable an entry.
786 The following example lists exactly one key. Note that keys
787 available through a OpenPGP smartcard in the active smartcard
788 reader are implicitly added to this list; i.e. there is no need to
791 # Key added on: 2011-07-20 20:38:46
792 # Fingerprint: 5e:8d:c4:ad:e7:af:6e:27:8a:d6:13:e4:79:ad:0b:81
793 34B62F25E277CF13D3C6BCEBFD3F85D08F0A864B 0 confirm
797 This is the directory where gpg-agent stores the private keys.
798 Each key is stored in a file with the name made up of the keygrip
799 and the suffix 'key'. You should backup all files in this
800 directory and take great care to keep this backup closed away.
802 Note that on larger installations, it is useful to put predefined
803 files into the directory '/etc/skel/.gnupg' so that newly created users
804 start up with a working configuration. For existing users the a small
805 helper script is provided to create these files (*note addgnupghome::).
808 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Signals, Next: Agent Examples, Prev: Agent Configuration, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
810 2.4 Use of some signals
811 =======================
813 A running 'gpg-agent' may be controlled by signals, i.e. using the
814 'kill' command to send a signal to the process.
816 Here is a list of supported signals:
819 This signal flushes all cached passphrases and if the program has
820 been started with a configuration file, the configuration file is
821 read again. Only certain options are honored: 'quiet', 'verbose',
822 'debug', 'debug-all', 'debug-level', 'debug-pinentry', 'no-grab',
823 'pinentry-program', 'pinentry-invisible-char', 'default-cache-ttl',
824 'max-cache-ttl', 'ignore-cache-for-signing', 's2k-count',
825 'no-allow-external-cache', 'allow-emacs-pinentry',
826 'no-allow-mark-trusted', 'disable-scdaemon', and
827 'disable-check-own-socket'. 'scdaemon-program' is also supported
828 but due to the current implementation, which calls the scdaemon
829 only once, it is not of much use unless you manually kill the
833 Shuts down the process but waits until all current requests are
834 fulfilled. If the process has received 3 of these signals and
835 requests are still pending, a shutdown is forced.
838 Shuts down the process immediately.
841 Dump internal information to the log file.
844 This signal is used for internal purposes.
847 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Examples, Next: Agent Protocol, Prev: Agent Signals, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
852 It is important to set the environment variable 'GPG_TTY' in your login
853 shell, for example in the '~/.bashrc' init script:
855 export GPG_TTY=$(tty)
857 If you enabled the Ssh Agent Support, you also need to tell ssh about
858 it by adding this to your init script:
861 if [ "${gnupg_SSH_AUTH_SOCK_by:-0}" -ne $$ ]; then
862 export SSH_AUTH_SOCK="$(gpgconf --list-dirs agent-ssh-socket)"
866 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent Protocol, Prev: Agent Examples, Up: Invoking GPG-AGENT
868 2.6 Agent's Assuan Protocol
869 ===========================
871 Note: this section does only document the protocol, which is used by
872 GnuPG components; it does not deal with the ssh-agent protocol. To see
873 the full specification of each command, use
875 gpg-connect-agent 'help COMMAND' /bye
877 or just 'help' to list all available commands.
879 The 'gpg-agent' daemon is started on demand by the GnuPG components.
881 To identify a key we use a thing called keygrip which is the SHA-1
882 hash of an canonical encoded S-Expression of the public key as used in
883 Libgcrypt. For the purpose of this interface the keygrip is given as a
884 hex string. The advantage of using this and not the hash of a
885 certificate is that it will be possible to use the same keypair for
886 different protocols, thereby saving space on the token used to keep the
889 The 'gpg-agent' may send status messages during a command or when
890 returning from a command to inform a client about the progress or result
891 of an operation. For example, the INQUIRE_MAXLEN status message may be
892 sent during a server inquire to inform the client of the maximum usable
893 length of the inquired data (which should not be exceeded).
897 * Agent PKDECRYPT:: Decrypting a session key
898 * Agent PKSIGN:: Signing a Hash
899 * Agent GENKEY:: Generating a Key
900 * Agent IMPORT:: Importing a Secret Key
901 * Agent EXPORT:: Exporting a Secret Key
902 * Agent ISTRUSTED:: Importing a Root Certificate
903 * Agent GET_PASSPHRASE:: Ask for a passphrase
904 * Agent CLEAR_PASSPHRASE:: Expire a cached passphrase
905 * Agent PRESET_PASSPHRASE:: Set a passphrase for a keygrip
906 * Agent GET_CONFIRMATION:: Ask for confirmation
907 * Agent HAVEKEY:: Check whether a key is available
908 * Agent LEARN:: Register a smartcard
909 * Agent PASSWD:: Change a Passphrase
910 * Agent UPDATESTARTUPTTY:: Change the Standard Display
911 * Agent GETEVENTCOUNTER:: Get the Event Counters
912 * Agent GETINFO:: Return information about the process
913 * Agent OPTION:: Set options for the session
916 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent PKDECRYPT, Next: Agent PKSIGN, Up: Agent Protocol
918 2.6.1 Decrypting a session key
919 ------------------------------
921 The client asks the server to decrypt a session key. The encrypted
922 session key should have all information needed to select the appropriate
923 secret key or to delegate it to a smartcard.
927 Tell the server about the key to be used for decryption. If this is
928 not used, 'gpg-agent' may try to figure out the key by trying to decrypt
929 the message with each key available.
933 The agent checks whether this command is allowed and then does an
934 INQUIRY to get the ciphertext the client should then send the cipher
937 S: INQUIRE CIPHERTEXT
942 Please note that the server may send status info lines while reading
943 the data lines from the client. The data send is a SPKI like S-Exp with
948 (<param_name1> <mpi>)
950 (<param_namen> <mpi>)))
952 Where algo is a string with the name of the algorithm; see the
953 libgcrypt documentation for a list of valid algorithms. The number and
954 names of the parameters depend on the algorithm. The agent does return
955 an error if there is an inconsistency.
957 If the decryption was successful the decrypted data is returned by
960 Here is an example session:
962 S: INQUIRE CIPHERTEXT
963 C: D (enc-val elg (a 349324324)
964 C: D (b 3F444677CA)))
966 S: # session key follows
968 S: D (value 1234567890ABCDEF0)
969 S: OK decryption successful
971 The “PADDING” status line is only send if gpg-agent can tell what
972 kind of padding is used. As of now only the value 0 is used to indicate
973 that the padding has been removed.
976 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent PKSIGN, Next: Agent GENKEY, Prev: Agent PKDECRYPT, Up: Agent Protocol
981 The client asks the agent to sign a given hash value. A default key
982 will be chosen if no key has been set. To set a key a client first
987 This can be used multiple times to create multiple signature, the
988 list of keys is reset with the next PKSIGN command or a RESET. The
989 server tests whether the key is a valid key to sign something and
992 SETHASH --hash=<name>|<algo> <hexstring>
994 The client can use this command to tell the server about the data
995 <hexstring> (which usually is a hash) to be signed. <algo> is the
996 decimal encoded hash algorithm number as used by Libgcrypt. Either
997 <algo> or -hash=<name> must be given. Valid names for <name> are:
1000 The SHA-1 hash algorithm
1002 The SHA-256 hash algorithm
1004 The RIPE-MD160 hash algorithm
1006 The old and broken MD5 hash algorithm
1008 A combined hash algorithm as used by the TLS protocol.
1010 The actual signing is done using
1014 Options are not yet defined, but may later be used to choose among
1015 different algorithms. The agent does then some checks, asks for the
1016 passphrase and as a result the server returns the signature as an SPKI
1017 like S-expression in "D" lines:
1021 (<param_name1> <mpi>)
1023 (<param_namen> <mpi>)))
1025 The operation is affected by the option
1027 OPTION use-cache-for-signing=0|1
1029 The default of '1' uses the cache. Setting this option to '0' will
1030 lead 'gpg-agent' to ignore the passphrase cache. Note, that there is
1031 also a global command line option for 'gpg-agent' to globally disable
1034 Here is an example session:
1040 S: # I did ask the user whether he really wants to sign
1041 S: # I did ask the user for the passphrase
1043 C: D ABCDEF012345678901234
1045 S: # signature follows
1046 S: D (sig-val rsa (s 45435453654612121212))
1050 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent GENKEY, Next: Agent IMPORT, Prev: Agent PKSIGN, Up: Agent Protocol
1052 2.6.3 Generating a Key
1053 ----------------------
1055 This is used to create a new keypair and store the secret key inside the
1056 active PSE -- which is in most cases a Soft-PSE. A not-yet-defined
1057 option allows choosing the storage location. To get the secret key out
1058 of the PSE, a special export tool has to be used.
1060 GENKEY [--no-protection] [--preset] [<cache_nonce>]
1062 Invokes the key generation process and the server will then inquire
1063 on the generation parameters, like:
1066 C: D (genkey (rsa (nbits 1024)))
1069 The format of the key parameters which depends on the algorithm is of
1074 (parameter_name_1 ....)
1076 (parameter_name_n ....)))
1078 If everything succeeds, the server returns the *public key* in a SPKI
1079 like S-Expression like this:
1086 Here is an example session:
1089 C: D (genkey (rsa (nbits 1024)))
1092 S: D (rsa (n 326487324683264) (e 10001)))
1095 The '--no-protection' option may be used to prevent prompting for a
1096 passphrase to protect the secret key while leaving the secret key
1097 unprotected. The '--preset' option may be used to add the passphrase to
1098 the cache using the default cache parameters.
1100 The '--inq-passwd' option may be used to create the key with a
1101 supplied passphrase. When used the agent does an inquiry with the
1102 keyword 'NEWPASSWD' to retrieve that passphrase. This option takes
1103 precedence over '--no-protection'; however if the client sends a empty
1104 (zero-length) passphrase, this is identical to '--no-protection'.
1107 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent IMPORT, Next: Agent EXPORT, Prev: Agent GENKEY, Up: Agent Protocol
1109 2.6.4 Importing a Secret Key
1110 ----------------------------
1112 This operation is not yet supported by GpgAgent. Specialized tools are
1113 to be used for this.
1115 There is no actual need because we can expect that secret keys
1116 created by a 3rd party are stored on a smartcard. If we have generated
1117 the key ourselves, we do not need to import it.
1120 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent EXPORT, Next: Agent ISTRUSTED, Prev: Agent IMPORT, Up: Agent Protocol
1122 2.6.5 Export a Secret Key
1123 -------------------------
1127 Should be done by an extra tool.
1130 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent ISTRUSTED, Next: Agent GET_PASSPHRASE, Prev: Agent EXPORT, Up: Agent Protocol
1132 2.6.6 Importing a Root Certificate
1133 ----------------------------------
1135 Actually we do not import a Root Cert but provide a way to validate any
1136 piece of data by storing its Hash along with a description and an
1137 identifier in the PSE. Here is the interface description:
1139 ISTRUSTED <fingerprint>
1141 Check whether the OpenPGP primary key or the X.509 certificate with
1142 the given fingerprint is an ultimately trusted key or a trusted Root CA
1143 certificate. The fingerprint should be given as a hexstring (without
1144 any blanks or colons or whatever in between) and may be left padded with
1145 00 in case of an MD5 fingerprint. GPGAgent will answer with:
1149 The key is in the table of trusted keys.
1151 ERR 304 (Not Trusted)
1153 The key is not in this table.
1155 Gpg needs the entire list of trusted keys to maintain the web of
1156 trust; the following command is therefore quite helpful:
1160 GpgAgent returns a list of trusted keys line by line:
1162 S: D 000000001234454556565656677878AF2F1ECCFF P
1163 S: D 340387563485634856435645634856438576457A P
1164 S: D FEDC6532453745367FD83474357495743757435D S
1167 The first item on a line is the hexified fingerprint where MD5
1168 fingerprints are '00' padded to the left and the second item is a flag
1169 to indicate the type of key (so that gpg is able to only take care of
1170 PGP keys). P = OpenPGP, S = S/MIME. A client should ignore the rest of
1171 the line, so that we can extend the format in the future.
1173 Finally a client should be able to mark a key as trusted:
1175 MARKTRUSTED FINGERPRINT "P"|"S"
1177 The server will then pop up a window to ask the user whether she
1178 really trusts this key. For this it will probably ask for a text to be
1179 displayed like this:
1181 S: INQUIRE TRUSTDESC
1182 C: D Do you trust the key with the fingerprint @FPR@
1183 C: D bla fasel blurb.
1187 Known sequences with the pattern @foo@ are replaced according to this
1191 Format the fingerprint according to gpg rules for a v3 keys.
1193 Format the fingerprint according to gpg rules for a v4 keys.
1195 Choose an appropriate format to format the fingerprint.
1197 Replaced by a single '@'.
1200 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent GET_PASSPHRASE, Next: Agent CLEAR_PASSPHRASE, Prev: Agent ISTRUSTED, Up: Agent Protocol
1202 2.6.7 Ask for a passphrase
1203 --------------------------
1205 This function is usually used to ask for a passphrase to be used for
1206 symmetric encryption, but may also be used by programs which need
1207 special handling of passphrases. This command uses a syntax which helps
1208 clients to use the agent with minimum effort.
1210 GET_PASSPHRASE [--data] [--check] [--no-ask] [--repeat[=N]] \
1211 [--qualitybar] CACHE_ID \
1212 [ERROR_MESSAGE PROMPT DESCRIPTION]
1214 CACHE_ID is expected to be a string used to identify a cached
1215 passphrase. Use a 'X' to bypass the cache. With no other arguments the
1216 agent returns a cached passphrase or an error. By convention either the
1217 hexified fingerprint of the key shall be used for CACHE_ID or an
1218 arbitrary string prefixed with the name of the calling application and a
1219 colon: Like 'gpg:somestring'.
1221 ERROR_MESSAGE is either a single 'X' for no error message or a string
1222 to be shown as an error message like (e.g. "invalid passphrase").
1223 Blanks must be percent escaped or replaced by '+''.
1225 PROMPT is either a single 'X' for a default prompt or the text to be
1226 shown as the prompt. Blanks must be percent escaped or replaced by '+'.
1228 DESCRIPTION is a text shown above the entry field. Blanks must be
1229 percent escaped or replaced by '+'.
1231 The agent either returns with an error or with a OK followed by the
1232 hex encoded passphrase. Note that the length of the strings is
1233 implicitly limited by the maximum length of a command. If the option
1234 '--data' is used, the passphrase is not returned on the OK line but by
1235 regular data lines; this is the preferred method.
1237 If the option '--check' is used, the standard passphrase constraints
1238 checks are applied. A check is not done if the passphrase has been
1241 If the option '--no-ask' is used and the passphrase is not in the
1242 cache the user will not be asked to enter a passphrase but the error
1243 code 'GPG_ERR_NO_DATA' is returned.
1245 If the option '--qualitybar' is used and a minimum passphrase length
1246 has been configured, a visual indication of the entered passphrase
1249 CLEAR_PASSPHRASE CACHE_ID
1251 may be used to invalidate the cache entry for a passphrase. The
1252 function returns with OK even when there is no cached passphrase.
1255 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent CLEAR_PASSPHRASE, Next: Agent PRESET_PASSPHRASE, Prev: Agent GET_PASSPHRASE, Up: Agent Protocol
1257 2.6.8 Remove a cached passphrase
1258 --------------------------------
1260 Use this command to remove a cached passphrase.
1262 CLEAR_PASSPHRASE [--mode=normal] <cache_id>
1264 The '--mode=normal' option can be used to clear a CACHE_ID that was
1268 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent PRESET_PASSPHRASE, Next: Agent GET_CONFIRMATION, Prev: Agent CLEAR_PASSPHRASE, Up: Agent Protocol
1270 2.6.9 Set a passphrase for a keygrip
1271 ------------------------------------
1273 This command adds a passphrase to the cache for the specified KEYGRIP.
1275 PRESET_PASSPHRASE [--inquire] <string_or_keygrip> <timeout> [<hexstring>]
1277 The passphrase is a hexadecimal string when specified. When not
1278 specified, the passphrase will be retrieved from the pinentry module
1279 unless the '--inquire' option was specified in which case the passphrase
1280 will be retrieved from the client.
1282 The TIMEOUT parameter keeps the passphrase cached for the specified
1283 number of seconds. A value of '-1' means infinite while '0' means the
1284 default (currently only a timeout of -1 is allowed, which means to never
1288 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent GET_CONFIRMATION, Next: Agent HAVEKEY, Prev: Agent PRESET_PASSPHRASE, Up: Agent Protocol
1290 2.6.10 Ask for confirmation
1291 ---------------------------
1293 This command may be used to ask for a simple confirmation by presenting
1294 a text and 2 buttons: Okay and Cancel.
1296 GET_CONFIRMATION DESCRIPTION
1298 DESCRIPTIONis displayed along with a Okay and Cancel button. Blanks
1299 must be percent escaped or replaced by '+'. A 'X' may be used to
1300 display confirmation dialog with a default text.
1302 The agent either returns with an error or with a OK. Note, that the
1303 length of DESCRIPTION is implicitly limited by the maximum length of a
1307 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent HAVEKEY, Next: Agent LEARN, Prev: Agent GET_CONFIRMATION, Up: Agent Protocol
1309 2.6.11 Check whether a key is available
1310 ---------------------------------------
1312 This can be used to see whether a secret key is available. It does not
1313 return any information on whether the key is somehow protected.
1317 The agent answers either with OK or 'No_Secret_Key' (208). The
1318 caller may want to check for other error codes as well. More than one
1319 keygrip may be given. In this case the command returns success if at
1320 least one of the keygrips corresponds to an available secret key.
1323 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent LEARN, Next: Agent PASSWD, Prev: Agent HAVEKEY, Up: Agent Protocol
1325 2.6.12 Register a smartcard
1326 ---------------------------
1330 This command is used to register a smartcard. With the '--send'
1331 option given the certificates are sent back.
1334 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent PASSWD, Next: Agent UPDATESTARTUPTTY, Prev: Agent LEARN, Up: Agent Protocol
1336 2.6.13 Change a Passphrase
1337 --------------------------
1339 PASSWD [--cache-nonce=<c>] [--passwd-nonce=<s>] [--preset] KEYGRIP
1341 This command is used to interactively change the passphrase of the
1342 key identified by the hex string KEYGRIP. The '--preset' option may be
1343 used to add the new passphrase to the cache using the default cache
1347 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent UPDATESTARTUPTTY, Next: Agent GETEVENTCOUNTER, Prev: Agent PASSWD, Up: Agent Protocol
1349 2.6.14 Change the standard display
1350 ----------------------------------
1354 Set the startup TTY and X-DISPLAY variables to the values of this
1355 session. This command is useful to direct future pinentry invocations
1356 to another screen. It is only required because there is no way in the
1357 ssh-agent protocol to convey this information.
1360 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent GETEVENTCOUNTER, Next: Agent GETINFO, Prev: Agent UPDATESTARTUPTTY, Up: Agent Protocol
1362 2.6.15 Get the Event Counters
1363 -----------------------------
1367 This function return one status line with the current values of the
1368 event counters. The event counters are useful to avoid polling by
1369 delaying a poll until something has changed. The values are decimal
1370 numbers in the range '0' to 'UINT_MAX' and wrapping around to 0. The
1371 actual values should not be relied upon; they shall only be used to
1374 The currently defined counters are:
1376 Incremented with any change of any of the other counters.
1378 Incremented for added or removed private keys.
1380 Incremented for each change of the card reader's status.
1383 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent GETINFO, Next: Agent OPTION, Prev: Agent GETEVENTCOUNTER, Up: Agent Protocol
1385 2.6.16 Return information about the process
1386 -------------------------------------------
1388 This is a multipurpose function to return a variety of information.
1392 The value of WHAT specifies the kind of information returned:
1394 Return the version of the program.
1396 Return the process id of the process.
1398 Return the name of the socket used to connect the agent.
1400 Return the name of the socket used for SSH connections. If SSH
1401 support has not been enabled the error 'GPG_ERR_NO_DATA' will be
1405 File: gnupg.info, Node: Agent OPTION, Prev: Agent GETINFO, Up: Agent Protocol
1407 2.6.17 Set options for the session
1408 ----------------------------------
1410 Here is a list of session options which are not yet described with other
1411 commands. The general syntax for an Assuan option is:
1418 This may be used to tell gpg-agent of which gpg-agent version the
1419 client is aware of. gpg-agent uses this information to enable
1420 features which might break older clients.
1423 Change the session's environment to be used for the Pinentry.
1429 Set envvar NAME to the empty string
1431 Set envvar NAME to the string VALUE.
1433 'use-cache-for-signing'
1434 See Assuan command 'PKSIGN'.
1436 'allow-pinentry-notify'
1437 This does not need any value. It is used to enable the
1438 PINENTRY_LAUNCHED inquiry.
1441 This option is used to change the operation mode of the pinentry.
1442 The following values are defined:
1445 This is the default mode which pops up a pinentry as needed.
1448 Instead of popping up a pinentry, return the error code
1452 Instead of popping up a pinentry, return the error code
1453 'GPG_ERR_NO_PIN_ENTRY'.
1456 Use a loopback pinentry. This fakes a pinentry by using
1457 inquiries back to the caller to ask for a passphrase. This
1458 option may only be set if the agent has been configured for
1459 that. To disable this feature use *note option
1460 --no-allow-loopback-pinentry::.
1462 'cache-ttl-opt-preset'
1463 This option sets the cache TTL for new entries created by GENKEY
1464 and PASSWD commands when using the '--preset' option. It is not
1465 used a default value is used.
1468 Instead of using the standard S2K count (which is computed on the
1469 fly), the given S2K count is used for new keys or when changing the
1470 passphrase of a key. Values below 65536 are considered to be 0.
1471 This option is valid for the entire session or until reset to 0.
1472 This option is useful if the key is later used on boxes which are
1473 either much slower or faster than the actual box.
1475 'pretend-request-origin'
1476 This option switches the connection into a restricted mode which
1477 handles all further commands in the same way as they would be
1478 handled when originating from the extra or browser socket. Note
1479 that this option is not available in the restricted mode. Valid
1480 values for this option are:
1484 This is a NOP and leaves the connection in the standard way.
1487 Pretend to come from a remote origin in the same way as
1488 connections from the '--extra-socket'.
1491 Pretend to come from a local web browser in the same way as
1492 connections from the '--browser-socket'.
1495 File: gnupg.info, Node: Invoking DIRMNGR, Next: Invoking GPG, Prev: Invoking GPG-AGENT, Up: Top
1500 Since version 2.1 of GnuPG, 'dirmngr' takes care of accessing the
1501 OpenPGP keyservers. As with previous versions it is also used as a
1502 server for managing and downloading certificate revocation lists (CRLs)
1503 for X.509 certificates, downloading X.509 certificates, and providing
1504 access to OCSP providers. Dirmngr is invoked internally by 'gpg',
1505 'gpgsm', or via the 'gpg-connect-agent' tool.
1507 *Note Option Index::,for an index to 'DIRMNGR''s commands and options.
1511 * Dirmngr Commands:: List of all commands.
1512 * Dirmngr Options:: List of all options.
1513 * Dirmngr Configuration:: Configuration files.
1514 * Dirmngr Signals:: Use of signals.
1515 * Dirmngr Examples:: Some usage examples.
1516 * Dirmngr Protocol:: The protocol dirmngr uses.
1519 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Commands, Next: Dirmngr Options, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
1524 Commands are not distinguished from options except for the fact that
1525 only one command is allowed.
1528 Print the program version and licensing information. Note that you
1529 cannot abbreviate this command.
1532 Print a usage message summarizing the most useful command-line
1533 options. Note that you cannot abbreviate this command.
1536 Print a list of all available options and commands. Note that you
1537 cannot abbreviate this command.
1540 Run in server mode and wait for commands on the 'stdin'. The
1541 default mode is to create a socket and listen for commands there.
1542 This is only used for testing.
1545 Run in background daemon mode and listen for commands on a socket.
1546 This is the way 'dirmngr' is started on demand by the other GnuPG
1547 components. To force starting 'dirmngr' it is in general best to
1548 use 'gpgconf --launch dirmngr'.
1551 Run in the foreground, sending logs to stderr, and listening on
1552 file descriptor 3, which must already be bound to a listening
1553 socket. This is useful when running under systemd or other similar
1554 process supervision schemes. This option is not supported on
1558 List the contents of the CRL cache on 'stdout'. This is probably
1559 only useful for debugging purposes.
1562 This command requires a filename as additional argument, and it
1563 will make Dirmngr try to import the CRL in FILE into it's cache.
1564 Note, that this is only possible if Dirmngr is able to retrieve the
1565 CA's certificate directly by its own means. In general it is
1566 better to use 'gpgsm''s '--call-dirmngr loadcrl filename' command
1567 so that 'gpgsm' can help dirmngr.
1570 This command requires an URL as additional argument, and it will
1571 make dirmngr try to retrieve and import the CRL from that URL into
1572 it's cache. This is mainly useful for debugging purposes. The
1573 'dirmngr-client' provides the same feature for a running dirmngr.
1576 This commands shuts down an running instance of Dirmngr. This
1577 command has currently no effect.
1580 This command removes all CRLs from Dirmngr's cache. Client
1581 requests will thus trigger reading of fresh CRLs.
1584 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Options, Next: Dirmngr Configuration, Prev: Dirmngr Commands, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
1589 Note that all long options with the exception of '--options' and
1590 '--homedir' may also be given in the configuration file after stripping
1591 off the two leading dashes.
1594 Reads configuration from FILE instead of from the default per-user
1595 configuration file. The default configuration file is named
1596 'dirmngr.conf' and expected in the home directory.
1599 Set the name of the home directory to DIR. This option is only
1600 effective when used on the command line. The default is the
1601 directory named '.gnupg' directly below the home directory of the
1602 user unless the environment variable 'GNUPGHOME' has been set in
1603 which case its value will be used. Many kinds of data are stored
1604 within this directory.
1608 Outputs additional information while running. You can increase the
1609 verbosity by giving several verbose commands to DIRMNGR, such as
1613 Append all logging output to FILE. This is very helpful in seeing
1614 what the agent actually does. Use 'socket://' to log to socket.
1616 '--debug-level LEVEL'
1617 Select the debug level for investigating problems. LEVEL may be a
1618 numeric value or by a keyword:
1621 No debugging at all. A value of less than 1 may be used
1622 instead of the keyword.
1624 Some basic debug messages. A value between 1 and 2 may be
1625 used instead of the keyword.
1627 More verbose debug messages. A value between 3 and 5 may be
1628 used instead of the keyword.
1630 Even more detailed messages. A value between 6 and 8 may be
1631 used instead of the keyword.
1633 All of the debug messages you can get. A value greater than 8
1634 may be used instead of the keyword. The creation of hash
1635 tracing files is only enabled if the keyword is used.
1637 How these messages are mapped to the actual debugging flags is not
1638 specified and may change with newer releases of this program. They
1639 are however carefully selected to best aid in debugging.
1642 Set debug flags. All flags are or-ed and FLAGS may be given in C
1643 syntax (e.g. 0x0042) or as a comma separated list of flag names.
1644 To get a list of all supported flags the single word "help" can be
1645 used. This option is only useful for debugging and the behavior
1646 may change at any time without notice.
1649 Same as '--debug=0xffffffff'
1652 Enable debugging of the TLS layer at LEVEL. The details of the
1653 debug level depend on the used TLS library and are not set in
1657 When running in server mode, wait N seconds before entering the
1658 actual processing loop and print the pid. This gives time to
1661 '--disable-check-own-socket'
1662 On some platforms 'dirmngr' is able to detect the removal of its
1663 socket file and shutdown itself. This option disable this
1664 self-test for debugging purposes.
1670 Format the info output in daemon mode for use with the standard
1671 Bourne shell respective the C-shell. The default is to guess it
1672 based on the environment variable 'SHELL' which is in almost all
1676 Enabling this option forces loading of expired CRLs; this is only
1677 useful for debugging.
1681 The option '--use-tor' switches Dirmngr and thus GnuPG into "Tor
1682 mode" to route all network access via Tor (an anonymity network).
1683 Certain other features are disabled in this mode. The effect of
1684 '--use-tor' cannot be overridden by any other command or even by
1685 reloading dirmngr. The use of '--no-use-tor' disables the use of
1686 Tor. The default is to use Tor if it is available on startup or
1687 after reloading dirmngr. The test on the availability of Tor is
1688 done by trying to connect to a SOCKS proxy at either port 9050 or
1689 9150; if another type of proxy is listening on one of these ports,
1690 you should use '--no-use-tor'.
1692 '--standard-resolver'
1693 This option forces the use of the system's standard DNS resolver
1694 code. This is mainly used for debugging. Note that on Windows a
1695 standard resolver is not used and all DNS access will return the
1696 error "Not Implemented" if this option is used. Using this
1697 together with enabled Tor mode returns the error "Not Enabled".
1699 '--recursive-resolver'
1700 When possible use a recursive resolver instead of a stub resolver.
1702 '--resolver-timeout N'
1703 Set the timeout for the DNS resolver to N seconds. The default are
1706 '--connect-timeout N'
1707 '--connect-quick-timeout N'
1708 Set the timeout for HTTP and generic TCP connection attempts to N
1709 seconds. The value set with the quick variant is used when the
1710 -quick option has been given to certain Assuan commands. The quick
1711 value is capped at the value of the regular connect timeout. The
1712 default values are 15 and 2 seconds. Note that the timeout values
1713 are for each connection attempt; the connection code will attempt
1714 to connect all addresses listed for a server.
1716 '--listen-backlog N'
1717 Set the size of the queue for pending connections. The default is
1720 '--allow-version-check'
1721 Allow Dirmngr to connect to 'https://versions.gnupg.org' to get the
1722 list of current software versions. If this option is enabled the
1723 list is retrieved in case the local copy does not exist or is older
1724 than 5 to 7 days. See the option '--query-swdb' of the command
1725 'gpgconf' for more details. Note, that regardless of this option a
1726 version check can always be triggered using this command:
1728 gpg-connect-agent --dirmngr 'loadswdb --force' /bye
1731 Use NAME as your keyserver. This is the server that 'gpg'
1732 communicates with to receive keys, send keys, and search for keys.
1733 The format of the NAME is a URI: 'scheme:[//]keyservername[:port]'
1734 The scheme is the type of keyserver: "hkp" for the HTTP (or
1735 compatible) keyservers, "ldap" for the LDAP keyservers, or "mailto"
1736 for the Graff email keyserver. Note that your particular
1737 installation of GnuPG may have other keyserver types available as
1738 well. Keyserver schemes are case-insensitive. After the keyserver
1739 name, optional keyserver configuration options may be provided.
1740 These are the same as the '--keyserver-options' of 'gpg', but apply
1741 only to this particular keyserver.
1743 Most keyservers synchronize with each other, so there is generally
1744 no need to send keys to more than one server. Somes keyservers use
1745 round robin DNS to give a different keyserver each time you use it.
1747 If exactly two keyservers are configured and only one is a Tor
1748 hidden service (.onion), Dirmngr selects the keyserver to use
1749 depending on whether Tor is locally running or not. The check for
1750 a running Tor is done for each new connection.
1752 If no keyserver is explicitly configured, dirmngr will use the
1753 built-in default of 'https://keyserver.ubuntu.com'.
1755 Windows users with a keyserver running on their Active Directory
1756 may use the short form 'ldap:///' for NAME to access this
1759 For accessing anonymous LDAP keyservers NAME is in general just a
1760 'ldaps://ldap.example.com'. A BaseDN parameter should never be
1761 specified. If authentication is required things are more
1762 complicated and two methods are available:
1764 The modern method (since version 2.2.28) is to use the very same
1765 syntax as used with the option '--ldapserver'. Please see over
1766 there for details; here is an example:
1768 keyserver ldap:ldap.example.com::uid=USERNAME,ou=GnuPG Users,
1769 dc=example,dc=com:PASSWORD::starttls
1771 The other method is to use a full URL for NAME; for example:
1773 keyserver ldaps://ldap.example.com/????bindname=uid=USERNAME
1774 %2Cou=GnuPG%20Users%2Cdc=example%2Cdc=com,password=PASSWORD
1776 Put this all on one line without any spaces and keep the '%2C' as
1777 given. Replace USERNAME, PASSWORD, and the 'dc' parts according to
1778 the instructions received from your LDAP administrator. Note that
1779 only simple authentication (i.e. cleartext passwords) is supported
1780 and thus using ldaps is strongly suggested (since 2.2.28 "ldaps"
1781 defaults to port 389 and uses STARTTLS). On Windows authentication
1782 via AD can be requested by adding 'gpgNtds=1' after the fourth
1783 question mark instead of the bindname and password parameter.
1785 '--nameserver IPADDR'
1786 In "Tor mode" Dirmngr uses a public resolver via Tor to resolve DNS
1787 names. If the default public resolver, which is '8.8.8.8', shall
1788 not be used a different one can be given using this option. Note
1789 that a numerical IP address must be given (IPv6 or IPv4) and that
1790 no error checking is done for IPADDR.
1794 Disable the use of all IPv4 or IPv6 addresses.
1797 Entirely disables the use of LDAP.
1800 Entirely disables the use of HTTP.
1803 When looking for the location of a CRL, the to be tested
1804 certificate usually contains so called "CRL Distribution Point"
1805 (DP) entries which are URLs describing the way to access the CRL.
1806 The first found DP entry is used. With this option all entries
1807 using the HTTP scheme are ignored when looking for a suitable DP.
1810 This is similar to '--ignore-http-dp' but ignores entries using the
1811 LDAP scheme. Both options may be combined resulting in ignoring
1814 '--ignore-ocsp-service-url'
1815 Ignore all OCSP URLs contained in the certificate. The effect is
1816 to force the use of the default responder.
1818 '--honor-http-proxy'
1819 If the environment variable 'http_proxy' has been set, use its
1820 value to access HTTP servers.
1822 '--http-proxy HOST[:PORT]'
1823 Use HOST and PORT to access HTTP servers. The use of this option
1824 overrides the environment variable 'http_proxy' regardless whether
1825 '--honor-http-proxy' has been set.
1827 '--ldap-proxy HOST[:PORT]'
1828 Use HOST and PORT to connect to LDAP servers. If PORT is omitted,
1829 port 389 (standard LDAP port) is used. This overrides any
1830 specified host and port part in a LDAP URL and will also be used if
1831 host and port have been omitted from the URL.
1834 Never use anything else but the LDAP "proxy" as configured with
1835 '--ldap-proxy'. Usually 'dirmngr' tries to use other configured
1836 LDAP server if the connection using the "proxy" failed.
1838 '--ldapserverlist-file FILE'
1839 Read the list of LDAP servers to consult for CRLs and X.509
1840 certificates from file instead of the default per-user ldap server
1841 list file. The default value for FILE is
1842 'dirmngr_ldapservers.conf'.
1844 This server list file contains one LDAP server per line in the
1847 HOSTNAME:PORT:USERNAME:PASSWORD:BASE_DN:FLAGS
1849 Lines starting with a '#' are comments.
1851 Note that as usual all strings entered are expected to be UTF-8
1852 encoded. Obviously this will lead to problems if the password has
1853 originally been encoded as Latin-1. There is no other solution
1854 here than to put such a password in the binary encoding into the
1855 file (i.e. non-ascii characters won't show up readable).(1)
1858 This is an alternative way to specify LDAP servers for CRL and
1859 X.509 certificate retrieval. If this option is used the servers
1860 configured in 'dirmngr_ldapservers.conf' (or the file given by
1861 '--ldapserverlist-file') are cleared. Note that
1862 'dirmngr_ldapservers.conf' is not read again by a reload signal.
1863 However, '--ldapserver' options are read again.
1865 SPEC is either a proper LDAP URL or a colon delimited list of the
1868 HOSTNAME:PORT:USERNAME:PASSWORD:BASE_DN:FLAGS:
1870 with an optional prefix of 'ldap:' (but without the two slashes
1871 which would turn this into a proper LDAP URL). FLAGS is a list of
1872 one or more comma delimited keywords:
1874 The default: Do not use a TLS secured connection at all; the
1875 default port is 389.
1877 Use STARTTLS to secure the connection; the default port is
1880 Tunnel LDAP through a TLS connection; the default port is 636.
1882 On Windows authenticate the LDAP connection using the Active
1883 Directory with the current user.
1885 Note that in an URL style specification the scheme 'ldaps://'
1886 refers to STARTTLS and _not_ to LDAP-over-TLS.
1888 '--ldaptimeout SECS'
1889 Specify the number of seconds to wait for an LDAP query before
1890 timing out. The default are 15 seconds. 0 will never timeout.
1893 This option makes dirmngr add any servers it discovers when
1894 validating certificates against CRLs to the internal list of
1895 servers to consult for certificates and CRLs. This option should
1896 in general not be used.
1898 This option might be useful when trying to validate a certificate
1899 that has a CRL distribution point that points to a server that is
1900 not already listed in the ldapserverlist. Dirmngr will always go
1901 to this server and try to download the CRL, but chances are high
1902 that the certificate used to sign the CRL is located on the same
1903 server. So if dirmngr doesn't add that new server to list, it will
1904 often not be able to verify the signature of the CRL unless the
1905 '--add-servers' option is used.
1907 Caveat emptor: Using this option may enable denial-of-service
1908 attacks and leak search requests to unknown third parties. This is
1909 because arbitrary servers are added to the internal list of LDAP
1910 servers which in turn is used for all unspecific LDAP queries as
1911 well as a fallback for queries which did not return a result.
1914 This option enables OCSP support if requested by the client.
1916 OCSP requests are rejected by default because they may violate the
1917 privacy of the user; for example it is possible to track the time
1918 when a user is reading a mail.
1920 '--ocsp-responder URL'
1921 Use URL as the default OCSP Responder if the certificate does not
1922 contain information about an assigned responder. Note, that
1923 '--ocsp-signer' must also be set to a valid certificate.
1925 '--ocsp-signer FPR|FILE'
1926 Use the certificate with the fingerprint FPR to check the responses
1927 of the default OCSP Responder. Alternatively a filename can be
1928 given in which case the response is expected to be signed by one of
1929 the certificates described in that file. Any argument which
1930 contains a slash, dot or tilde is considered a filename. Usual
1931 filename expansion takes place: A tilde at the start followed by a
1932 slash is replaced by the content of 'HOME', no slash at start
1933 describes a relative filename which will be searched at the home
1934 directory. To make sure that the FILE is searched in the home
1935 directory, either prepend the name with "./" or use a name which
1938 If a response has been signed by a certificate described by these
1939 fingerprints no further check upon the validity of this certificate
1942 The format of the FILE is a list of SHA-1 fingerprint, one per line
1943 with optional colons between the bytes. Empty lines and lines
1944 prefix with a hash mark are ignored.
1946 '--ocsp-max-clock-skew N'
1947 The number of seconds a skew between the OCSP responder and them
1948 local clock is accepted. Default is 600 (10 minutes).
1950 '--ocsp-max-period N'
1951 Seconds a response is at maximum considered valid after the time
1952 given in the thisUpdate field. Default is 7776000 (90 days).
1954 '--ocsp-current-period N'
1955 The number of seconds an OCSP response is considered valid after
1956 the time given in the NEXT_UPDATE datum. Default is 10800 (3
1960 Do not return more that N items in one query. The default is 10.
1962 '--ignore-cert-extension OID'
1963 Add OID to the list of ignored certificate extensions. The OID is
1964 expected to be in dotted decimal form, like '2.5.29.3'. This
1965 option may be used more than once. Critical flagged certificate
1966 extensions matching one of the OIDs in the list are treated as if
1967 they are actually handled and thus the certificate won't be
1968 rejected due to an unknown critical extension. Use this option
1969 with care because extensions are usually flagged as critical for a
1972 '--ignore-cert FPR|FILE'
1973 Entirely ignore certificates with the fingerprint FPR. As an
1974 alternative to the fingerprint a filename can be given in which
1975 case all certificates described in that file are ignored. Any
1976 argument which contains a slash, dot or tilde is considered a
1977 filename. Usual filename expansion takes place: A tilde at the
1978 start followed by a slash is replaced by the content of 'HOME', no
1979 slash at start describes a relative filename which will be searched
1980 at the home directory. To make sure that the FILE is searched in
1981 the home directory, either prepend the name with "./" or use a name
1982 which contains a dot. The format of such a file is a list of SHA-1
1983 fingerprint, one per line with optional colons between the bytes.
1984 Empty lines and lines prefixed with a hash mark are ignored.
1986 This option is useful as a quick workaround to exclude certain
1987 certificates from the system store.
1990 Use the root certificates in FILE for verification of the TLS
1991 certificates used with 'hkps' (keyserver access over TLS). If the
1992 file is in PEM format a suffix of '.pem' is expected for FILE.
1993 This option may be given multiple times to add more root
1994 certificates. Tilde expansion is supported.
1996 If no 'hkp-cacert' directive is present, dirmngr will use the
1999 ---------- Footnotes ----------
2001 (1) The 'gpgconf' tool might be helpful for frontends as it enables
2002 editing this configuration file using percent-escaped strings.
2005 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Configuration, Next: Dirmngr Signals, Prev: Dirmngr Options, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
2010 Dirmngr makes use of several directories when running in daemon mode:
2011 There are a few configuration files to control the operation of dirmngr.
2012 By default they may all be found in the current home directory (*note
2013 option --homedir::).
2016 This is the standard configuration file read by 'dirmngr' on
2017 startup. It may contain any valid long option; the leading two
2018 dashes may not be entered and the option may not be abbreviated.
2019 This file is also read after a 'SIGHUP' however not all options
2020 will actually have an effect. This default name may be changed on
2021 the command line (*note option --options::). You should backup
2024 '/etc/gnupg/trusted-certs'
2025 This directory should be filled with certificates of Root CAs you
2026 are trusting in checking the CRLs and signing OCSP Responses.
2028 Usually these are the same certificates you use with the
2029 applications making use of dirmngr. It is expected that each of
2030 these certificate files contain exactly one DER encoded certificate
2031 in a file with the suffix '.crt' or '.der'. 'dirmngr' reads those
2032 certificates on startup and when given a SIGHUP. Certificates which
2033 are not readable or do not make up a proper X.509 certificate are
2034 ignored; see the log file for details.
2036 Applications using dirmngr (e.g. gpgsm) can request these
2037 certificates to complete a trust chain in the same way as with the
2038 extra-certs directory (see below).
2040 Note that for OCSP responses the certificate specified using the
2041 option '--ocsp-signer' is always considered valid to sign OCSP
2044 '/etc/gnupg/extra-certs'
2045 This directory may contain extra certificates which are preloaded
2046 into the internal cache on startup. Applications using dirmngr
2047 (e.g. gpgsm) can request cached certificates to complete a trust
2048 chain. This is convenient in cases you have a couple intermediate
2049 CA certificates or certificates usually used to sign OCSP
2050 responses. These certificates are first tried before going out to
2051 the net to look for them. These certificates must also be DER
2052 encoded and suffixed with '.crt' or '.der'.
2055 This directory is used to store cached CRLs. The 'crls.d' part
2056 will be created by dirmngr if it does not exists but you need to
2057 make sure that the upper directory exists.
2059 Several options control the use of trusted certificates for TLS and
2060 CRLs. Here is an Overview on the use and origin of those Root CA
2065 These System root certificates are used by: FIXME
2067 The origin of the system provided certificates depends on the
2068 platform. On Windows all certificates from the Windows System
2069 Stores 'ROOT' and 'CA' are used.
2071 On other platforms the certificates are read from the first file
2072 found form this list: '/etc/ssl/ca-bundle.pem',
2073 '/etc/ssl/certs/ca-certificates.crt', '/etc/pki/tls/cert.pem',
2074 '/usr/local/share/certs/ca-root-nss.crt', '/etc/ssl/cert.pem'.
2078 The GnuPG specific certificates stored in the directory
2079 '/etc/gnupg/trusted-certs' are only used to validate CRLs.
2083 For accessing the OpenPGP keyservers the only certificates used are
2084 those set with the configuration option 'hkp-cacert'.
2086 OpenPGP keyserver pool
2088 This is usually only one certificate read from the file
2089 '/usr/local/share/gnupg/gnupg/sks-keyservers.netCA.pem'. If this
2090 certificate exists it is used to access the special keyservers
2091 'hkps.pool.sks-keyservers.net' (or 'hkps://keys.gnupg.net').
2093 Please note that 'gpgsm' accepts Root CA certificates for its own
2094 purposes only if they are listed in its file 'trustlist.txt'. 'dirmngr'
2095 does not make use of this list - except FIXME.
2097 To be able to see diagnostics it is often useful to put at least the
2098 following lines into the configuration file '~/gnupg/dirmngr.conf':
2100 log-file ~/dirmngr.log
2103 You may want to check the log file to see whether all desired root CA
2104 certificates are correctly loaded.
2106 To be able to perform OCSP requests you probably want to add the
2111 To make sure that new options are read or that after the installation
2112 of a new GnuPG versions the right dirmngr version is running, you should
2113 kill an existing dirmngr so that a new instance is started as needed by
2114 the otehr components:
2116 gpgconf --kill dirmngr
2118 Direct interfaction with the dirmngr is possible by using the command
2120 gpg-connect-agent --dirmngr
2122 Enter 'HELP' at the prompt to see a list of commands and enter 'HELP'
2123 followed by a command name to get help on that command.
2126 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Signals, Next: Dirmngr Examples, Prev: Dirmngr Configuration, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
2131 A running 'dirmngr' may be controlled by signals, i.e. using the 'kill'
2132 command to send a signal to the process.
2134 Here is a list of supported signals:
2137 This signal flushes all internally cached CRLs as well as any
2138 cached certificates. Then the certificate cache is reinitialized
2139 as on startup. Options are re-read from the configuration file.
2140 Instead of sending this signal it is better to use
2141 gpgconf --reload dirmngr
2144 Shuts down the process but waits until all current requests are
2145 fulfilled. If the process has received 3 of these signals and
2146 requests are still pending, a shutdown is forced. You may also use
2147 gpgconf --kill dirmngr
2148 instead of this signal
2151 Shuts down the process immediately.
2154 This prints some caching statistics to the log file.
2157 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Examples, Next: Dirmngr Protocol, Prev: Dirmngr Signals, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
2162 Here is an example on how to show dirmngr's internal table of OpenPGP
2163 keyserver addresses. The output is intended for debugging purposes and
2164 not part of a defined API.
2166 gpg-connect-agent --dirmngr 'keyserver --hosttable' /bye
2168 To inhibit the use of a particular host you have noticed in one of
2169 the keyserver pools, you may use
2171 gpg-connect-agent --dirmngr 'keyserver --dead pgpkeys.bnd.de' /bye
2173 The description of the 'keyserver' command can be printed using
2175 gpg-connect-agent --dirmngr 'help keyserver' /bye
2178 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr Protocol, Prev: Dirmngr Examples, Up: Invoking DIRMNGR
2180 3.6 Dirmngr's Assuan Protocol
2181 =============================
2183 Assuan is the IPC protocol used to access dirmngr. This is a
2184 description of the commands implemented by dirmngr.
2188 * Dirmngr LOOKUP:: Look up a certificate via LDAP
2189 * Dirmngr ISVALID:: Validate a certificate using a CRL or OCSP.
2190 * Dirmngr CHECKCRL:: Validate a certificate using a CRL.
2191 * Dirmngr CHECKOCSP:: Validate a certificate using OCSP.
2192 * Dirmngr CACHECERT:: Put a certificate into the internal cache.
2193 * Dirmngr VALIDATE:: Validate a certificate for debugging.
2196 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr LOOKUP, Next: Dirmngr ISVALID, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2198 3.6.1 Return the certificate(s) found
2199 -------------------------------------
2201 Lookup certificate. To allow multiple patterns (which are ORed) quoting
2202 is required: Spaces are to be translated into "+" or into "%20";
2203 obviously this requires that the usual escape quoting rules are applied.
2204 The server responds with:
2206 S: D <DER encoded certificate>
2208 S: D <second DER encoded certificate>
2212 In this example 2 certificates are returned. The server may return
2213 any number of certificates; OK will also be returned when no
2214 certificates were found. The dirmngr might return a status line
2218 To indicate that the output was truncated to N items due to a
2219 limitation of the server or by an arbitrary set limit.
2221 The option '--url' may be used if instead of a search pattern a
2222 complete URL to the certificate is known:
2224 C: LOOKUP --url CN%3DWerner%20Koch,o%3DIntevation%20GmbH,c%3DDE?userCertificate
2226 If the option '--cache-only' is given, no external lookup is done so
2227 that only certificates from the cache are returned.
2229 With the option '--single', the first and only the first match will
2230 be returned. Unless option '--cache-only' is also used, no local lookup
2231 will be done in this case.
2234 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr ISVALID, Next: Dirmngr CHECKCRL, Prev: Dirmngr LOOKUP, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2236 3.6.2 Validate a certificate using a CRL or OCSP
2237 ------------------------------------------------
2239 ISVALID [--only-ocsp] [--force-default-responder] CERTID|CERTFPR
2241 Check whether the certificate described by the CERTID has been
2242 revoked. Due to caching, the Dirmngr is able to answer immediately in
2245 The CERTID is a hex encoded string consisting of two parts, delimited
2246 by a single dot. The first part is the SHA-1 hash of the issuer name
2247 and the second part the serial number.
2249 Alternatively the certificate's SHA-1 fingerprint CERTFPR may be
2250 given in which case an OCSP request is done before consulting the CRL.
2251 If the option '--only-ocsp' is given, no fallback to a CRL check will be
2252 used. If the option '--force-default-responder' is given, only the
2253 default OCSP responder will be used and any other methods of obtaining
2254 an OCSP responder URL won't be used.
2256 Common return values are:
2258 'GPG_ERR_NO_ERROR (0)'
2259 This is the positive answer: The certificate is not revoked and we
2260 have an up-to-date revocation list for that certificate. If OCSP
2261 was used the responder confirmed that the certificate has not been
2264 'GPG_ERR_CERT_REVOKED'
2265 This is the negative answer: The certificate has been revoked.
2266 Either it is in a CRL and that list is up to date or an OCSP
2267 responder informed us that it has been revoked.
2269 'GPG_ERR_NO_CRL_KNOWN'
2270 No CRL is known for this certificate or the CRL is not valid or out
2274 The OCSP responder returned an "unknown" status. This means that
2275 it is not aware of the certificate's status.
2277 'GPG_ERR_NOT_SUPPORTED'
2278 This is commonly seen if OCSP support has not been enabled in the
2281 If DirMngr has not enough information about the given certificate
2282 (which is the case for not yet cached certificates), it will inquire the
2285 S: INQUIRE SENDCERT <CertID>
2286 C: D <DER encoded certificate>
2289 A client should be aware that DirMngr may ask for more than one
2292 If Dirmngr has a certificate but the signature of the certificate
2293 could not been validated because the root certificate is not known to
2294 dirmngr as trusted, it may ask back to see whether the client trusts
2295 this the root certificate:
2297 S: INQUIRE ISTRUSTED <CertHexfpr>
2301 Only this answer will let Dirmngr consider the certificate as valid.
2304 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr CHECKCRL, Next: Dirmngr CHECKOCSP, Prev: Dirmngr ISVALID, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2306 3.6.3 Validate a certificate using a CRL
2307 ----------------------------------------
2309 Check whether the certificate with FINGERPRINT (SHA-1 hash of the entire
2310 X.509 certificate blob) is valid or not by consulting the CRL
2311 responsible for this certificate. If the fingerprint has not been given
2312 or the certificate is not known, the function inquires the certificate
2315 S: INQUIRE TARGETCERT
2316 C: D <DER encoded certificate>
2319 Thus the caller is expected to return the certificate for the request
2320 (which should match FINGERPRINT) as a binary blob. Processing then
2321 takes place without further interaction; in particular dirmngr tries to
2322 locate other required certificate by its own mechanism which includes a
2323 local certificate store as well as a list of trusted root certificates.
2325 The return code is 0 for success; i.e. the certificate has not been
2326 revoked or one of the usual error codes from libgpg-error.
2329 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr CHECKOCSP, Next: Dirmngr CACHECERT, Prev: Dirmngr CHECKCRL, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2331 3.6.4 Validate a certificate using OCSP
2332 ---------------------------------------
2334 CHECKOCSP [--force-default-responder] [FINGERPRINT]
2336 Check whether the certificate with FINGERPRINT (the SHA-1 hash of the
2337 entire X.509 certificate blob) is valid by consulting the appropriate
2338 OCSP responder. If the fingerprint has not been given or the
2339 certificate is not known by Dirmngr, the function inquires the
2342 S: INQUIRE TARGETCERT
2343 C: D <DER encoded certificate>
2346 Thus the caller is expected to return the certificate for the request
2347 (which should match FINGERPRINT) as a binary blob. Processing then
2348 takes place without further interaction; in particular dirmngr tries to
2349 locate other required certificates by its own mechanism which includes a
2350 local certificate store as well as a list of trusted root certificates.
2352 If the option '--force-default-responder' is given, only the default
2353 OCSP responder is used. This option is the per-command variant of the
2354 global option '--ignore-ocsp-service-url'.
2356 The return code is 0 for success; i.e. the certificate has not been
2357 revoked or one of the usual error codes from libgpg-error.
2360 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr CACHECERT, Next: Dirmngr VALIDATE, Prev: Dirmngr CHECKOCSP, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2362 3.6.5 Put a certificate into the internal cache
2363 -----------------------------------------------
2365 Put a certificate into the internal cache. This command might be useful
2366 if a client knows in advance certificates required for a test and wants
2367 to make sure they get added to the internal cache. It is also helpful
2368 for debugging. To get the actual certificate, this command immediately
2371 S: INQUIRE TARGETCERT
2372 C: D <DER encoded certificate>
2375 Thus the caller is expected to return the certificate for the request
2378 The return code is 0 for success; i.e. the certificate has not been
2379 successfully cached or one of the usual error codes from libgpg-error.
2382 File: gnupg.info, Node: Dirmngr VALIDATE, Prev: Dirmngr CACHECERT, Up: Dirmngr Protocol
2384 3.6.6 Validate a certificate for debugging
2385 ------------------------------------------
2387 Validate a certificate using the certificate validation function used
2388 internally by dirmngr. This command is only useful for debugging. To
2389 get the actual certificate, this command immediately inquires it using
2391 S: INQUIRE TARGETCERT
2392 C: D <DER encoded certificate>
2395 Thus the caller is expected to return the certificate for the request
2399 File: gnupg.info, Node: Invoking GPG, Next: Invoking GPGSM, Prev: Invoking DIRMNGR, Up: Top
2404 'gpg' is the OpenPGP part of the GNU Privacy Guard (GnuPG). It is a tool
2405 to provide digital encryption and signing services using the OpenPGP
2406 standard. 'gpg' features complete key management and all the bells and
2407 whistles you would expect from a full OpenPGP implementation.
2409 There are two main versions of GnuPG: GnuPG 1.x and GnuPG 2.x. GnuPG
2410 2.x supports modern encryption algorithms and thus should be preferred
2411 over GnuPG 1.x. You only need to use GnuPG 1.x if your platform doesn't
2412 support GnuPG 2.x, or you need support for some features that GnuPG 2.x
2413 has deprecated, e.g., decrypting data created with PGP-2 keys.
2415 If you are looking for version 1 of GnuPG, you may find that version
2416 installed under the name 'gpg1'.
2418 *Note Option Index::, for an index to 'gpg''s commands and options.
2422 * GPG Commands:: List of all commands.
2423 * GPG Options:: List of all options.
2424 * GPG Configuration:: Configuration files.
2425 * GPG Examples:: Some usage examples.
2427 Developer information:
2428 * Unattended Usage of GPG:: Using 'gpg' from other programs.
2431 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Commands, Next: GPG Options, Up: Invoking GPG
2436 Commands are not distinguished from options except for the fact that
2437 only one command is allowed. Generally speaking, irrelevant options are
2438 silently ignored, and may not be checked for correctness.
2440 'gpg' may be run with no commands. In this case it will print a
2441 warning perform a reasonable action depending on the type of file it is
2442 given as input (an encrypted message is decrypted, a signature is
2443 verified, a file containing keys is listed, etc.).
2445 If you run into any problems, please add the option '--verbose' to
2446 the invocation to see more diagnostics.
2450 * General GPG Commands:: Commands not specific to the functionality.
2451 * Operational GPG Commands:: Commands to select the type of operation.
2452 * OpenPGP Key Management:: How to manage your keys.
2455 File: gnupg.info, Node: General GPG Commands, Next: Operational GPG Commands, Up: GPG Commands
2457 4.1.1 Commands not specific to the function
2458 -------------------------------------------
2461 Print the program version and licensing information. Note that you
2462 cannot abbreviate this command.
2466 Print a usage message summarizing the most useful command-line
2467 options. Note that you cannot arbitrarily abbreviate this command
2468 (though you can use its short form '-h').
2471 Print warranty information.
2474 Print a list of all available options and commands. Note that you
2475 cannot abbreviate this command.
2478 File: gnupg.info, Node: Operational GPG Commands, Next: OpenPGP Key Management, Prev: General GPG Commands, Up: GPG Commands
2480 4.1.2 Commands to select the type of operation
2481 ----------------------------------------------
2485 Sign a message. This command may be combined with '--encrypt' (to
2486 sign and encrypt a message), '--symmetric' (to sign and
2487 symmetrically encrypt a message), or both '--encrypt' and
2488 '--symmetric' (to sign and encrypt a message that can be decrypted
2489 using a secret key or a passphrase). The signing key is chosen by
2490 default or can be set explicitly using the '--local-user' and
2491 '--default-key' options.
2495 Make a cleartext signature. The content in a cleartext signature
2496 is readable without any special software. OpenPGP software is only
2497 needed to verify the signature. cleartext signatures may modify
2498 end-of-line whitespace for platform independence and are not
2499 intended to be reversible. The signing key is chosen by default or
2500 can be set explicitly using the '--local-user' and '--default-key'
2505 Make a detached signature.
2509 Encrypt data to one or more public keys. This command may be
2510 combined with '--sign' (to sign and encrypt a message),
2511 '--symmetric' (to encrypt a message that can be decrypted using a
2512 secret key or a passphrase), or '--sign' and '--symmetric' together
2513 (for a signed message that can be decrypted using a secret key or a
2514 passphrase). '--recipient' and related options specify which
2515 public keys to use for encryption.
2519 Encrypt with a symmetric cipher using a passphrase. The default
2520 symmetric cipher used is AES-128, but may be chosen with the
2521 '--cipher-algo' option. This command may be combined with '--sign'
2522 (for a signed and symmetrically encrypted message), '--encrypt'
2523 (for a message that may be decrypted via a secret key or a
2524 passphrase), or '--sign' and '--encrypt' together (for a signed
2525 message that may be decrypted via a secret key or a passphrase).
2526 'gpg' caches the passphrase used for symmetric encryption so that a
2527 decrypt operation may not require that the user needs to enter the
2528 passphrase. The option '--no-symkey-cache' can be used to disable
2532 Store only (make a simple literal data packet).
2536 Decrypt the file given on the command line (or STDIN if no file is
2537 specified) and write it to STDOUT (or the file specified with
2538 '--output'). If the decrypted file is signed, the signature is
2539 also verified. This command differs from the default operation, as
2540 it never writes to the filename which is included in the file and
2541 it rejects files that don't begin with an encrypted message.
2544 Assume that the first argument is a signed file and verify it
2545 without generating any output. With no arguments, the signature
2546 packet is read from STDIN. If only one argument is given, the
2547 specified file is expected to include a complete signature.
2549 With more than one argument, the first argument should specify a
2550 file with a detached signature and the remaining files should
2551 contain the signed data. To read the signed data from STDIN, use
2552 '-' as the second filename. For security reasons, a detached
2553 signature will not read the signed material from STDIN if not
2554 explicitly specified.
2556 Note: If the option '--batch' is not used, 'gpg' may assume that a
2557 single argument is a file with a detached signature, and it will
2558 try to find a matching data file by stripping certain suffixes.
2559 Using this historical feature to verify a detached signature is
2560 strongly discouraged; you should always specify the data file
2563 Note: When verifying a cleartext signature, 'gpg' verifies only
2564 what makes up the cleartext signed data and not any extra data
2565 outside of the cleartext signature or the header lines directly
2566 following the dash marker line. The option '--output' may be used
2567 to write out the actual signed data, but there are other pitfalls
2568 with this format as well. It is suggested to avoid cleartext
2569 signatures in favor of detached signatures.
2571 Note: Sometimes the use of the 'gpgv' tool is easier than using the
2572 full-fledged 'gpg' with this option. 'gpgv' is designed to compare
2573 signed data against a list of trusted keys and returns with success
2574 only for a good signature. It has its own manual page.
2577 This modifies certain other commands to accept multiple files for
2578 processing on the command line or read from STDIN with each
2579 filename on a separate line. This allows for many files to be
2580 processed at once. '--multifile' may currently be used along with
2581 '--verify', '--encrypt', and '--decrypt'. Note that '--multifile
2582 --verify' may not be used with detached signatures.
2585 Identical to '--multifile --verify'.
2588 Identical to '--multifile --encrypt'.
2591 Identical to '--multifile --decrypt'.
2595 '--list-public-keys'
2596 List the specified keys. If no keys are specified, then all keys
2597 from the configured public keyrings are listed.
2599 Never use the output of this command in scripts or other programs.
2600 The output is intended only for humans and its format is likely to
2601 change. The '--with-colons' option emits the output in a stable,
2602 machine-parseable format, which is intended for use by scripts and
2605 '--list-secret-keys'
2607 List the specified secret keys. If no keys are specified, then all
2608 known secret keys are listed. A '#' after the initial tags 'sec'
2609 or 'ssb' means that the secret key or subkey is currently not
2610 usable. We also say that this key has been taken offline (for
2611 example, a primary key can be taken offline by exporting the key
2612 using the command '--export-secret-subkeys'). A '>' after these
2613 tags indicate that the key is stored on a smartcard. See also
2616 '--check-signatures'
2618 Same as '--list-keys', but the key signatures are verified and
2619 listed too. Note that for performance reasons the revocation
2620 status of a signing key is not shown. This command has the same
2621 effect as using '--list-keys' with '--with-sig-check'.
2623 The status of the verification is indicated by a flag directly
2624 following the "sig" tag (and thus before the flags described below.
2625 A "!" indicates that the signature has been successfully verified,
2626 a "-" denotes a bad signature and a "%" is used if an error
2627 occurred while checking the signature (e.g. a non supported
2628 algorithm). Signatures where the public key is not available are
2629 not listed; to see their keyids the command '--list-sigs' can be
2632 For each signature listed, there are several flags in between the
2633 signature status flag and keyid. These flags give additional
2634 information about each key signature. From left to right, they are
2635 the numbers 1-3 for certificate check level (see
2636 '--ask-cert-level'), "L" for a local or non-exportable signature
2637 (see '--lsign-key'), "R" for a nonRevocable signature (see the
2638 '--edit-key' command "nrsign"), "P" for a signature that contains a
2639 policy URL (see '--cert-policy-url'), "N" for a signature that
2640 contains a notation (see '--cert-notation'), "X" for an eXpired
2641 signature (see '--ask-cert-expire'), and the numbers 1-9 or "T" for
2642 10 and above to indicate trust signature levels (see the
2643 '--edit-key' command "tsign").
2646 '--locate-external-keys'
2647 Locate the keys given as arguments. This command basically uses
2648 the same algorithm as used when locating keys for encryption and
2649 may thus be used to see what keys 'gpg' might use. In particular
2650 external methods as defined by '--auto-key-locate' are used to
2651 locate a key if the arguments comain valid mail addresses. Only
2652 public keys are listed.
2654 The variant '--locate-external-keys' does not consider a locally
2655 existing key and can thus be used to force the refresh of a key via
2656 the defined external methods. If a fingerprint is given and and
2657 the methods defined by -auto-key-locate define LDAP servers, the
2658 key is fetched from these resources; defined non-LDAP keyservers
2662 This commands takes OpenPGP keys as input and prints information
2663 about them in the same way the command '--list-keys' does for
2664 locally stored key. In addition the list options
2665 'show-unusable-uids', 'show-unusable-subkeys', 'show-notations' and
2666 'show-policy-urls' are also enabled. As usual for automated
2667 processing, this command should be combined with the option
2671 List all keys (or the specified ones) along with their
2672 fingerprints. This is the same output as '--list-keys' but with
2673 the additional output of a line with the fingerprint. May also be
2674 combined with '--check-signatures'. If this command is given
2675 twice, the fingerprints of all secondary keys are listed too. This
2676 command also forces pretty printing of fingerprints if the keyid
2677 format has been set to "none".
2680 List only the sequence of packets. This command is only useful for
2681 debugging. When used with option '--verbose' the actual MPI values
2682 are dumped and not only their lengths. Note that the output of
2683 this command may change with new releases.
2687 Present a menu to work with a smartcard. The subcommand "help"
2688 provides an overview on available commands. For a detailed
2689 description, please see the Card HOWTO at
2690 https://gnupg.org/documentation/howtos.html#GnuPG-cardHOWTO .
2693 Show the content of the smart card.
2696 Present a menu to allow changing the PIN of a smartcard. This
2697 functionality is also available as the subcommand "passwd" with the
2698 '--edit-card' command.
2700 '--delete-keys NAME'
2701 Remove key from the public keyring. In batch mode either '--yes'
2702 is required or the key must be specified by fingerprint. This is a
2703 safeguard against accidental deletion of multiple keys. If the
2704 exclamation mark syntax is used with the fingerprint of a subkey
2705 only that subkey is deleted; if the exclamation mark is used with
2706 the fingerprint of the primary key the entire public key is
2709 '--delete-secret-keys NAME'
2710 Remove key from the secret keyring. In batch mode the key must be
2711 specified by fingerprint. The option '--yes' can be used to advise
2712 gpg-agent not to request a confirmation. This extra pre-caution is
2713 done because 'gpg' can't be sure that the secret key (as controlled
2714 by gpg-agent) is only used for the given OpenPGP public key. If
2715 the exclamation mark syntax is used with the fingerprint of a
2716 subkey only the secret part of that subkey is deleted; if the
2717 exclamation mark is used with the fingerprint of the primary key
2718 only the secret part of the primary key is deleted.
2720 '--delete-secret-and-public-key NAME'
2721 Same as '--delete-key', but if a secret key exists, it will be
2722 removed first. In batch mode the key must be specified by
2723 fingerprint. The option '--yes' can be used to advise gpg-agent
2724 not to request a confirmation.
2727 Either export all keys from all keyrings (default keyring and those
2728 registered via option '--keyring'), or if at least one name is
2729 given, those of the given name. The exported keys are written to
2730 STDOUT or to the file given with option '--output'. Use together
2731 with '--armor' to mail those keys.
2733 '--send-keys KEYIDS'
2734 Similar to '--export' but sends the keys to a keyserver.
2735 Fingerprints may be used instead of key IDs. Don't send your
2736 complete keyring to a keyserver -- select only those keys which are
2737 new or changed by you. If no KEYIDS are given, 'gpg' does nothing.
2739 Take care: Keyservers are by design write only systems and thus it
2740 is not possible to ever delete keys once they have been send to a
2743 '--export-secret-keys'
2744 '--export-secret-subkeys'
2745 Same as '--export', but exports the secret keys instead. The
2746 exported keys are written to STDOUT or to the file given with
2747 option '--output'. This command is often used along with the
2748 option '--armor' to allow for easy printing of the key for paper
2749 backup; however the external tool 'paperkey' does a better job of
2750 creating backups on paper. Note that exporting a secret key can be
2751 a security risk if the exported keys are sent over an insecure
2754 The second form of the command has the special property to render
2755 the secret part of the primary key useless; this is a GNU extension
2756 to OpenPGP and other implementations can not be expected to
2757 successfully import such a key. Its intended use is in generating
2758 a full key with an additional signing subkey on a dedicated
2759 machine. This command then exports the key without the primary key
2760 to the main machine.
2762 GnuPG may ask you to enter the passphrase for the key. This is
2763 required, because the internal protection method of the secret key
2764 is different from the one specified by the OpenPGP protocol.
2767 This command is used to export a key in the OpenSSH public key
2768 format. It requires the specification of one key by the usual
2769 means and exports the latest valid subkey which has an
2770 authentication capability to STDOUT or to the file given with
2771 option '--output'. That output can directly be added to ssh's
2772 'authorized_key' file.
2774 By specifying the key to export using a key ID or a fingerprint
2775 suffixed with an exclamation mark (!), a specific subkey or the
2776 primary key can be exported. This does not even require that the
2777 key has the authentication capability flag set.
2781 Import/merge keys. This adds the given keys to the keyring. The
2782 fast version is currently just a synonym.
2784 There are a few other options which control how this command works.
2785 Most notable here is the '--import-options merge-only' option which
2786 does not insert new keys but does only the merging of new
2787 signatures, user-IDs and subkeys.
2789 '--receive-keys KEYIDS'
2790 '--recv-keys KEYIDS'
2791 Import the keys with the given KEYIDS from a keyserver.
2794 Request updates from a keyserver for keys that already exist on the
2795 local keyring. This is useful for updating a key with the latest
2796 signatures, user IDs, etc. Calling this with no arguments will
2797 refresh the entire keyring.
2799 '--search-keys NAMES'
2800 Search the keyserver for the given NAMES. Multiple names given
2801 here will be joined together to create the search string for the
2802 keyserver. Note that keyservers search for NAMES in a different
2803 and simpler way than gpg does. The best choice is to use a mail
2804 address. Due to data privacy reasons keyservers may even not even
2805 allow searching by user id or mail address and thus may only return
2806 results when being used with the '--recv-key' command to search by
2807 key fingerprint or keyid.
2810 Retrieve keys located at the specified URIS. Note that different
2811 installations of GnuPG may support different protocols (HTTP, FTP,
2812 LDAP, etc.). When using HTTPS the system provided root
2813 certificates are used by this command.
2816 Do trust database maintenance. This command iterates over all keys
2817 and builds the Web of Trust. This is an interactive command
2818 because it may have to ask for the "ownertrust" values for keys.
2819 The user has to give an estimation of how far she trusts the owner
2820 of the displayed key to correctly certify (sign) other keys. GnuPG
2821 only asks for the ownertrust value if it has not yet been assigned
2822 to a key. Using the '--edit-key' menu, the assigned value can be
2823 changed at any time.
2826 Do trust database maintenance without user interaction. From time
2827 to time the trust database must be updated so that expired keys or
2828 signatures and the resulting changes in the Web of Trust can be
2829 tracked. Normally, GnuPG will calculate when this is required and
2830 do it automatically unless '--no-auto-check-trustdb' is set. This
2831 command can be used to force a trust database check at any time.
2832 The processing is identical to that of '--update-trustdb' but it
2833 skips keys with a not yet defined "ownertrust".
2835 For use with cron jobs, this command can be used together with
2836 '--batch' in which case the trust database check is done only if a
2837 check is needed. To force a run even in batch mode add the option
2840 '--export-ownertrust'
2841 Send the ownertrust values to STDOUT. This is useful for backup
2842 purposes as these values are the only ones which can't be
2843 re-created from a corrupted trustdb. Example:
2844 gpg --export-ownertrust > otrust.txt
2846 '--import-ownertrust'
2847 Update the trustdb with the ownertrust values stored in 'files' (or
2848 STDIN if not given); existing values will be overwritten. In case
2849 of a severely damaged trustdb and if you have a recent backup of
2850 the ownertrust values (e.g. in the file 'otrust.txt'), you may
2851 re-create the trustdb using these commands:
2854 gpg --import-ownertrust < otrust.txt
2856 '--rebuild-keydb-caches'
2857 When updating from version 1.0.6 to 1.0.7 this command should be
2858 used to create signature caches in the keyring. It might be handy
2859 in other situations too.
2863 Print message digest of algorithm ALGO for all given files or
2864 STDIN. With the second form (or a deprecated "*" for ALGO) digests
2865 for all available algorithms are printed.
2867 '--gen-random 0|1|2 COUNT'
2868 Emit COUNT random bytes of the given quality level 0, 1 or 2. If
2869 COUNT is not given or zero, an endless sequence of random bytes
2870 will be emitted. If used with '--armor' the output will be base64
2871 encoded. PLEASE, don't use this command unless you know what you
2872 are doing; it may remove precious entropy from the system!
2874 '--gen-prime MODE BITS'
2875 Use the source, Luke :-). The output format is subject to change
2880 Pack or unpack an arbitrary input into/from an OpenPGP ASCII armor.
2881 This is a GnuPG extension to OpenPGP and in general not very
2882 useful. The '--dearmor' command can also be used to dearmor PEM
2886 This command is similar to '--decrypt' with the change that the
2887 output is not the usual plaintext but the original message with the
2888 decryption layer removed. Thus the output will be an OpenPGP data
2889 structure which often means a signed OpenPGP message. Note that
2890 this command may or may not remove a compression layer which is
2891 often found beneath the encryption layer.
2893 '--tofu-policy {auto|good|unknown|bad|ask} KEYS'
2894 Set the TOFU policy for all the bindings associated with the
2895 specified KEYS. For more information about the meaning of the
2896 policies, *note trust-model-tofu::. The KEYS may be specified
2897 either by their fingerprint (preferred) or their keyid.
2900 File: gnupg.info, Node: OpenPGP Key Management, Prev: Operational GPG Commands, Up: GPG Commands
2902 4.1.3 How to manage your keys
2903 -----------------------------
2905 This section explains the main commands for key management.
2907 '--quick-generate-key USER-ID [ALGO [USAGE [EXPIRE]]]'
2909 This is a simple command to generate a standard key with one user
2910 id. In contrast to '--generate-key' the key is generated directly
2911 without the need to answer a bunch of prompts. Unless the option
2912 '--yes' is given, the key creation will be canceled if the given
2913 user id already exists in the keyring.
2915 If invoked directly on the console without any special options an
2916 answer to a "Continue?" style confirmation prompt is required. In
2917 case the user id already exists in the keyring a second prompt to
2918 force the creation of the key will show up.
2920 If ALGO or USAGE are given, only the primary key is created and no
2921 prompts are shown. To specify an expiration date but still create
2922 a primary and subkey use "default" or "future-default" for ALGO and
2923 "default" for USAGE. For a description of these optional arguments
2924 see the command '--quick-add-key'. The USAGE accepts also the
2925 value "cert" which can be used to create a certification only
2926 primary key; the default is to a create certification and signing
2929 The EXPIRE argument can be used to specify an expiration date for
2930 the key. Several formats are supported; commonly the ISO formats
2931 "YYYY-MM-DD" or "YYYYMMDDThhmmss" are used. To make the key expire
2932 in N seconds, N days, N weeks, N months, or N years use
2933 "seconds=N", "Nd", "Nw", "Nm", or "Ny" respectively. Not
2934 specifying a value, or using "-" results in a key expiring in a
2935 reasonable default interval. The values "never", "none" can be
2936 used for no expiration date.
2938 If this command is used with '--batch', '--pinentry-mode' has been
2939 set to 'loopback', and one of the passphrase options
2940 ('--passphrase', '--passphrase-fd', or '--passphrase-file') is
2941 used, the supplied passphrase is used for the new key and the agent
2942 does not ask for it. To create a key without any protection
2943 '--passphrase ''' may be used.
2945 To create an OpenPGP key from the keys available on the currently
2946 inserted smartcard, the special string "card" can be used for ALGO.
2947 If the card features an encryption and a signing key, gpg will
2948 figure them out and creates an OpenPGP key consisting of the usual
2949 primary key and one subkey. This works only with certain
2950 smartcards. Note that the interactive '--full-gen-key' command
2951 allows to do the same but with greater flexibility in the selection
2952 of the smartcard keys.
2954 Note that it is possible to create a primary key and a subkey using
2955 non-default algorithms by using "default" and changing the default
2956 parameters using the option '--default-new-key-algo'.
2958 '--quick-set-expire FPR EXPIRE [*|SUBFPRS]'
2959 With two arguments given, directly set the expiration time of the
2960 primary key identified by FPR to EXPIRE. To remove the expiration
2961 time '0' can be used. With three arguments and the third given as
2962 an asterisk, the expiration time of all non-revoked and not yet
2963 expired subkeys are set to EXPIRE. With more than two arguments
2964 and a list of fingerprints given for SUBFPRS, all non-revoked
2965 subkeys matching these fingerprints are set to EXPIRE.
2967 '--quick-add-key FPR [ALGO [USAGE [EXPIRE]]]'
2968 Directly add a subkey to the key identified by the fingerprint FPR.
2969 Without the optional arguments an encryption subkey is added. If
2970 any of the arguments are given a more specific subkey is added.
2972 ALGO may be any of the supported algorithms or curve names given in
2973 the format as used by key listings. To use the default algorithm
2974 the string "default" or "-" can be used. Supported algorithms are
2975 "rsa", "dsa", "elg", "ed25519", "cv25519", and other ECC curves.
2976 For example the string "rsa" adds an RSA key with the default key
2977 length; a string "rsa4096" requests that the key length is 4096
2978 bits. The string "future-default" is an alias for the algorithm
2979 which will likely be used as default algorithm in future versions
2980 of gpg. To list the supported ECC curves the command 'gpg
2981 --with-colons --list-config curve' can be used.
2983 Depending on the given ALGO the subkey may either be an encryption
2984 subkey or a signing subkey. If an algorithm is capable of signing
2985 and encryption and such a subkey is desired, a USAGE string must be
2986 given. This string is either "default" or "-" to keep the default
2987 or a comma delimited list (or space delimited list) of keywords:
2988 "sign" for a signing subkey, "auth" for an authentication subkey,
2989 and "encr" for an encryption subkey ("encrypt" can be used as alias
2990 for "encr"). The valid combinations depend on the algorithm.
2992 The EXPIRE argument can be used to specify an expiration date for
2993 the key. Several formats are supported; commonly the ISO formats
2994 "YYYY-MM-DD" or "YYYYMMDDThhmmss" are used. To make the key expire
2995 in N seconds, N days, N weeks, N months, or N years use
2996 "seconds=N", "Nd", "Nw", "Nm", or "Ny" respectively. Not
2997 specifying a value, or using "-" results in a key expiring in a
2998 reasonable default interval. The values "never", "none" can be
2999 used for no expiration date.
3003 Generate a new key pair using the current default parameters. This
3004 is the standard command to create a new key. In addition to the
3005 key a revocation certificate is created and stored in the
3006 'openpgp-revocs.d' directory below the GnuPG home directory.
3008 '--full-generate-key'
3010 Generate a new key pair with dialogs for all options. This is an
3011 extended version of '--generate-key'.
3013 There is also a feature which allows you to create keys in batch
3014 mode. See the manual section "Unattended key generation" on how to
3017 '--generate-revocation NAME'
3019 Generate a revocation certificate for the complete key. To only
3020 revoke a subkey or a key signature, use the '--edit' command.
3022 This command merely creates the revocation certificate so that it
3023 can be used to revoke the key if that is ever needed. To actually
3024 revoke a key the created revocation certificate needs to be merged
3025 with the key to revoke. This is done by importing the revocation
3026 certificate using the '--import' command. Then the revoked key
3027 needs to be published, which is best done by sending the key to a
3028 keyserver (command '--send-key') and by exporting ('--export') it
3029 to a file which is then send to frequent communication partners.
3031 '--generate-designated-revocation NAME'
3032 '--desig-revoke NAME'
3033 Generate a designated revocation certificate for a key. This
3034 allows a user (with the permission of the keyholder) to revoke
3038 Present a menu which enables you to do most of the key management
3039 related tasks. It expects the specification of a key on the
3043 Toggle selection of user ID or photographic user ID with index
3044 N. Use '*' to select all and '0' to deselect all.
3047 Toggle selection of subkey with index N or key ID N. Use '*'
3048 to select all and '0' to deselect all.
3051 Make a signature on key of user 'name'. If the key is not yet
3052 signed by the default user (or the users given with '-u'), the
3053 program displays the information of the key again, together
3054 with its fingerprint and asks whether it should be signed.
3055 This question is repeated for all users specified with '-u'.
3058 Same as "sign" but the signature is marked as non-exportable
3059 and will therefore never be used by others. This may be used
3060 to make keys valid only in the local environment.
3063 Same as "sign" but the signature is marked as non-revocable
3064 and can therefore never be revoked.
3067 Make a trust signature. This is a signature that combines the
3068 notions of certification (like a regular signature), and trust
3069 (like the "trust" command). It is generally only useful in
3070 distinct communities or groups. For more information please
3071 read the sections "Trust Signature" and "Regular Expression"
3074 Note that "l" (for local / non-exportable), "nr" (for
3075 non-revocable, and "t" (for trust) may be freely mixed and prefixed
3076 to "sign" to create a signature of any type desired.
3078 If the option '--only-sign-text-ids' is specified, then any
3079 non-text based user ids (e.g., photo IDs) will not be selected for
3083 Delete a signature. Note that it is not possible to retract a
3084 signature, once it has been send to the public (i.e. to a
3085 keyserver). In that case you better use 'revsig'.
3088 Revoke a signature. For every signature which has been
3089 generated by one of the secret keys, GnuPG asks whether a
3090 revocation certificate should be generated.
3093 Check the signatures on all selected user IDs. With the extra
3094 option 'selfsig' only self-signatures are shown.
3097 Create an additional user ID.
3100 Create a photographic user ID. This will prompt for a JPEG
3101 file that will be embedded into the user ID. Note that a very
3102 large JPEG will make for a very large key. Also note that
3103 some programs will display your JPEG unchanged (GnuPG), and
3104 some programs will scale it to fit in a dialog box (PGP).
3107 Display the selected photographic user ID.
3110 Delete a user ID or photographic user ID. Note that it is not
3111 possible to retract a user id, once it has been send to the
3112 public (i.e. to a keyserver). In that case you better use
3116 Revoke a user ID or photographic user ID.
3119 Flag the current user id as the primary one, removes the
3120 primary user id flag from all other user ids and sets the
3121 timestamp of all affected self-signatures one second ahead.
3122 Note that setting a photo user ID as primary makes it primary
3123 over other photo user IDs, and setting a regular user ID as
3124 primary makes it primary over other regular user IDs.
3127 Set a preferred keyserver for the specified user ID(s). This
3128 allows other users to know where you prefer they get your key
3129 from. See '--keyserver-options honor-keyserver-url' for more
3130 on how this works. Setting a value of "none" removes an
3131 existing preferred keyserver.
3134 Set a name=value notation for the specified user ID(s). See
3135 '--cert-notation' for more on how this works. Setting a value
3136 of "none" removes all notations, setting a notation prefixed
3137 with a minus sign (-) removes that notation, and setting a
3138 notation name (without the =value) prefixed with a minus sign
3139 removes all notations with that name.
3142 List preferences from the selected user ID. This shows the
3143 actual preferences, without including any implied preferences.
3146 More verbose preferences listing for the selected user ID.
3147 This shows the preferences in effect by including the implied
3148 preferences of 3DES (cipher), SHA-1 (digest), and Uncompressed
3149 (compression) if they are not already included in the
3150 preference list. In addition, the preferred keyserver and
3151 signature notations (if any) are shown.
3154 Set the list of user ID preferences to STRING for all (or just
3155 the selected) user IDs. Calling setpref with no arguments
3156 sets the preference list to the default (either built-in or
3157 set via '--default-preference-list'), and calling setpref with
3158 "none" as the argument sets an empty preference list. Use
3159 'gpg --version' to get a list of available algorithms. Note
3160 that while you can change the preferences on an attribute user
3161 ID (aka "photo ID"), GnuPG does not select keys via attribute
3162 user IDs so these preferences will not be used by GnuPG.
3164 When setting preferences, you should list the algorithms in
3165 the order which you'd like to see them used by someone else
3166 when encrypting a message to your key. If you don't include
3167 3DES, it will be automatically added at the end. Note that
3168 there are many factors that go into choosing an algorithm (for
3169 example, your key may not be the only recipient), and so the
3170 remote OpenPGP application being used to send to you may or
3171 may not follow your exact chosen order for a given message.
3172 It will, however, only choose an algorithm that is present on
3173 the preference list of every recipient key. See also the
3174 INTEROPERABILITY WITH OTHER OPENPGP PROGRAMS section below.
3177 Add a subkey to this key.
3180 Generate a subkey on a card and add it to this key.
3183 Transfer the selected secret subkey (or the primary key if no
3184 subkey has been selected) to a smartcard. The secret key in
3185 the keyring will be replaced by a stub if the key could be
3186 stored successfully on the card and you use the save command
3187 later. Only certain key types may be transferred to the card.
3188 A sub menu allows you to select on what card to store the key.
3189 Note that it is not possible to get that key back from the
3190 card - if the card gets broken your secret key will be lost
3191 unless you have a backup somewhere.
3194 Restore the given FILE to a card. This command may be used to
3195 restore a backup key (as generated during card initialization)
3196 to a new card. In almost all cases this will be the
3197 encryption key. You should use this command only with the
3198 corresponding public key and make sure that the file given as
3199 argument is indeed the backup to restore. You should then
3200 select 2 to restore as encryption key. You will first be
3201 asked to enter the passphrase of the backup key and then for
3202 the Admin PIN of the card.
3205 Transfer the selected secret subkey (or the primary key if no
3206 subkey has been selected) to TPM form. The secret key in the
3207 keyring will be replaced by the TPM representation of that
3208 key, which can only be read by the particular TPM that created
3209 it (so the keyfile now becomes locked to the laptop containing
3210 the TPM). Only certain key types may be transferred to the TPM
3211 (all TPM 2.0 systems are mandated to have the rsa2048 and
3212 nistp256 algorithms but newer TPMs may have more). Note that
3213 the key itself is not transferred into the TPM, merely
3214 encrypted by the TPM in-place, so if the keyfile is deleted,
3215 the key will be lost. Once transferred to TPM representation,
3216 the key file can never be converted back to non-TPM form and
3217 the key will die when the TPM does, so you should first have a
3218 backup on secure offline storage of the actual secret key file
3219 before conversion. It is essential to use the physical system
3220 TPM that you have rw permission on the TPM resource manager
3221 device (/dev/tpmrm0). Usually this means you must be a member
3225 Remove a subkey (secondary key). Note that it is not possible
3226 to retract a subkey, once it has been send to the public (i.e.
3227 to a keyserver). In that case you better use 'revkey'. Also
3228 note that this only deletes the public part of a key.
3234 Change the key or subkey expiration time. If a subkey is
3235 selected, the expiration time of this subkey will be changed.
3236 With no selection, the key expiration of the primary key is
3240 Change the owner trust value for the key. This updates the
3241 trust-db immediately and no save is required.
3245 Disable or enable an entire key. A disabled key can not
3246 normally be used for encryption.
3249 Add a designated revoker to the key. This takes one optional
3250 argument: "sensitive". If a designated revoker is marked as
3251 sensitive, it will not be exported by default (see
3255 Change the passphrase of the secret key.
3258 This is dummy command which exists only for backward
3262 Compact (by removing all signatures except the selfsig) any
3263 user ID that is no longer usable (e.g. revoked, or expired).
3264 Then, remove any signatures that are not usable by the trust
3265 calculations. Specifically, this removes any signature that
3266 does not validate, any signature that is superseded by a later
3267 signature, revoked signatures, and signatures issued by keys
3268 that are not present on the keyring.
3271 Make the key as small as possible. This removes all
3272 signatures from each user ID except for the most recent
3276 Change the usage flags (capabilities) of the primary key or of
3277 subkeys. These usage flags (e.g. Certify, Sign,
3278 Authenticate, Encrypt) are set during key creation. Sometimes
3279 it is useful to have the opportunity to change them (for
3280 example to add Authenticate) after they have been created.
3281 Please take care when doing this; the allowed usage flags
3282 depend on the key algorithm.
3285 Add cross-certification signatures to signing subkeys that may
3286 not currently have them. Cross-certification signatures
3287 protect against a subtle attack against signing subkeys. See
3288 '--require-cross-certification'. All new keys generated have
3289 this signature by default, so this command is only useful to
3290 bring older keys up to date.
3293 Save all changes to the keyring and quit.
3296 Quit the program without updating the keyring.
3298 The listing shows you the key with its secondary keys and all user
3299 IDs. The primary user ID is indicated by a dot, and selected keys
3300 or user IDs are indicated by an asterisk. The trust value is
3301 displayed with the primary key: "trust" is the assigned owner trust
3302 and "validity" is the calculated validity of the key. Validity
3303 values are also displayed for all user IDs. For possible values of
3304 trust, *note trust-values::.
3307 Signs a public key with your secret key. This is a shortcut
3308 version of the subcommand "sign" from '--edit-key'.
3311 Signs a public key with your secret key but marks it as
3312 non-exportable. This is a shortcut version of the subcommand
3313 "lsign" from '--edit-key'.
3315 '--quick-sign-key FPR [NAMES]'
3316 '--quick-lsign-key FPR [NAMES]'
3317 Directly sign a key from the passphrase without any further user
3318 interaction. The FPR must be the verified primary fingerprint of a
3319 key in the local keyring. If no NAMES are given, all useful user
3320 ids are signed; with given [NAMES] only useful user ids matching
3321 one of these names are signed. By default, or if a name is
3322 prefixed with a '*', a case insensitive substring match is used.
3323 If a name is prefixed with a '=' a case sensitive exact match is
3326 The command '--quick-lsign-key' marks the signatures as
3327 non-exportable. If such a non-exportable signature already exists
3328 the '--quick-sign-key' turns it into a exportable signature. If
3329 you need to update an existing signature, for example to add or
3330 change notation data, you need to use the option
3333 This command uses reasonable defaults and thus does not provide the
3334 full flexibility of the "sign" subcommand from '--edit-key'. Its
3335 intended use is to help unattended key signing by utilizing a list
3336 of verified fingerprints.
3338 '--quick-add-uid USER-ID NEW-USER-ID'
3339 This command adds a new user id to an existing key. In contrast to
3340 the interactive sub-command 'adduid' of '--edit-key' the
3341 NEW-USER-ID is added verbatim with only leading and trailing white
3342 space removed, it is expected to be UTF-8 encoded, and no checks on
3343 its form are applied.
3345 '--quick-revoke-uid USER-ID USER-ID-TO-REVOKE'
3346 This command revokes a user ID on an existing key. It cannot be
3347 used to revoke the last user ID on key (some non-revoked user ID
3348 must remain), with revocation reason "User ID is no longer valid".
3349 If you want to specify a different revocation reason, or to supply
3350 supplementary revocation text, you should use the interactive
3351 sub-command 'revuid' of '--edit-key'.
3353 '--quick-revoke-sig FPR SIGNING-FPR [NAMES]'
3354 This command revokes the key signatures made by SIGNING-FPR from
3355 the key specified by the fingerprint FPR. With NAMES given only
3356 the signatures on user ids of the key matching any of the given
3357 names are affected (see '--quick-sign-key'). If a revocation
3358 already exists a notice is printed instead of creating a new
3359 revocation; no error is returned in this case. Note that key
3360 signature revocations may be superseded by a newer key signature
3361 and in turn again revoked.
3363 '--quick-set-primary-uid USER-ID PRIMARY-USER-ID'
3364 This command sets or updates the primary user ID flag on an
3365 existing key. USER-ID specifies the key and PRIMARY-USER-ID the
3366 user ID which shall be flagged as the primary user ID. The primary
3367 user ID flag is removed from all other user ids and the timestamp
3368 of all affected self-signatures is set one second ahead.
3370 '--change-passphrase USER-ID'
3372 Change the passphrase of the secret key belonging to the
3373 certificate specified as USER-ID. This is a shortcut for the
3374 sub-command 'passwd' of the '--edit-key' menu. When using together
3375 with the option '--dry-run' this will not actually change the
3376 passphrase but check that the current passphrase is correct.
3379 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Options, Next: GPG Configuration, Prev: GPG Commands, Up: Invoking GPG
3384 'gpg' features a bunch of options to control the exact behaviour and to
3385 change the default configuration.
3389 * GPG Configuration Options:: How to change the configuration.
3390 * GPG Key related Options:: Key related options.
3391 * GPG Input and Output:: Input and Output.
3392 * OpenPGP Options:: OpenPGP protocol specific options.
3393 * Compliance Options:: Compliance options.
3394 * GPG Esoteric Options:: Doing things one usually doesn't want to do.
3395 * Deprecated Options:: Deprecated options.
3397 Long options can be put in an options file (default
3398 "~/.gnupg/gpg.conf"). Short option names will not work - for example,
3399 "armor" is a valid option for the options file, while "a" is not. Do
3400 not write the 2 dashes, but simply the name of the option and any
3401 required arguments. Lines with a hash ('#') as the first
3402 non-white-space character are ignored. Commands may be put in this file
3403 too, but that is not generally useful as the command will execute
3404 automatically with every execution of gpg.
3406 Please remember that option parsing stops as soon as a non-option is
3407 encountered, you can explicitly stop parsing by using the special option
3411 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Configuration Options, Next: GPG Key related Options, Up: GPG Options
3413 4.2.1 How to change the configuration
3414 -------------------------------------
3416 These options are used to change the configuration and most of them are
3417 usually found in the option file.
3419 '--default-key NAME'
3420 Use NAME as the default key to sign with. If this option is not
3421 used, the default key is the first key found in the secret keyring.
3422 Note that '-u' or '--local-user' overrides this option. This
3423 option may be given multiple times. In this case, the last key for
3424 which a secret key is available is used. If there is no secret key
3425 available for any of the specified values, GnuPG will not emit an
3426 error message but continue as if this option wasn't given.
3428 '--default-recipient NAME'
3429 Use NAME as default recipient if option '--recipient' is not used
3430 and don't ask if this is a valid one. NAME must be non-empty.
3432 '--default-recipient-self'
3433 Use the default key as default recipient if option '--recipient' is
3434 not used and don't ask if this is a valid one. The default key is
3435 the first one from the secret keyring or the one set with
3438 '--no-default-recipient'
3439 Reset '--default-recipient' and '--default-recipient-self'. Should
3440 not be used in an option file.
3443 Give more information during processing. If used twice, the input
3444 data is listed in detail.
3447 Reset verbose level to 0. Should not be used in an option file.
3450 Try to be as quiet as possible. Should not be used in an option
3455 Use batch mode. Never ask, do not allow interactive commands.
3456 '--no-batch' disables this option. Note that even with a filename
3457 given on the command line, gpg might still need to read from STDIN
3458 (in particular if gpg figures that the input is a detached
3459 signature and no data file has been specified). Thus if you do not
3460 want to feed data via STDIN, you should connect STDIN to
3463 It is highly recommended to use this option along with the options
3464 '--status-fd' and '--with-colons' for any unattended use of 'gpg'.
3465 Should not be used in an option file.
3468 Make sure that the TTY (terminal) is never used for any output.
3469 This option is needed in some cases because GnuPG sometimes prints
3470 warnings to the TTY even if '--batch' is used.
3473 Assume "yes" on most questions. Should not be used in an option
3477 Assume "no" on most questions. Should not be used in an option
3480 '--list-options PARAMETERS'
3481 This is a space or comma delimited string that gives options used
3482 when listing keys and signatures (that is, '--list-keys',
3483 '--check-signatures', '--list-public-keys', '--list-secret-keys',
3484 and the '--edit-key' functions). Options can be prepended with a
3485 'no-' (after the two dashes) to give the opposite meaning. The
3489 Causes '--list-keys', '--check-signatures',
3490 '--list-public-keys', and '--list-secret-keys' to display any
3491 photo IDs attached to the key. Defaults to no. See also
3492 '--photo-viewer'. Does not work with '--with-colons': see
3493 '--attribute-fd' for the appropriate way to get photo data for
3494 scripts and other frontends.
3497 Show usage information for keys and subkeys in the standard
3498 key listing. This is a list of letters indicating the allowed
3499 usage for a key ('E'=encryption, 'S'=signing,
3500 'C'=certification, 'A'=authentication). Defaults to yes.
3503 Show policy URLs in the '--check-signatures' listings.
3509 Show all, IETF standard, or user-defined signature notations
3510 in the '--check-signatures' listings. Defaults to no.
3513 Show any preferred keyserver URL in the '--check-signatures'
3514 listings. Defaults to no.
3517 Display the calculated validity of user IDs during key
3518 listings. Defaults to yes.
3521 Show revoked and expired user IDs in key listings. Defaults
3524 show-unusable-subkeys
3525 Show revoked and expired subkeys in key listings. Defaults to
3529 Display the keyring name at the head of key listings to show
3530 which keyring a given key resides on. Defaults to no.
3533 Show signature expiration dates (if any) during
3534 '--check-signatures' listings. Defaults to no.
3537 Include signature subpackets in the key listing. This option
3538 can take an optional argument list of the subpackets to list.
3539 If no argument is passed, list all subpackets. Defaults to
3540 no. This option is only meaningful when using '--with-colons'
3541 along with '--check-signatures'.
3544 For each user-id which has a valid mail address print only the
3545 fingerprint followed by the mail address.
3548 With -list-sigs and -check-sigs sort the signatures by keyID
3549 and creation time to make it easier to view the history of
3550 these signatures. The self-signature is also listed before
3551 other signatures. Defaults to yes.
3553 '--verify-options PARAMETERS'
3554 This is a space or comma delimited string that gives options used
3555 when verifying signatures. Options can be prepended with a 'no-'
3556 to give the opposite meaning. The options are:
3559 Display any photo IDs present on the key that issued the
3560 signature. Defaults to no. See also '--photo-viewer'.
3563 Show policy URLs in the signature being verified. Defaults to
3569 Show all, IETF standard, or user-defined signature notations
3570 in the signature being verified. Defaults to IETF standard.
3573 Show any preferred keyserver URL in the signature being
3574 verified. Defaults to yes.
3577 Display the calculated validity of the user IDs on the key
3578 that issued the signature. Defaults to yes.
3581 Show revoked and expired user IDs during signature
3582 verification. Defaults to no.
3584 show-primary-uid-only
3585 Show only the primary user ID during signature verification.
3586 That is all the AKA lines as well as photo Ids are not shown
3587 with the signature verification status.
3589 '--enable-large-rsa'
3590 '--disable-large-rsa'
3591 With -generate-key and -batch, enable the creation of RSA secret
3592 keys as large as 8192 bit. Note: 8192 bit is more than is
3593 generally recommended. These large keys don't significantly
3594 improve security, but they are more expensive to use, and their
3595 signatures and certifications are larger. This option is only
3596 available if the binary was build with large-secmem support.
3600 Enable hash truncation for all DSA keys even for old DSA Keys up to
3601 1024 bit. This is also the default with '--openpgp'. Note that
3602 older versions of GnuPG also required this flag to allow the
3603 generation of DSA larger than 1024 bit.
3605 '--photo-viewer STRING'
3606 This is the command line that should be run to view a photo ID.
3607 "%i" will be expanded to a filename containing the photo. "%I"
3608 does the same, except the file will not be deleted once the viewer
3609 exits. Other flags are "%k" for the key ID, "%K" for the long key
3610 ID, "%f" for the key fingerprint, "%t" for the extension of the
3611 image type (e.g. "jpg"), "%T" for the MIME type of the image (e.g.
3612 "image/jpeg"), "%v" for the single-character calculated validity of
3613 the image being viewed (e.g. "f"), "%V" for the calculated
3614 validity as a string (e.g. "full"), "%U" for a base32 encoded hash
3615 of the user ID, and "%%" for an actual percent sign. If neither %i
3616 or %I are present, then the photo will be supplied to the viewer on
3619 On Unix the default viewer is 'xloadimage -fork -quiet -title
3620 'KeyID 0x%k' STDIN' with a fallback to 'display -title 'KeyID 0x%k'
3621 %i' and finally to 'xdg-open %i'. On Windows '!ShellExecute 400
3622 %i' is used; here the command is a meta command to use that API
3623 call followed by a wait time in milliseconds which is used to give
3624 the viewer time to read the temporary image file before gpg deletes
3625 it again. Note that if your image viewer program is not secure,
3626 then executing it from gpg does not make it secure.
3628 '--exec-path STRING'
3629 Sets a list of directories to search for photo viewers If not
3630 provided photo viewers use the 'PATH' environment variable.
3633 Add FILE to the current list of keyrings. If FILE begins with a
3634 tilde and a slash, these are replaced by the $HOME directory. If
3635 the filename does not contain a slash, it is assumed to be in the
3636 GnuPG home directory ("~/.gnupg" unless '--homedir' or $GNUPGHOME
3639 Note that this adds a keyring to the current list. If the intent
3640 is to use the specified keyring alone, use '--keyring' along with
3641 '--no-default-keyring'.
3643 If the option '--no-keyring' has been used no keyrings will be used
3646 Note that if the option 'use-keyboxd' is enabled in 'common.conf',
3647 no keyrings are used at all and keys are all maintained by the
3648 keyboxd process in its own database.
3650 '--primary-keyring FILE'
3651 This is a varian of '--keyring' and designates FILE as the primary
3652 public keyring. This means that newly imported keys (via
3653 '--import' or keyserver '--recv-from') will go to this keyring.
3655 '--secret-keyring FILE'
3656 This is an obsolete option and ignored. All secret keys are stored
3657 in the 'private-keys-v1.d' directory below the GnuPG home
3660 '--trustdb-name FILE'
3661 Use FILE instead of the default trustdb. If FILE begins with a
3662 tilde and a slash, these are replaced by the $HOME directory. If
3663 the filename does not contain a slash, it is assumed to be in the
3664 GnuPG home directory ('~/.gnupg' if '--homedir' or $GNUPGHOME is
3668 Set the name of the home directory to DIR. If this option is not
3669 used, the home directory defaults to '~/.gnupg'. It is only
3670 recognized when given on the command line. It also overrides any
3671 home directory stated through the environment variable 'GNUPGHOME'
3672 or (on Windows systems) by means of the Registry entry
3673 HKCU\SOFTWARE\GNU\GNUPG:HOMEDIR.
3675 On Windows systems it is possible to install GnuPG as a portable
3676 application. In this case only this command line option is
3677 considered, all other ways to set a home directory are ignored.
3679 To install GnuPG as a portable application under Windows, create an
3680 empty file named 'gpgconf.ctl' in the same directory as the tool
3681 'gpgconf.exe'. The root of the installation is then that
3682 directory; or, if 'gpgconf.exe' has been installed directly below a
3683 directory named 'bin', its parent directory. You also need to make
3684 sure that the following directories exist and are writable:
3685 'ROOT/home' for the GnuPG home and 'ROOT/usr/local/var/cache/gnupg'
3686 for internal cache files.
3688 '--display-charset NAME'
3689 Set the name of the native character set. This is used to convert
3690 some informational strings like user IDs to the proper UTF-8
3691 encoding. Note that this has nothing to do with the character set
3692 of data to be encrypted or signed; GnuPG does not recode
3693 user-supplied data. If this option is not used, the default
3694 character set is determined from the current locale. A verbosity
3695 level of 3 shows the chosen set. This option should not be used on
3696 Windows. Valid values for NAME are:
3699 This is the Latin 1 set.
3705 This is currently an alias for the Latin 1 set.
3708 The usual Russian set (RFC-1489).
3711 Bypass all translations and assume that the OS uses native
3716 Assume that command line arguments are given as UTF-8 strings. The
3717 default ('--no-utf8-strings') is to assume that arguments are
3718 encoded in the character set as specified by '--display-charset'.
3719 These options affect all following arguments. Both options may be
3720 used multiple times. This option should not be used in an option
3723 This option has no effect on Windows. There the internal used
3724 UTF-8 encoding is translated for console input and output. The
3725 command line arguments are expected as Unicode and translated to
3726 UTF-8. Thus when calling this program from another, make sure to
3727 use the Unicode version of CreateProcess.
3730 Read options from FILE and do not try to read them from the default
3731 options file in the homedir (see '--homedir'). This option is
3732 ignored if used in an options file.
3735 Shortcut for '--options /dev/null'. This option is detected before
3736 an attempt to open an option file. Using this option will also
3737 prevent the creation of a '~/.gnupg' homedir.
3740 '--compress-level N'
3741 '--bzip2-compress-level N'
3742 Set compression level to N for the ZIP and ZLIB compression
3743 algorithms. The default is to use the default compression level of
3744 zlib (normally 6). '--bzip2-compress-level' sets the compression
3745 level for the BZIP2 compression algorithm (defaulting to 6 as
3746 well). This is a different option from '--compress-level' since
3747 BZIP2 uses a significant amount of memory for each additional
3748 compression level. '-z' sets both. A value of 0 for N disables
3751 '--bzip2-decompress-lowmem'
3752 Use a different decompression method for BZIP2 compressed files.
3753 This alternate method uses a bit more than half the memory, but
3754 also runs at half the speed. This is useful under extreme low
3755 memory circumstances when the file was originally compressed at a
3756 high '--bzip2-compress-level'.
3758 '--mangle-dos-filenames'
3759 '--no-mangle-dos-filenames'
3760 Older version of Windows cannot handle filenames with more than one
3761 dot. '--mangle-dos-filenames' causes GnuPG to replace (rather than
3762 add to) the extension of an output filename to avoid this problem.
3763 This option is off by default and has no effect on non-Windows
3767 '--no-ask-cert-level'
3768 When making a key signature, prompt for a certification level. If
3769 this option is not specified, the certification level used is set
3770 via '--default-cert-level'. See '--default-cert-level' for
3771 information on the specific levels and how they are used.
3772 '--no-ask-cert-level' disables this option. This option defaults
3775 '--default-cert-level N'
3776 The default to use for the check level when signing a key.
3778 0 means you make no particular claim as to how carefully you
3781 1 means you believe the key is owned by the person who claims to
3782 own it but you could not, or did not verify the key at all. This
3783 is useful for a "persona" verification, where you sign the key of a
3786 2 means you did casual verification of the key. For example, this
3787 could mean that you verified the key fingerprint and checked the
3788 user ID on the key against a photo ID.
3790 3 means you did extensive verification of the key. For example,
3791 this could mean that you verified the key fingerprint with the
3792 owner of the key in person, and that you checked, by means of a
3793 hard to forge document with a photo ID (such as a passport) that
3794 the name of the key owner matches the name in the user ID on the
3795 key, and finally that you verified (by exchange of email) that the
3796 email address on the key belongs to the key owner.
3798 Note that the examples given above for levels 2 and 3 are just
3799 that: examples. In the end, it is up to you to decide just what
3800 "casual" and "extensive" mean to you.
3802 This option defaults to 0 (no particular claim).
3805 When building the trust database, treat any signatures with a
3806 certification level below this as invalid. Defaults to 2, which
3807 disregards level 1 signatures. Note that level 0 "no particular
3808 claim" signatures are always accepted.
3810 '--trusted-key LONG KEY ID OR FINGERPRINT'
3811 Assume that the specified key (which should be given as
3812 fingerprint) is as trustworthy as one of your own secret keys.
3813 This option is useful if you don't want to keep your secret keys
3814 (or one of them) online but still want to be able to check the
3815 validity of a given recipient's or signator's key. If the given
3816 key is not locally available but an LDAP keyserver is configured
3817 the missing key is imported from that server.
3819 '--trust-model {pgp|classic|tofu|tofu+pgp|direct|always|auto}'
3820 Set what trust model GnuPG should follow. The models are:
3823 This is the Web of Trust combined with trust signatures as
3824 used in PGP 5.x and later. This is the default trust model
3825 when creating a new trust database.
3828 This is the standard Web of Trust as introduced by PGP 2.
3831 TOFU stands for Trust On First Use. In this trust model, the
3832 first time a key is seen, it is memorized. If later another
3833 key with a user id with the same email address is seen, both
3834 keys are marked as suspect. In that case, the next time
3835 either is used, a warning is displayed describing the
3836 conflict, why it might have occurred (either the user
3837 generated a new key and failed to cross sign the old and new
3838 keys, the key is forgery, or a man-in-the-middle attack is
3839 being attempted), and the user is prompted to manually confirm
3840 the validity of the key in question.
3842 Because a potential attacker is able to control the email
3843 address and thereby circumvent the conflict detection
3844 algorithm by using an email address that is similar in
3845 appearance to a trusted email address, whenever a message is
3846 verified, statistics about the number of messages signed with
3847 the key are shown. In this way, a user can easily identify
3848 attacks using fake keys for regular correspondents.
3850 When compared with the Web of Trust, TOFU offers significantly
3851 weaker security guarantees. In particular, TOFU only helps
3852 ensure consistency (that is, that the binding between a key
3853 and email address doesn't change). A major advantage of TOFU
3854 is that it requires little maintenance to use correctly. To
3855 use the web of trust properly, you need to actively sign keys
3856 and mark users as trusted introducers. This is a
3857 time-consuming process and anecdotal evidence suggests that
3858 even security-conscious users rarely take the time to do this
3859 thoroughly and instead rely on an ad-hoc TOFU process.
3861 In the TOFU model, policies are associated with bindings
3862 between keys and email addresses (which are extracted from
3863 user ids and normalized). There are five policies, which can
3864 be set manually using the '--tofu-policy' option. The default
3865 policy can be set using the '--tofu-default-policy' option.
3867 The TOFU policies are: 'auto', 'good', 'unknown', 'bad' and
3868 'ask'. The 'auto' policy is used by default (unless
3869 overridden by '--tofu-default-policy') and marks a binding as
3870 marginally trusted. The 'good', 'unknown' and 'bad' policies
3871 mark a binding as fully trusted, as having unknown trust or as
3872 having trust never, respectively. The 'unknown' policy is
3873 useful for just using TOFU to detect conflicts, but to never
3874 assign positive trust to a binding. The final policy, 'ask'
3875 prompts the user to indicate the binding's trust. If batch
3876 mode is enabled (or input is inappropriate in the context),
3877 then the user is not prompted and the 'undefined' trust level
3881 This trust model combines TOFU with the Web of Trust. This is
3882 done by computing the trust level for each model and then
3883 taking the maximum trust level where the trust levels are
3884 ordered as follows: 'unknown < undefined < marginal < fully <
3885 ultimate < expired < never'.
3887 By setting '--tofu-default-policy=unknown', this model can be
3888 used to implement the web of trust with TOFU's conflict
3889 detection algorithm, but without its assignment of positive
3890 trust values, which some security-conscious users don't like.
3893 Key validity is set directly by the user and not calculated
3894 via the Web of Trust. This model is solely based on the key
3895 and does not distinguish user IDs. Note that when changing to
3896 another trust model the trust values assigned to a key are
3897 transformed into ownertrust values, which also indicate how
3898 you trust the owner of the key to sign other keys.
3901 Skip key validation and assume that used keys are always fully
3902 valid. You generally won't use this unless you are using some
3903 external validation scheme. This option also suppresses the
3904 "[uncertain]" tag printed with signature checks when there is
3905 no evidence that the user ID is bound to the key. Note that
3906 this trust model still does not allow the use of expired,
3907 revoked, or disabled keys.
3910 Select the trust model depending on whatever the internal
3911 trust database says. This is the default model if such a
3912 database already exists. Note that a tofu trust model is not
3913 considered here and must be enabled explicitly.
3915 '--auto-key-locate MECHANISMS'
3916 '--no-auto-key-locate'
3917 GnuPG can automatically locate and retrieve keys as needed using
3918 this option. This happens when encrypting to an email address (in
3919 the "user@example.com" form), and there are no "user@example.com"
3920 keys on the local keyring. This option takes any number of the
3921 mechanisms listed below, in the order they are to be tried.
3922 Instead of listing the mechanisms as comma delimited arguments, the
3923 option may also be given several times to add more mechanism. The
3924 option '--no-auto-key-locate' or the mechanism "clear" resets the
3925 list. The default is "local,wkd".
3928 Locate a key using DNS CERT, as specified in RFC-4398.
3931 Locate a key using DANE, as specified in
3932 draft-ietf-dane-openpgpkey-05.txt.
3935 Locate a key using the Web Key Directory protocol.
3938 Using DNS Service Discovery, check the domain in question for
3939 any LDAP keyservers to use. If this fails, attempt to locate
3940 the key using the PGP Universal method of checking
3941 'ldap://keys.(thedomain)'.
3944 Locate the key using the Active Directory (Windows only).
3945 This method also allows to search by fingerprint using the
3946 command '--locate-external-key'. Note that this mechanism is
3947 actually a shortcut for the mechanism 'keyserver' but using
3948 "ldap:///" as the keyserver.
3951 Locate a key using a keyserver. This method also allows to
3952 search by fingerprint using the command
3953 '--locate-external-key' if any of the configured keyservers is
3957 In addition, a keyserver URL as used in the 'dirmngr'
3958 configuration may be used here to query that particular
3959 keyserver. This method also allows to search by fingerprint
3960 using the command '--locate-external-key' if the URL specifies
3964 Locate the key using the local keyrings. This mechanism
3965 allows the user to select the order a local key lookup is
3966 done. Thus using '--auto-key-locate local' is identical to
3967 '--no-auto-key-locate'.
3970 This flag disables the standard local key lookup, done before
3971 any of the mechanisms defined by the '--auto-key-locate' are
3972 tried. The position of this mechanism in the list does not
3973 matter. It is not required if 'local' is also used.
3976 Clear all defined mechanisms. This is useful to override
3977 mechanisms given in a config file. Note that a 'nodefault' in
3978 MECHANISMS will also be cleared unless it is given after the
3982 '--no-auto-key-import'
3983 This is an offline mechanism to get a missing key for signature
3984 verification and for later encryption to this key. If this option
3985 is enabled and a signature includes an embedded key, that key is
3986 used to verify the signature and on verification success the key is
3987 imported. The default is '--no-auto-key-import'.
3989 On the sender (signing) site the option '--include-key-block' needs
3990 to be used to put the public part of the signing key as “Key Block
3991 subpacket” into the signature.
3993 '--auto-key-retrieve'
3994 '--no-auto-key-retrieve'
3995 These options enable or disable the automatic retrieving of keys
3996 from a keyserver when verifying signatures made by keys that are
3997 not on the local keyring. The default is '--no-auto-key-retrieve'.
3999 The order of methods tried to lookup the key is:
4001 1. If the option '--auto-key-import' is set and the signatures
4002 includes an embedded key, that key is used to verify the signature
4003 and on verification success that key is imported.
4005 2. If a preferred keyserver is specified in the signature and the
4006 option 'honor-keyserver-url' is active (which is not the default),
4007 that keyserver is tried. Note that the creator of the signature
4008 uses the option '--sig-keyserver-url' to specify the preferred
4009 keyserver for data signatures.
4011 3. If the signature has the Signer's UID set (e.g. using
4012 '--sender' while creating the signature) a Web Key Directory (WKD)
4013 lookup is done. This is the default configuration but can be
4014 disabled by removing WKD from the auto-key-locate list or by using
4015 the option '--disable-signer-uid'.
4017 4. If any keyserver is configured and the Issuer Fingerprint is
4018 part of the signature (since GnuPG 2.1.16), the configured
4019 keyservers are tried.
4021 Note that this option makes a "web bug" like behavior possible.
4022 Keyserver or Web Key Directory operators can see which keys you
4023 request, so by sending you a message signed by a brand new key
4024 (which you naturally will not have on your local keyring), the
4025 operator can tell both your IP address and the time when you
4026 verified the signature.
4028 '--keyid-format {none|short|0xshort|long|0xlong}'
4029 Select how to display key IDs. "none" does not show the key ID at
4030 all but shows the fingerprint in a separate line. "short" is the
4031 traditional 8-character key ID. "long" is the more accurate (but
4032 less convenient) 16-character key ID. Add an "0x" to either to
4033 include an "0x" at the beginning of the key ID, as in 0x99242560.
4034 Note that this option is ignored if the option '--with-colons' is
4038 This option is deprecated - please use the '--keyserver' in
4039 'dirmngr.conf' instead.
4041 Use NAME as your keyserver. This is the server that
4042 '--receive-keys', '--send-keys', and '--search-keys' will
4043 communicate with to receive keys from, send keys to, and search for
4044 keys on. The format of the NAME is a URI:
4045 'scheme:[//]keyservername[:port]' The scheme is the type of
4046 keyserver: "hkp"/"hkps" for the HTTP (or compatible) keyservers or
4047 "ldap"/"ldaps" for the LDAP keyservers. Note that your particular
4048 installation of GnuPG may have other keyserver types available as
4049 well. Keyserver schemes are case-insensitive.
4051 Most keyservers synchronize with each other, so there is generally
4052 no need to send keys to more than one server. The keyserver
4053 'hkp://keys.gnupg.net' uses round robin DNS to give a different
4054 keyserver each time you use it.
4056 '--keyserver-options {NAME=VALUE}'
4057 This is a space or comma delimited string that gives options for
4058 the keyserver. Options can be prefixed with a 'no-' to give the
4059 opposite meaning. Valid import-options or export-options may be
4060 used here as well to apply to importing ('--recv-key') or exporting
4061 ('--send-key') a key from a keyserver. While not all options are
4062 available for all keyserver types, some common options are:
4065 When searching for a key with '--search-keys', include keys
4066 that are marked on the keyserver as revoked. Note that not
4067 all keyservers differentiate between revoked and unrevoked
4068 keys, and for such keyservers this option is meaningless.
4069 Note also that most keyservers do not have cryptographic
4070 verification of key revocations, and so turning this option
4071 off may result in skipping keys that are incorrectly marked as
4075 When searching for a key with '--search-keys', include keys
4076 that are marked on the keyserver as disabled. Note that this
4077 option is not used with HKP keyservers.
4080 This is an obsolete alias for the option 'auto-key-retrieve'.
4081 Please do not use it; it will be removed in future versions..
4084 When using '--refresh-keys', if the key in question has a
4085 preferred keyserver URL, then use that preferred keyserver to
4086 refresh the key from. In addition, if auto-key-retrieve is
4087 set, and the signature being verified has a preferred
4088 keyserver URL, then use that preferred keyserver to fetch the
4089 key from. Note that this option introduces a "web bug": The
4090 creator of the key can see when the keys is refreshed. Thus
4091 this option is not enabled by default.
4094 When receiving a key, include subkeys as potential targets.
4095 Note that this option is not used with HKP keyservers, as they
4096 do not support retrieving keys by subkey id.
4104 These options have no more function since GnuPG 2.1. Use the
4105 'dirmngr' configuration options instead.
4107 The default list of options is: "self-sigs-only, import-clean,
4108 repair-keys, repair-pks-subkey-bug, export-attributes". However,
4109 if the actual used source is an LDAP server "no-self-sigs-only" is
4110 assumed unless "self-sigs-only" has been explictly configured.
4112 '--completes-needed N'
4113 Number of completely trusted users to introduce a new key signer
4116 '--marginals-needed N'
4117 Number of marginally trusted users to introduce a new key signer
4120 '--tofu-default-policy {auto|good|unknown|bad|ask}'
4121 The default TOFU policy (defaults to 'auto'). For more information
4122 about the meaning of this option, *note trust-model-tofu::.
4124 '--max-cert-depth N'
4125 Maximum depth of a certification chain (default is 5).
4128 Do not cache the verification status of key signatures. Caching
4129 gives a much better performance in key listings. However, if you
4130 suspect that your public keyring is not safe against write
4131 modifications, you can use this option to disable the caching. It
4132 probably does not make sense to disable it because all kind of
4133 damage can be done if someone else has write access to your public
4136 '--auto-check-trustdb'
4137 '--no-auto-check-trustdb'
4138 If GnuPG feels that its information about the Web of Trust has to
4139 be updated, it automatically runs the '--check-trustdb' command
4140 internally. This may be a time consuming process.
4141 '--no-auto-check-trustdb' disables this option.
4145 This is dummy option. 'gpg' always requires the agent.
4148 This is dummy option. It has no effect when used with 'gpg'.
4150 '--agent-program FILE'
4151 Specify an agent program to be used for secret key operations. The
4152 default value is determined by running 'gpgconf' with the option
4153 '--list-dirs'. Note that the pipe symbol ('|') is used for a
4154 regression test suite hack and may thus not be used in the file
4157 '--dirmngr-program FILE'
4158 Specify a dirmngr program to be used for keyserver access. The
4159 default value is '/usr/local/bin/dirmngr'.
4162 Entirely disable the use of the Dirmngr.
4165 Do not start the gpg-agent or the dirmngr if it has not yet been
4166 started and its service is required. This option is mostly useful
4167 on machines where the connection to gpg-agent has been redirected
4168 to another machines. If dirmngr is required on the remote machine,
4169 it may be started manually using 'gpgconf --launch dirmngr'.
4172 Lock the databases the first time a lock is requested and do not
4173 release the lock until the process terminates.
4176 Release the locks every time a lock is no longer needed. Use this
4177 to override a previous '--lock-once' from a config file.
4180 Disable locking entirely. This option should be used only in very
4181 special environments, where it can be assured that only one process
4182 is accessing those files. A bootable floppy with a stand-alone
4183 encryption system will probably use this. Improper usage of this
4184 option may lead to data and key corruption.
4186 '--exit-on-status-write-error'
4187 This option will cause write errors on the status FD to immediately
4188 terminate the process. That should in fact be the default but it
4189 never worked this way and thus we need an option to enable this, so
4190 that the change won't break applications which close their end of a
4191 status fd connected pipe too early. Using this option along with
4192 '--enable-progress-filter' may be used to cleanly cancel long
4193 running gpg operations.
4195 '--limit-card-insert-tries N'
4196 With N greater than 0 the number of prompts asking to insert a
4197 smartcard gets limited to N-1. Thus with a value of 1 gpg won't at
4198 all ask to insert a card if none has been inserted at startup.
4199 This option is useful in the configuration file in case an
4200 application does not know about the smartcard support and waits ad
4201 infinitum for an inserted card.
4203 '--no-random-seed-file'
4204 GnuPG uses a file to store its internal random pool over
4205 invocations. This makes random generation faster; however
4206 sometimes write operations are not desired. This option can be
4207 used to achieve that with the cost of slower random generation.
4210 Suppress the initial copyright message.
4212 '--no-secmem-warning'
4213 Suppress the warning about "using insecure memory".
4215 '--no-permission-warning'
4216 Suppress the warning about unsafe file and home directory
4217 ('--homedir') permissions. Note that the permission checks that
4218 GnuPG performs are not intended to be authoritative, but rather
4219 they simply warn about certain common permission problems. Do not
4220 assume that the lack of a warning means that your system is secure.
4222 Note that the warning for unsafe '--homedir' permissions cannot be
4223 suppressed in the gpg.conf file, as this would allow an attacker to
4224 place an unsafe gpg.conf file in place, and use this file to
4225 suppress warnings about itself. The '--homedir' permissions
4226 warning may only be suppressed on the command line.
4229 '--no-require-secmem'
4230 Refuse to run if GnuPG cannot get secure memory. Defaults to no
4231 (i.e. run, but give a warning).
4233 '--require-cross-certification'
4234 '--no-require-cross-certification'
4235 When verifying a signature made from a subkey, ensure that the
4236 cross certification "back signature" on the subkey is present and
4237 valid. This protects against a subtle attack against subkeys that
4238 can sign. Defaults to '--require-cross-certification' for 'gpg'.
4242 Allow the user to do certain nonsensical or "silly" things like
4243 signing an expired or revoked key, or certain potentially
4244 incompatible things like generating unusual key types. This also
4245 disables certain warning messages about potentially incompatible
4246 actions. As the name implies, this option is for experts only. If
4247 you don't fully understand the implications of what it allows you
4248 to do, leave this off. '--no-expert' disables this option.
4251 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Key related Options, Next: GPG Input and Output, Prev: GPG Configuration Options, Up: GPG Options
4253 4.2.2 Key related options
4254 -------------------------
4258 Encrypt for user id NAME. If this option or '--hidden-recipient'
4259 is not specified, GnuPG asks for the user-id unless
4260 '--default-recipient' is given.
4262 '--hidden-recipient NAME'
4264 Encrypt for user ID NAME, but hide the key ID of this user's key.
4265 This option helps to hide the receiver of the message and is a
4266 limited countermeasure against traffic analysis. If this option or
4267 '--recipient' is not specified, GnuPG asks for the user ID unless
4268 '--default-recipient' is given.
4270 '--recipient-file FILE'
4272 This option is similar to '--recipient' except that it encrypts to
4273 a key stored in the given file. FILE must be the name of a file
4274 containing exactly one key. 'gpg' assumes that the key in this
4275 file is fully valid.
4277 '--hidden-recipient-file FILE'
4279 This option is similar to '--hidden-recipient' except that it
4280 encrypts to a key stored in the given file. FILE must be the name
4281 of a file containing exactly one key. 'gpg' assumes that the key
4282 in this file is fully valid.
4285 Same as '--recipient' but this one is intended for use in the
4286 options file and may be used with your own user-id as an
4287 "encrypt-to-self". These keys are only used when there are other
4288 recipients given either by use of '--recipient' or by the asked
4289 user id. No trust checking is performed for these user ids and
4290 even disabled keys can be used.
4292 '--hidden-encrypt-to NAME'
4293 Same as '--hidden-recipient' but this one is intended for use in
4294 the options file and may be used with your own user-id as a hidden
4295 "encrypt-to-self". These keys are only used when there are other
4296 recipients given either by use of '--recipient' or by the asked
4297 user id. No trust checking is performed for these user ids and
4298 even disabled keys can be used.
4301 Disable the use of all '--encrypt-to' and '--hidden-encrypt-to'
4304 '--group {NAME=VALUE}'
4305 Sets up a named group, which is similar to aliases in email
4306 programs. Any time the group name is a recipient ('-r' or
4307 '--recipient'), it will be expanded to the values specified.
4308 Multiple groups with the same name are automatically merged into a
4311 The values are 'key IDs' or fingerprints, but any key description
4312 is accepted. Note that a value with spaces in it will be treated
4313 as two different values. Note also there is only one level of
4314 expansion -- you cannot make an group that points to another group.
4315 When used from the command line, it may be necessary to quote the
4316 argument to this option to prevent the shell from treating it as
4320 Remove a given entry from the '--group' list.
4323 Remove all entries from the '--group' list.
4327 Use NAME as the key to sign with. Note that this option overrides
4331 This option has two purposes. MBOX must either be a complete user
4332 ID containing a proper mail address or just a plain mail address.
4333 The option can be given multiple times.
4335 When creating a signature this option tells gpg the signing key's
4336 user id used to make the signature and embeds that user ID into the
4337 created signature (using OpenPGP's "Signer's User ID" subpacket).
4338 If the option is given multiple times a suitable user ID is picked.
4339 However, if the signing key was specified directly by using a mail
4340 address (i.e. not by using a fingerprint or key ID) this option is
4341 used and the mail address is embedded in the created signature.
4343 When verifying a signature MBOX is used to restrict the information
4344 printed by the TOFU code to matching user IDs. If the option is
4345 used and the signature contains a "Signer's User ID" subpacket that
4346 information is is also used to restrict the printed information.
4347 Note that GnuPG considers only the mail address part of a User ID.
4349 If this option or the said subpacket is available the TRUST lines
4350 as printed by option 'status-fd' correspond to the corresponding
4351 User ID; if no User ID is known the TRUST lines are computed
4352 directly on the key and do not give any information about the User
4353 ID. In the latter case it his highly recommended to scripts and
4354 other frontends to evaluate the VALIDSIG line, retrieve the key and
4355 print all User IDs along with their validity (trust) information.
4357 '--try-secret-key NAME'
4358 For hidden recipients GPG needs to know the keys to use for trial
4359 decryption. The key set with '--default-key' is always tried
4360 first, but this is often not sufficient. This option allows
4361 setting more keys to be used for trial decryption. Although any
4362 valid user-id specification may be used for NAME it makes sense to
4363 use at least the long keyid to avoid ambiguities. Note that
4364 gpg-agent might pop up a pinentry for a lot keys to do the trial
4365 decryption. If you want to stop all further trial decryption you
4366 may use close-window button instead of the cancel button.
4369 Don't look at the key ID as stored in the message but try all
4370 secret keys in turn to find the right decryption key. This option
4371 forces the behaviour as used by anonymous recipients (created by
4372 using '--throw-keyids' or '--hidden-recipient') and might come
4373 handy in case where an encrypted message contains a bogus key ID.
4375 '--skip-hidden-recipients'
4376 '--no-skip-hidden-recipients'
4377 During decryption skip all anonymous recipients. This option helps
4378 in the case that people use the hidden recipients feature to hide
4379 their own encrypt-to key from others. If one has many secret keys
4380 this may lead to a major annoyance because all keys are tried in
4381 turn to decrypt something which was not really intended for it.
4382 The drawback of this option is that it is currently not possible to
4383 decrypt a message which includes real anonymous recipients.
4386 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Input and Output, Next: OpenPGP Options, Prev: GPG Key related Options, Up: GPG Options
4388 4.2.3 Input and Output
4389 ----------------------
4393 Create ASCII armored output. The default is to create the binary
4397 Assume the input data is not in ASCII armored format.
4401 Write output to FILE. To write to stdout use '-' as the filename.
4404 This option sets a limit on the number of bytes that will be
4405 generated when processing a file. Since OpenPGP supports various
4406 levels of compression, it is possible that the plaintext of a given
4407 message may be significantly larger than the original OpenPGP
4408 message. While GnuPG works properly with such messages, there is
4409 often a desire to set a maximum file size that will be generated
4410 before processing is forced to stop by the OS limits. Defaults to
4411 0, which means "no limit".
4414 The AEAD encryption mode encrypts the data in chunks so that a
4415 receiving side can check for transmission errors or tampering at
4416 the end of each chunk and does not need to delay this until all
4417 data has been received. The used chunk size is 2^N byte. The
4418 lowest allowed value for N is 6 (64 byte) and the largest is the
4419 default of 22 which creates chunks not larger than 4 MiB.
4421 '--input-size-hint N'
4422 This option can be used to tell GPG the size of the input data in
4423 bytes. N must be a positive base-10 number. This option is only
4424 useful if the input is not taken from a file. GPG may use this
4425 hint to optimize its buffer allocation strategy. It is also used
4426 by the '--status-fd' line "PROGRESS" to provide a value for "total"
4427 if that is not available by other means.
4429 '--key-origin STRING[,URL]'
4430 gpg can track the origin of a key. Certain origins are implicitly
4431 known (e.g. keyserver, web key directory) and set. For a standard
4432 import the origin of the keys imported can be set with this option.
4433 To list the possible values use "help" for STRING. Some origins
4434 can store an optional URL argument. That URL can appended to
4435 STRING after a comma.
4437 '--import-options PARAMETERS'
4438 This is a space or comma delimited string that gives options for
4439 importing keys. Options can be prepended with a 'no-' to give the
4440 opposite meaning. The options are:
4443 Allow importing key signatures marked as "local". This is not
4444 generally useful unless a shared keyring scheme is being used.
4448 Normally possible still existing ownertrust values of a key
4449 are cleared if a key is imported. This is in general
4450 desirable so that a formerly deleted key does not
4451 automatically gain an ownertrust values merely due to import.
4452 On the other hand it is sometimes necessary to re-import a
4453 trusted set of keys again but keeping already assigned
4454 ownertrust values. This can be achieved by using this option.
4456 repair-pks-subkey-bug
4457 During import, attempt to repair the damage caused by the PKS
4458 keyserver bug (pre version 0.9.6) that mangles keys with
4459 multiple subkeys. Note that this cannot completely repair the
4460 damaged key as some crucial data is removed by the keyserver,
4461 but it does at least give you back one subkey. Defaults to no
4462 for regular '--import' and to yes for keyserver
4467 Show a listing of the key as imported right before it is
4468 stored. This can be combined with the option '--dry-run' to
4469 only look at keys; the option 'show-only' is a shortcut for
4470 this combination. The command '--show-keys' is another
4471 shortcut for this. Note that suffixes like '#' for "sec" and
4472 "sbb" lines may or may not be printed.
4475 Run the entire import code but instead of storing the key to
4476 the local keyring write it to the output. The export option
4477 'export-dane' affect the output. This option can for example
4478 be used to remove all invalid parts from a key without the
4482 During import, allow key updates to existing keys, but do not
4483 allow any new keys to be imported. Defaults to no.
4486 After import, compact (remove all signatures except the
4487 self-signature) any user IDs from the new key that are not
4488 usable. Then, remove any signatures from the new key that are
4489 not usable. This includes signatures that were issued by keys
4490 that are not present on the keyring. This option is the same
4491 as running the '--edit-key' command "clean" after import.
4495 Accept only self-signatures while importing a key. All other
4496 key signatures are skipped at an early import stage. This
4497 option can be used with 'keyserver-options' to mitigate
4498 attempts to flood a key with bogus signatures from a
4499 keyserver. The drawback is that all other valid key
4500 signatures, as required by the Web of Trust are also not
4501 imported. Note that when using this option along with
4502 import-clean it suppresses the final clean step after merging
4503 the imported key into the existing key.
4506 After import, fix various problems with the keys. For
4507 example, this reorders signatures, and strips duplicate
4508 signatures. Defaults to yes.
4511 When used the keyboxd (option 'use-keyboxd' in 'common.conf')
4512 does the import within a single transaction.
4515 Import the smallest key possible. This removes all signatures
4516 except the most recent self-signature on each user ID. This
4517 option is the same as running the '--edit-key' command
4518 "minimize" after import. Defaults to no.
4522 Import in key restore mode. This imports all data which is
4523 usually skipped during import; including all GnuPG specific
4524 data. All other contradicting options are overridden.
4526 '--import-filter {NAME=EXPR}'
4527 '--export-filter {NAME=EXPR}'
4528 These options define an import/export filter which are applied to
4529 the imported/exported keyblock right before it will be
4530 stored/written. NAME defines the type of filter to use, EXPR the
4531 expression to evaluate. The option can be used several times which
4532 then appends more expression to the same NAME.
4534 The available filter types are:
4537 This filter will keep a user id packet and its dependent
4538 packets in the keyblock if the expression evaluates to true.
4541 This filter drops the selected subkeys. Currently only
4542 implemented for -export-filter.
4545 This filter drops the selected key signatures on user ids.
4546 Self-signatures are not considered. Currently only
4547 implemented for -import-filter.
4549 For the syntax of the expression see the chapter "FILTER
4550 EXPRESSIONS". The property names for the expressions depend on the
4551 actual filter type and are indicated in the following table.
4553 The available properties are:
4556 A string with the user id. (keep-uid)
4559 The addr-spec part of a user id with mailbox or the empty
4563 A number with the public key algorithm of a key or subkey
4564 packet. (drop-subkey)
4568 The first is the timestamp a public key or subkey packet was
4569 created. The second is the same but given as an ISO string,
4570 e.g. "2016-08-17". (drop-subkey)
4573 The hexified fingerprint of the current subkey or primary key.
4577 Boolean indicating whether the user id is the primary one.
4581 Boolean indicating whether a user id (keep-uid), a key
4582 (drop-subkey), or a signature (drop-sig) expired.
4585 Boolean indicating whether a user id (keep-uid) or a key
4586 (drop-subkey) has been revoked.
4589 Boolean indicating whether a primary key is disabled. (not
4593 Boolean indicating whether a key or subkey is a secret one.
4597 A string indicating the usage flags for the subkey, from the
4598 sequence "ecsa?". For example, a subkey capable of just
4599 signing and authentication would be an exact match for "sa".
4604 The first is the timestamp a signature packet was created.
4605 The second is the same but given as an ISO date string, e.g.
4606 "2016-08-17". (drop-sig)
4609 A number with the public key algorithm of a signature packet.
4613 A number with the digest algorithm of a signature packet.
4616 '--export-options PARAMETERS'
4617 This is a space or comma delimited string that gives options for
4618 exporting keys. Options can be prepended with a 'no-' to give the
4619 opposite meaning. The options are:
4622 Allow exporting key signatures marked as "local". This is not
4623 generally useful unless a shared keyring scheme is being used.
4627 Include attribute user IDs (photo IDs) while exporting. Not
4628 including attribute user IDs is useful to export keys that are
4629 going to be used by an OpenPGP program that does not accept
4630 attribute user IDs. Defaults to yes.
4632 export-sensitive-revkeys
4633 Include designated revoker information that was marked as
4634 "sensitive". Defaults to no.
4638 Export for use as a backup. The exported data includes all
4639 data which is needed to restore the key or keys later with
4640 GnuPG. The format is basically the OpenPGP format but enhanced
4641 with GnuPG specific data. All other contradicting options are
4645 Compact (remove all signatures from) user IDs on the key being
4646 exported if the user IDs are not usable. Also, do not export
4647 any signatures that are not usable. This includes signatures
4648 that were issued by keys that are not present on the keyring.
4649 This option is the same as running the '--edit-key' command
4650 "clean" before export except that the local copy of the key is
4651 not modified. Defaults to no.
4654 Export the smallest key possible. This removes all signatures
4655 except the most recent self-signature on each user ID. This
4656 option is the same as running the '--edit-key' command
4657 "minimize" before export except that the local copy of the key
4658 is not modified. Defaults to no.
4661 Instead of outputting the key material output OpenPGP DANE
4662 records suitable to put into DNS zone files. An ORIGIN line
4663 is printed before each record to allow diverting the records
4664 to the corresponding zone file.
4667 Print key listings delimited by colons. Note that the output will
4668 be encoded in UTF-8 regardless of any '--display-charset' setting.
4669 This format is useful when GnuPG is called from scripts and other
4670 programs as it is easily machine parsed. The details of this
4671 format are documented in the file 'doc/DETAILS', which is included
4672 in the GnuPG source distribution.
4675 Do not merge primary user ID and primary key in '--with-colon'
4676 listing mode and print all timestamps as seconds since 1970-01-01.
4677 Since GnuPG 2.0.10, this mode is always used and thus this option
4678 is obsolete; it does not harm to use it though.
4680 '--legacy-list-mode'
4681 Revert to the pre-2.1 public key list mode. This only affects the
4682 human readable output and not the machine interface (i.e.
4683 '--with-colons'). Note that the legacy format does not convey
4684 suitable information for elliptic curves.
4686 '--with-fingerprint'
4687 Same as the command '--fingerprint' but changes only the format of
4688 the output and may be used together with another command.
4690 '--with-subkey-fingerprint'
4691 If a fingerprint is printed for the primary key, this option forces
4692 printing of the fingerprint for all subkeys. This could also be
4693 achieved by using the '--with-fingerprint' twice but by using this
4694 option along with keyid-format "none" a compact fingerprint is
4697 '--with-icao-spelling'
4698 Print the ICAO spelling of the fingerprint in addition to the hex
4702 Include the keygrip in the key listings. In '--with-colons' mode
4703 this is implicitly enable for secret keys.
4706 Include the locally held information on the origin and last update
4707 of a key in a key listing. In '--with-colons' mode this is always
4708 printed. This data is currently experimental and shall not be
4709 considered part of the stable API.
4712 Print a Web Key Directory identifier along with each user ID in key
4713 listings. This is an experimental feature and semantics may
4717 Include info about the presence of a secret key in public key
4718 listings done with '--with-colons'.
4721 File: gnupg.info, Node: OpenPGP Options, Next: Compliance Options, Prev: GPG Input and Output, Up: GPG Options
4723 4.2.4 OpenPGP protocol specific options
4724 ---------------------------------------
4728 Treat input files as text and store them in the OpenPGP canonical
4729 text form with standard "CRLF" line endings. This also sets the
4730 necessary flags to inform the recipient that the encrypted or
4731 signed data is text and may need its line endings converted back to
4732 whatever the local system uses. This option is useful when
4733 communicating between two platforms that have different line ending
4734 conventions (UNIX-like to Mac, Mac to Windows, etc).
4735 '--no-textmode' disables this option, and is the default.
4738 '--no-force-v3-sigs'
4740 '--no-force-v4-certs'
4741 These options are obsolete and have no effect since GnuPG 2.1.
4744 Force the use of AEAD encryption over MDC encryption. AEAD is a
4745 modern and faster way to do authenticated encryption than the old
4746 MDC method. See also options '--aead-algo' and '--chunk-size'.
4750 These options are obsolete and have no effect since GnuPG 2.2.8.
4751 The MDC is always used unless the keys indicate that an AEAD
4752 algorithm can be used in which case AEAD is used. But note: If the
4753 creation of a legacy non-MDC message is exceptionally required, the
4754 option '--rfc2440' allows for this.
4756 '--disable-signer-uid'
4757 By default the user ID of the signing key is embedded in the data
4758 signature. As of now this is only done if the signing key has been
4759 specified with 'local-user' using a mail address, or with 'sender'.
4760 This information can be helpful for verifier to locate the key; see
4761 option '--auto-key-retrieve'.
4763 '--include-key-block'
4764 '--no-include-key-block'
4765 This option is used to embed the actual signing key into a data
4766 signature. The embedded key is stripped down to a single user id
4767 and includes only the signing subkey used to create the signature
4768 as well as as valid encryption subkeys. All other info is removed
4769 from the key to keep it and thus the signature small. This option
4770 is the OpenPGP counterpart to the 'gpgsm' option '--include-certs'
4771 and allows the recipient of a signed message to reply encrypted to
4772 the sender without using any online directories to lookup the key.
4773 The default is '--no-include-key-block'. See also the option
4774 '--auto-key-import'.
4776 '--personal-cipher-preferences STRING'
4777 Set the list of personal cipher preferences to STRING. Use 'gpg
4778 --version' to get a list of available algorithms, and use 'none' to
4779 set no preference at all. This allows the user to safely override
4780 the algorithm chosen by the recipient key preferences, as GPG will
4781 only select an algorithm that is usable by all recipients. The
4782 most highly ranked cipher in this list is also used for the
4783 '--symmetric' encryption command.
4785 '--personal-aead-preferences STRING'
4786 Set the list of personal AEAD preferences to STRING. Use 'gpg
4787 --version' to get a list of available algorithms, and use 'none' to
4788 set no preference at all. This allows the user to safely override
4789 the algorithm chosen by the recipient key preferences, as GPG will
4790 only select an algorithm that is usable by all recipients. The
4791 most highly ranked cipher in this list is also used for the
4792 '--symmetric' encryption command.
4794 '--personal-digest-preferences STRING'
4795 Set the list of personal digest preferences to STRING. Use 'gpg
4796 --version' to get a list of available algorithms, and use 'none' to
4797 set no preference at all. This allows the user to safely override
4798 the algorithm chosen by the recipient key preferences, as GPG will
4799 only select an algorithm that is usable by all recipients. The
4800 most highly ranked digest algorithm in this list is also used when
4801 signing without encryption (e.g. '--clear-sign' or '--sign').
4803 '--personal-compress-preferences STRING'
4804 Set the list of personal compression preferences to STRING. Use
4805 'gpg --version' to get a list of available algorithms, and use
4806 'none' to set no preference at all. This allows the user to safely
4807 override the algorithm chosen by the recipient key preferences, as
4808 GPG will only select an algorithm that is usable by all recipients.
4809 The most highly ranked compression algorithm in this list is also
4810 used when there are no recipient keys to consider (e.g.
4813 '--s2k-cipher-algo NAME'
4814 Use NAME as the cipher algorithm for symmetric encryption with a
4815 passphrase if '--personal-cipher-preferences' and '--cipher-algo'
4816 are not given. The default is AES-128.
4818 '--s2k-digest-algo NAME'
4819 Use NAME as the digest algorithm used to mangle the passphrases for
4820 symmetric encryption. The default is SHA-1.
4823 Selects how passphrases for symmetric encryption are mangled. If N
4824 is 0 a plain passphrase (which is in general not recommended) will
4825 be used, a 1 adds a salt (which should not be used) to the
4826 passphrase and a 3 (the default) iterates the whole process a
4827 number of times (see '--s2k-count').
4830 Specify how many times the passphrases mangling for symmetric
4831 encryption is repeated. This value may range between 1024 and
4832 65011712 inclusive. The default is inquired from gpg-agent. Note
4833 that not all values in the 1024-65011712 range are legal and if an
4834 illegal value is selected, GnuPG will round up to the nearest legal
4835 value. This option is only meaningful if '--s2k-mode' is set to
4839 File: gnupg.info, Node: Compliance Options, Next: GPG Esoteric Options, Prev: OpenPGP Options, Up: GPG Options
4841 4.2.5 Compliance options
4842 ------------------------
4844 These options control what GnuPG is compliant to. Only one of these
4845 options may be active at a time. Note that the default setting of this
4846 is nearly always the correct one. See the INTEROPERABILITY WITH OTHER
4847 OPENPGP PROGRAMS section below before using one of these options.
4850 Use standard GnuPG behavior. This is essentially OpenPGP behavior
4851 (see '--openpgp'), but with extension from the proposed update to
4852 OpenPGP and with some additional workarounds for common
4853 compatibility problems in different versions of PGP. This is the
4854 default option, so it is not generally needed, but it may be useful
4855 to override a different compliance option in the gpg.conf file.
4858 Reset all packet, cipher and digest options to strict OpenPGP
4859 behavior. This option implies '--allow-old-cipher-algos'. Use
4860 this option to reset all previous options like '--s2k-*',
4861 '--cipher-algo', '--digest-algo' and '--compress-algo' to OpenPGP
4862 compliant values. All PGP workarounds are disabled.
4865 Reset all packet, cipher and digest options to strict RFC-4880
4866 behavior. This option implies '--allow-old-cipher-algos'. Note
4867 that this is currently the same thing as '--openpgp'.
4870 Reset all packet, cipher and digest options to strict according to
4871 the proposed updates of RFC-4880.
4874 Reset all packet, cipher and digest options to strict RFC-2440
4875 behavior. Note that by using this option encryption packets are
4876 created in a legacy mode without MDC protection. This is dangerous
4877 and should thus only be used for experiments. This option implies
4878 '--allow-old-cipher-algos'. See also option '--ignore-mdc-error'.
4881 This option is obsolete; it is handled as an alias for '--pgp7'
4884 Set up all options to be as PGP 7 compliant as possible. This
4885 allowed the ciphers IDEA, 3DES, CAST5,AES128, AES192, AES256, and
4886 TWOFISH., the hashes MD5, SHA1 and RIPEMD160, and the compression
4887 algorithms none and ZIP. This option implies '--escape-from-lines'
4888 and disables '--throw-keyids',
4891 Set up all options to be as PGP 8 compliant as possible. PGP 8 is
4892 a lot closer to the OpenPGP standard than previous versions of PGP,
4893 so all this does is disable '--throw-keyids' and set
4894 '--escape-from-lines'. All algorithms are allowed except for the
4895 SHA224, SHA384, and SHA512 digests.
4897 '--compliance STRING'
4898 This option can be used instead of one of the options above. Valid
4899 values for STRING are the above option names (without the double
4900 dash) and possibly others as shown when using "help" for STRING.
4902 '--min-rsa-length N'
4903 This option adjusts the compliance mode "de-vs" for stricter key
4904 size requirements. For example, a value of 3000 turns rsa2048 and
4905 dsa2048 keys into non-VS-NfD compliant keys.
4907 '--require-compliance'
4908 To check that data has been encrypted according to the rules of the
4909 current compliance mode, a gpg user needs to evaluate the status
4910 lines. This is allows frontends to handle compliance check in a
4911 more flexible way. However, for scripted use the required
4912 evaluation of the status-line requires quite some effort; this
4913 option can be used instead to make sure that the gpg process exits
4914 with a failure if the compliance rules are not fulfilled. Note
4915 that this option has currently an effect only in "de-vs" mode.
4918 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Esoteric Options, Next: Deprecated Options, Prev: Compliance Options, Up: GPG Options
4920 4.2.6 Doing things one usually doesn't want to do
4921 -------------------------------------------------
4925 Don't make any changes (this is not completely implemented).
4928 Changes the behaviour of some commands. This is like '--dry-run'
4929 but different in some cases. The semantic of this option may be
4930 extended in the future. Currently it only skips the actual
4931 decryption pass and therefore enables a fast listing of the
4936 Prompt before overwriting any files.
4938 '--debug-level LEVEL'
4939 Select the debug level for investigating problems. LEVEL may be a
4940 numeric value or by a keyword:
4943 No debugging at all. A value of less than 1 may be used
4944 instead of the keyword.
4946 Some basic debug messages. A value between 1 and 2 may be
4947 used instead of the keyword.
4949 More verbose debug messages. A value between 3 and 5 may be
4950 used instead of the keyword.
4952 Even more detailed messages. A value between 6 and 8 may be
4953 used instead of the keyword.
4955 All of the debug messages you can get. A value greater than 8
4956 may be used instead of the keyword. The creation of hash
4957 tracing files is only enabled if the keyword is used.
4959 How these messages are mapped to the actual debugging flags is not
4960 specified and may change with newer releases of this program. They
4961 are however carefully selected to best aid in debugging.
4964 Set debug flags. All flags are or-ed and FLAGS may be given in C
4965 syntax (e.g. 0x0042) or as a comma separated list of flag names.
4966 To get a list of all supported flags the single word "help" can be
4967 used. This option is only useful for debugging and the behavior
4968 may change at any time without notice.
4971 Set all useful debugging flags.
4974 Set stdout into line buffered mode. This option is only honored
4975 when given on the command line.
4977 '--debug-set-iobuf-size N'
4978 Change the buffer size of the IOBUFs to N kilobyte. Using 0 prints
4979 the current size. Note well: This is a maintainer only option and
4980 may thus be changed or removed at any time without notice.
4982 '--debug-allow-large-chunks'
4983 To facilitate software tests and experiments this option allows to
4984 specify a limit of up to 4 EiB ('--chunk-size 62').
4986 '--faked-system-time EPOCH'
4987 This option is only useful for testing; it sets the system time
4988 back or forth to EPOCH which is the number of seconds elapsed since
4989 the year 1970. Alternatively EPOCH may be given as a full ISO time
4990 string (e.g. "20070924T154812").
4992 If you suffix EPOCH with an exclamation mark (!), the system time
4993 will appear to be frozen at the specified time.
4995 '--full-timestrings'
4996 Change the format of printed creation and expiration times from
4997 just the date to the date and time. This is in general not useful
4998 and the same information is anyway available in '--with-colons'
4999 mode. These longer strings are also not well aligned with other
5002 '--enable-progress-filter'
5003 Enable certain PROGRESS status outputs. This option allows
5004 frontends to display a progress indicator while gpg is processing
5005 larger files. There is a slight performance overhead using it.
5008 Write special status strings to the file descriptor N. See the
5009 file DETAILS in the documentation for a listing of them.
5011 '--status-file FILE'
5012 Same as '--status-fd', except the status data is written to file
5016 Write log output to file descriptor N and not to STDERR.
5019 '--logger-file FILE'
5020 Same as '--logger-fd', except the logger data is written to file
5021 FILE. Use 'socket://' to log to s socket.
5024 Write attribute subpackets to the file descriptor N. This is most
5025 useful for use with '--status-fd', since the status messages are
5026 needed to separate out the various subpackets from the stream
5027 delivered to the file descriptor.
5029 '--attribute-file FILE'
5030 Same as '--attribute-fd', except the attribute data is written to
5035 Use STRING as a comment string in cleartext signatures and ASCII
5036 armored messages or keys (see '--armor'). The default behavior is
5037 not to use a comment string. '--comment' may be repeated multiple
5038 times to get multiple comment strings. '--no-comments' removes all
5039 comments. It is a good idea to keep the length of a single comment
5040 below 60 characters to avoid problems with mail programs wrapping
5041 such lines. Note that comment lines, like all other header lines,
5042 are not protected by the signature.
5046 Force inclusion of the version string in ASCII armored output. If
5047 given once only the name of the program and the major number is
5048 emitted, given twice the minor is also emitted, given thrice the
5049 micro is added, and given four times an operating system
5050 identification is also emitted. '--no-emit-version' (default)
5051 disables the version line.
5053 '--sig-notation {NAME=VALUE}'
5054 '--cert-notation {NAME=VALUE}'
5055 '-N, --set-notation {NAME=VALUE}'
5056 Put the name value pair into the signature as notation data. NAME
5057 must consist only of printable characters or spaces, and must
5058 contain a '@' character in the form keyname@domain.example.com
5059 (substituting the appropriate keyname and domain name, of course).
5060 This is to help prevent pollution of the IETF reserved notation
5061 namespace. The '--expert' flag overrides the '@' check. VALUE may
5062 be any printable string; it will be encoded in UTF-8, so you should
5063 check that your '--display-charset' is set correctly. If you
5064 prefix NAME with an exclamation mark (!), the notation data will be
5065 flagged as critical (rfc4880:5.2.3.16). '--sig-notation' sets a
5066 notation for data signatures. '--cert-notation' sets a notation
5067 for key signatures (certifications). '--set-notation' sets both.
5069 There are special codes that may be used in notation names. "%k"
5070 will be expanded into the key ID of the key being signed, "%K" into
5071 the long key ID of the key being signed, "%f" into the fingerprint
5072 of the key being signed, "%s" into the key ID of the key making the
5073 signature, "%S" into the long key ID of the key making the
5074 signature, "%g" into the fingerprint of the key making the
5075 signature (which might be a subkey), "%p" into the fingerprint of
5076 the primary key of the key making the signature, "%c" into the
5077 signature count from the OpenPGP smartcard, and "%%" results in a
5078 single "%". %k, %K, and %f are only meaningful when making a key
5079 signature (certification), and %c is only meaningful when using the
5082 '--known-notation NAME'
5083 Adds NAME to a list of known critical signature notations. The
5084 effect of this is that gpg will not mark a signature with a
5085 critical signature notation of that name as bad. Note that gpg
5086 already knows by default about a few critical signatures notation
5089 '--sig-policy-url STRING'
5090 '--cert-policy-url STRING'
5091 '--set-policy-url STRING'
5092 Use STRING as a Policy URL for signatures (rfc4880:5.2.3.20). If
5093 you prefix it with an exclamation mark (!), the policy URL packet
5094 will be flagged as critical. '--sig-policy-url' sets a policy url
5095 for data signatures. '--cert-policy-url' sets a policy url for key
5096 signatures (certifications). '--set-policy-url' sets both.
5098 The same %-expandos used for notation data are available here as
5101 '--sig-keyserver-url STRING'
5102 Use STRING as a preferred keyserver URL for data signatures. If
5103 you prefix it with an exclamation mark (!), the keyserver URL
5104 packet will be flagged as critical.
5106 The same %-expandos used for notation data are available here as
5109 '--set-filename STRING'
5110 Use STRING as the filename which is stored inside messages. This
5111 overrides the default, which is to use the actual filename of the
5112 file being encrypted. Using the empty string for STRING
5113 effectively removes the filename from the output.
5115 '--for-your-eyes-only'
5116 '--no-for-your-eyes-only'
5117 Set the 'for your eyes only' flag in the message. This causes
5118 GnuPG to refuse to save the file unless the '--output' option is
5119 given, and PGP to use a "secure viewer" with a claimed
5120 Tempest-resistant font to display the message. This option
5121 overrides '--set-filename'. '--no-for-your-eyes-only' disables
5124 '--use-embedded-filename'
5125 '--no-use-embedded-filename'
5126 Try to create a file with a name as embedded in the data. This can
5127 be a dangerous option as it enables overwriting files. Defaults to
5128 no. Note that the option '--output' overrides this option.
5130 '--cipher-algo NAME'
5131 Use NAME as cipher algorithm. Running the program with the command
5132 '--version' yields a list of supported algorithms. If this is not
5133 used the cipher algorithm is selected from the preferences stored
5134 with the key. In general, you do not want to use this option as it
5135 allows you to violate the OpenPGP standard. The option
5136 '--personal-cipher-preferences' is the safe way to accomplish the
5140 Specify that the AEAD algorithm NAME is to be used. This is useful
5141 for symmetric encryption where no key preference are available to
5142 select the AEAD algorithm. Running 'gpg' with option '--version'
5143 shows the available AEAD algorithms. In general, you do not want
5144 to use this option as it allows you to violate the OpenPGP
5145 standard. The option '--personal-aead-preferences' is the safe way
5146 to accomplish the same thing.
5148 '--digest-algo NAME'
5149 Use NAME as the message digest algorithm. Running the program with
5150 the command '--version' yields a list of supported algorithms. In
5151 general, you do not want to use this option as it allows you to
5152 violate the OpenPGP standard. The option
5153 '--personal-digest-preferences' is the safe way to accomplish the
5156 '--compress-algo NAME'
5157 Use compression algorithm NAME. "zlib" is RFC-1950 ZLIB
5158 compression. "zip" is RFC-1951 ZIP compression which is used by
5159 PGP. "bzip2" is a more modern compression scheme that can compress
5160 some things better than zip or zlib, but at the cost of more memory
5161 used during compression and decompression. "uncompressed" or
5162 "none" disables compression. If this option is not used, the
5163 default behavior is to examine the recipient key preferences to see
5164 which algorithms the recipient supports. If all else fails, ZIP is
5165 used for maximum compatibility.
5167 ZLIB may give better compression results than ZIP, as the
5168 compression window size is not limited to 8k. BZIP2 may give even
5169 better compression results than that, but will use a significantly
5170 larger amount of memory while compressing and decompressing. This
5171 may be significant in low memory situations. Note, however, that
5172 PGP (all versions) only supports ZIP compression. Using any
5173 algorithm other than ZIP or "none" will make the message unreadable
5174 with PGP. In general, you do not want to use this option as it
5175 allows you to violate the OpenPGP standard. The option
5176 '--personal-compress-preferences' is the safe way to accomplish the
5179 '--cert-digest-algo NAME'
5180 Use NAME as the message digest algorithm used when signing a key.
5181 Running the program with the command '--version' yields a list of
5182 supported algorithms. Be aware that if you choose an algorithm
5183 that GnuPG supports but other OpenPGP implementations do not, then
5184 some users will not be able to use the key signatures you make, or
5185 quite possibly your entire key. Note also that a public key
5186 algorithm must be compatible with the specified digest algorithm;
5187 thus selecting an arbitrary digest algorithm may result in error
5188 messages from lower crypto layers or lead to security flaws.
5190 '--disable-cipher-algo NAME'
5191 Never allow the use of NAME as cipher algorithm. The given name
5192 will not be checked so that a later loaded algorithm will still get
5195 '--disable-pubkey-algo NAME'
5196 Never allow the use of NAME as public key algorithm. The given
5197 name will not be checked so that a later loaded algorithm will
5202 Do not put the recipient key IDs into encrypted messages. This
5203 helps to hide the receivers of the message and is a limited
5204 countermeasure against traffic analysis.(1) On the receiving side,
5205 it may slow down the decryption process because all available
5206 secret keys must be tried. '--no-throw-keyids' disables this
5207 option. This option is essentially the same as using
5208 '--hidden-recipient' for all recipients.
5210 '--not-dash-escaped'
5211 This option changes the behavior of cleartext signatures so that
5212 they can be used for patch files. You should not send such an
5213 armored file via email because all spaces and line endings are
5214 hashed too. You can not use this option for data which has 5
5215 dashes at the beginning of a line, patch files don't have this. A
5216 special armor header line tells GnuPG about this cleartext
5219 '--escape-from-lines'
5220 '--no-escape-from-lines'
5221 Because some mailers change lines starting with "From " to ">From "
5222 it is good to handle such lines in a special way when creating
5223 cleartext signatures to prevent the mail system from breaking the
5224 signature. Note that all other PGP versions do it this way too.
5225 Enabled by default. '--no-escape-from-lines' disables this option.
5227 '--passphrase-repeat N'
5228 Specify how many times 'gpg' will request a new passphrase be
5229 repeated. This is useful for helping memorize a passphrase.
5230 Defaults to 1 repetition; can be set to 0 to disable any passphrase
5231 repetition. Note that a N greater than 1 will pop up the pinentry
5232 window N+1 times even if a modern pinentry with two entry fields is
5236 Read the passphrase from file descriptor N. Only the first line
5237 will be read from file descriptor N. If you use 0 for N, the
5238 passphrase will be read from STDIN. This can only be used if only
5239 one passphrase is supplied.
5241 Note that since Version 2.0 this passphrase is only used if the
5242 option '--batch' has also been given. Since Version 2.1 the
5243 '--pinentry-mode' also needs to be set to 'loopback'.
5245 '--passphrase-file FILE'
5246 Read the passphrase from file FILE. Only the first line will be
5247 read from file FILE. This can only be used if only one passphrase
5248 is supplied. Obviously, a passphrase stored in a file is of
5249 questionable security if other users can read this file. Don't use
5250 this option if you can avoid it.
5252 Note that since Version 2.0 this passphrase is only used if the
5253 option '--batch' has also been given. Since Version 2.1 the
5254 '--pinentry-mode' also needs to be set to 'loopback'.
5256 '--passphrase STRING'
5257 Use STRING as the passphrase. This can only be used if only one
5258 passphrase is supplied. Obviously, this is of very questionable
5259 security on a multi-user system. Don't use this option if you can
5262 Note that since Version 2.0 this passphrase is only used if the
5263 option '--batch' has also been given. Since Version 2.1 the
5264 '--pinentry-mode' also needs to be set to 'loopback'.
5266 '--pinentry-mode MODE'
5267 Set the pinentry mode to MODE. Allowed values for MODE are:
5269 Use the default of the agent, which is 'ask'.
5271 Force the use of the Pinentry.
5273 Emulate use of Pinentry's cancel button.
5275 Return a Pinentry error ("No Pinentry").
5277 Redirect Pinentry queries to the caller. Note that in
5278 contrast to Pinentry the user is not prompted again if he
5279 enters a bad password.
5282 Disable the passphrase cache used for symmetrical en- and
5283 decryption. This cache is based on the message specific salt value
5286 '--request-origin ORIGIN'
5287 Tell gpg to assume that the operation ultimately originated at
5288 ORIGIN. Depending on the origin certain restrictions are applied
5289 and the Pinentry may include an extra note on the origin.
5290 Supported values for ORIGIN are: 'local' which is the default,
5291 'remote' to indicate a remote origin or 'browser' for an operation
5292 requested by a web browser.
5295 This is a replacement for the deprecated shared-memory IPC mode.
5296 If this option is enabled, user input on questions is not expected
5297 from the TTY but from the given file descriptor. It should be used
5298 together with '--status-fd'. See the file doc/DETAILS in the
5299 source distribution for details on how to use it.
5301 '--command-file FILE'
5302 Same as '--command-fd', except the commands are read out of file
5305 '--allow-non-selfsigned-uid'
5306 '--no-allow-non-selfsigned-uid'
5307 Allow the import and use of keys with user IDs which are not
5308 self-signed. This is not recommended, as a non self-signed user ID
5309 is trivial to forge. '--no-allow-non-selfsigned-uid' disables.
5311 '--allow-freeform-uid'
5312 Disable all checks on the form of the user ID while generating a
5313 new one. This option should only be used in very special
5314 environments as it does not ensure the de-facto standard format of
5317 '--ignore-time-conflict'
5318 GnuPG normally checks that the timestamps associated with keys and
5319 signatures have plausible values. However, sometimes a signature
5320 seems to be older than the key due to clock problems. This option
5321 makes these checks just a warning. See also '--ignore-valid-from'
5322 for timestamp issues on subkeys.
5324 '--ignore-valid-from'
5325 GnuPG normally does not select and use subkeys created in the
5326 future. This option allows the use of such keys and thus exhibits
5327 the pre-1.0.7 behaviour. You should not use this option unless
5328 there is some clock problem. See also '--ignore-time-conflict' for
5329 timestamp issues with signatures.
5331 '--ignore-crc-error'
5332 The ASCII armor used by OpenPGP is protected by a CRC checksum
5333 against transmission errors. Occasionally the CRC gets mangled
5334 somewhere on the transmission channel but the actual content (which
5335 is protected by the OpenPGP protocol anyway) is still okay. This
5336 option allows GnuPG to ignore CRC errors.
5338 '--ignore-mdc-error'
5339 This option changes a MDC integrity protection failure into a
5340 warning. It is required to decrypt old messages which did not use
5341 an MDC. It may also be useful if a message is partially garbled,
5342 but it is necessary to get as much data as possible out of that
5343 garbled message. Be aware that a missing or failed MDC can be an
5344 indication of an attack. Use with great caution; see also option
5347 '--allow-old-cipher-algos'
5348 Old cipher algorithms like 3DES, IDEA, or CAST5 encrypt data using
5349 blocks of 64 bits; modern algorithms use blocks of 128 bit instead.
5350 To avoid certain attack on these old algorithms it is suggested not
5351 to encrypt more than 150 MiByte using the same key. For this
5352 reason gpg does not allow the use of 64 bit block size algorithms
5353 for encryption unless this option is specified.
5355 '--allow-weak-digest-algos'
5356 Signatures made with known-weak digest algorithms are normally
5357 rejected with an "invalid digest algorithm" message. This option
5358 allows the verification of signatures made with such weak
5359 algorithms. MD5 is the only digest algorithm considered weak by
5360 default. See also '--weak-digest' to reject other digest
5363 '--weak-digest NAME'
5364 Treat the specified digest algorithm as weak. Signatures made over
5365 weak digests algorithms are normally rejected. This option can be
5366 supplied multiple times if multiple algorithms should be considered
5367 weak. See also '--allow-weak-digest-algos' to disable rejection of
5368 weak digests. MD5 is always considered weak, and does not need to
5369 be listed explicitly.
5371 '--allow-weak-key-signatures'
5372 To avoid a minor risk of collision attacks on third-party key
5373 signatures made using SHA-1, those key signatures are considered
5374 invalid. This options allows to override this restriction.
5376 '--override-compliance-check'
5377 The signature verification only allows the use of keys suitable in
5378 the current compliance mode. If the compliance mode has been
5379 forced by a global option, there might be no way to check certain
5380 signature. This option allows to override this and prints an extra
5381 warning in such a case. This option is ignored in -batch mode so
5382 that no accidental unattended verification may happen.
5384 '--no-default-keyring'
5385 Do not add the default keyring to the list of keyrings. Note that
5386 GnuPG needs for almost all operations a keyring. Thus if you use
5387 this option and do not provide alternate keyrings via '--keyring',
5388 then GnuPG will still use the default keyring.
5390 Note that if the option 'use-keyboxd' is enabled in 'common.conf',
5391 no keyrings are used at all and keys are all maintained by the
5392 keyboxd process in its own database.
5395 Do not use any keyring at all. This overrides the default and all
5396 options which specify keyrings.
5399 Skip the signature verification step. This may be used to make the
5400 decryption faster if the signature verification is not needed.
5403 Print key listings delimited by colons (like '--with-colons') and
5404 print the public key data.
5408 Same as '--list-keys', but the signatures are listed too. This
5409 command has the same effect as using '--list-keys' with
5410 '--with-sig-list'. Note that in contrast to '--check-signatures'
5411 the key signatures are not verified. This command can be used to
5412 create a list of signing keys missing in the local keyring; for
5415 gpg --list-sigs --with-colons USERID | \
5416 awk -F: '$1=="sig" && $2=="?" {if($13){print $13}else{print $5}}'
5419 Changes the output of the list commands to work faster; this is
5420 achieved by leaving some parts empty. Some applications don't need
5421 the user ID and the trust information given in the listings. By
5422 using this options they can get a faster listing. The exact
5423 behaviour of this option may change in future versions. If you are
5424 missing some information, don't use this option.
5427 This is not for normal use. Use the source to see for what it
5431 This is not for normal use. Use the source to see for what it
5434 '--show-session-key'
5435 Display the session key used for one message. See
5436 '--override-session-key' for the counterpart of this option.
5438 We think that Key Escrow is a Bad Thing; however the user should
5439 have the freedom to decide whether to go to prison or to reveal the
5440 content of one specific message without compromising all messages
5441 ever encrypted for one secret key.
5443 You can also use this option if you receive an encrypted message
5444 which is abusive or offensive, to prove to the administrators of
5445 the messaging system that the ciphertext transmitted corresponds to
5446 an inappropriate plaintext so they can take action against the
5449 '--override-session-key STRING'
5450 '--override-session-key-fd FD'
5451 Don't use the public key but the session key STRING respective the
5452 session key taken from the first line read from file descriptor FD.
5453 The format of this string is the same as the one printed by
5454 '--show-session-key'. This option is normally not used but comes
5455 handy in case someone forces you to reveal the content of an
5456 encrypted message; using this option you can do this without
5457 handing out the secret key. Note that using
5458 '--override-session-key' may reveal the session key to all local
5459 users via the global process table. Often it is useful to combine
5460 this option with '--no-keyring'.
5463 '--no-ask-sig-expire'
5464 When making a data signature, prompt for an expiration time. If
5465 this option is not specified, the expiration time set via
5466 '--default-sig-expire' is used. '--no-ask-sig-expire' disables
5469 '--default-sig-expire'
5470 The default expiration time to use for signature expiration. Valid
5471 values are "0" for no expiration, a number followed by the letter d
5472 (for days), w (for weeks), m (for months), or y (for years) (for
5473 example "2m" for two months, or "5y" for five years), or an
5474 absolute date in the form YYYY-MM-DD. Defaults to "0".
5477 '--no-ask-cert-expire'
5478 When making a key signature, prompt for an expiration time. If
5479 this option is not specified, the expiration time set via
5480 '--default-cert-expire' is used. '--no-ask-cert-expire' disables
5483 '--default-cert-expire'
5484 The default expiration time to use for key signature expiration.
5485 Valid values are "0" for no expiration, a number followed by the
5486 letter d (for days), w (for weeks), m (for months), or y (for
5487 years) (for example "2m" for two months, or "5y" for five years),
5488 or an absolute date in the form YYYY-MM-DD. Defaults to "0".
5490 '--default-new-key-algo STRING'
5491 This option can be used to change the default algorithms for key
5492 generation. The STRING is similar to the arguments required for
5493 the command '--quick-add-key' but slightly different. For example
5494 the current default of '"rsa2048/cert,sign+rsa2048/encr"' (or
5495 '"rsa3072"') can be changed to the value of what we currently call
5496 future default, which is '"ed25519/cert,sign+cv25519/encr"'. You
5497 need to consult the source code to learn the details. Note that
5498 the advanced key generation commands can always be used to specify
5499 a key algorithm directly.
5501 '--no-auto-trust-new-key'
5502 When creating a new key the ownertrust of the new key is set to
5503 ultimate. This option disables this and the user needs to manually
5504 assign an ownertrust value.
5507 This option modifies the behaviour of the commands
5508 '--quick-sign-key', '--quick-lsign-key', and the "sign"
5509 sub-commands of '--edit-key' by forcing the creation of a key
5510 signature, even if one already exists.
5513 This option is intended for use in the global config file to
5514 disallow the use of generate key commands. Those commands will
5515 then fail with the error code for Not Enabled.
5517 '--allow-secret-key-import'
5518 This is an obsolete option and is not used anywhere.
5520 '--allow-multiple-messages'
5521 '--no-allow-multiple-messages'
5522 These are obsolete options; they have no more effect since GnuPG
5525 '--enable-special-filenames'
5526 This option enables a mode in which filenames of the form '-&n',
5527 where n is a non-negative decimal number, refer to the file
5528 descriptor n and not to a file with that name.
5530 '--no-expensive-trust-checks'
5531 Experimental use only.
5533 '--preserve-permissions'
5534 Don't change the permissions of a secret keyring back to user
5535 read/write only. Use this option only if you really know what you
5538 '--default-preference-list STRING'
5539 Set the list of default preferences to STRING. This preference
5540 list is used for new keys and becomes the default for "setpref" in
5541 the '--edit-key' menu.
5543 '--default-keyserver-url NAME'
5544 Set the default keyserver URL to NAME. This keyserver will be used
5545 as the keyserver URL when writing a new self-signature on a key,
5546 which includes key generation and changing preferences.
5549 Display various internal configuration parameters of GnuPG. This
5550 option is intended for external programs that call GnuPG to perform
5551 tasks, and is thus not generally useful. See the file
5552 'doc/DETAILS' in the source distribution for the details of which
5553 configuration items may be listed. '--list-config' is only usable
5554 with '--with-colons' set.
5556 '--list-gcrypt-config'
5557 Display various internal configuration parameters of Libgcrypt.
5560 This command is similar to '--list-config' but in general only
5561 internally used by the 'gpgconf' tool.
5564 This is more or less dummy action. However it parses the
5565 configuration file and returns with failure if the configuration
5566 file would prevent 'gpg' from startup. Thus it may be used to run
5567 a syntax check on the configuration file.
5570 Change the current user to UID which may either be a number or a
5571 name. This can be used from the root account to run gpg for
5572 another user. If UID is not the current UID a standard PATH is set
5573 and the envvar GNUPGHOME is unset. To override the latter the
5574 option '--homedir' can be used. This option has only an effect
5575 when used on the command line. This option has currently no effect
5578 ---------- Footnotes ----------
5580 (1) Using a little social engineering anyone who is able to decrypt
5581 the message can check whether one of the other recipients is the one he
5585 File: gnupg.info, Node: Deprecated Options, Prev: GPG Esoteric Options, Up: GPG Options
5587 4.2.7 Deprecated options
5588 ------------------------
5592 Causes '--list-keys', '--list-signatures', '--list-public-keys',
5593 '--list-secret-keys', and verifying a signature to also display the
5594 photo ID attached to the key, if any. See also '--photo-viewer'.
5595 These options are deprecated. Use '--list-options
5596 [no-]show-photos' and/or '--verify-options [no-]show-photos'
5600 Display the keyring name at the head of key listings to show which
5601 keyring a given key resides on. This option is deprecated: use
5602 '--list-options [no-]show-keyring' instead.
5605 Identical to '--trust-model always'. This option is deprecated.
5608 '--no-show-notation'
5609 Show signature notations in the '--list-signatures' or
5610 '--check-signatures' listings as well as when verifying a signature
5611 with a notation in it. These options are deprecated. Use
5612 '--list-options [no-]show-notation' and/or '--verify-options
5613 [no-]show-notation' instead.
5616 '--no-show-policy-url'
5617 Show policy URLs in the '--list-signatures' or '--check-signatures'
5618 listings as well as when verifying a signature with a policy URL in
5619 it. These options are deprecated. Use '--list-options
5620 [no-]show-policy-url' and/or '--verify-options
5621 [no-]show-policy-url' instead.
5624 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Configuration, Next: GPG Examples, Prev: GPG Options, Up: Invoking GPG
5626 4.3 Configuration files
5627 =======================
5629 There are a few configuration files to control certain aspects of
5630 'gpg''s operation. Unless noted, they are expected in the current home
5631 directory (*note option --homedir::).
5634 This is the standard configuration file read by 'gpg' on startup.
5635 It may contain any valid long option; the leading two dashes may
5636 not be entered and the option may not be abbreviated. This default
5637 name may be changed on the command line (*note gpg-option
5638 --options::). You should backup this file.
5641 This is an optional configuration file read by 'gpg' on startup.
5642 It may contain options pertaining to all components of GnuPG. Its
5643 current main use is for the "use-keyboxd" option.
5645 Note that on larger installations, it is useful to put predefined
5646 files into the directory '/etc/skel/.gnupg' so that newly created users
5647 start up with a working configuration. For existing users a small
5648 helper script is provided to create these files (*note addgnupghome::).
5650 For internal purposes 'gpg' creates and maintains a few other files;
5651 They all live in the current home directory (*note option --homedir::).
5652 Only the 'gpg' program may modify these files.
5655 This is the default home directory which is used if neither the
5656 environment variable 'GNUPGHOME' nor the option '--homedir' is
5659 '~/.gnupg/pubring.gpg'
5660 The public keyring using a legacy format. You should backup this
5663 If this file is not available, 'gpg' defaults to the new keybox
5664 format and creates a file 'pubring.kbx' unless that file already
5665 exists in which case that file will also be used for OpenPGP keys.
5667 Note that in the case that both files, 'pubring.gpg' and
5668 'pubring.kbx' exists but the latter has no OpenPGP keys, the legacy
5669 file 'pubring.gpg' will be used. Take care: GnuPG versions before
5670 2.1 will always use the file 'pubring.gpg' because they do not know
5671 about the new keybox format. In the case that you have to use
5672 GnuPG 1.4 to decrypt archived data you should keep this file.
5674 '~/.gnupg/pubring.gpg.lock'
5675 The lock file for the public keyring.
5677 '~/.gnupg/pubring.kbx'
5678 The public keyring using the new keybox format. This file is
5679 shared with 'gpgsm'. You should backup this file. See above for
5680 the relation between this file and it predecessor.
5682 To convert an existing 'pubring.gpg' file to the keybox format, you
5683 first backup the ownertrust values, then rename 'pubring.gpg' to
5684 'publickeys.backup', so it won’t be recognized by any GnuPG
5685 version, run import, and finally restore the ownertrust values:
5688 $ gpg --export-ownertrust >otrust.lst
5689 $ mv pubring.gpg publickeys.backup
5690 $ gpg --import-options restore --import publickeys.backups
5691 $ gpg --import-ownertrust otrust.lst
5693 '~/.gnupg/pubring.kbx.lock'
5694 The lock file for 'pubring.kbx'.
5696 '~/.gnupg/secring.gpg'
5697 The legacy secret keyring as used by GnuPG versions before 2.1. It
5698 is not used by GnuPG 2.1 and later. You may want to keep it in
5699 case you have to use GnuPG 1.4 to decrypt archived data.
5701 '~/.gnupg/secring.gpg.lock'
5702 The lock file for the legacy secret keyring.
5704 '~/.gnupg/.gpg-v21-migrated'
5705 File indicating that a migration to GnuPG 2.1 has been done.
5707 '~/.gnupg/trustdb.gpg'
5708 The trust database. There is no need to backup this file; it is
5709 better to backup the ownertrust values (*note option
5710 --export-ownertrust::).
5712 '~/.gnupg/trustdb.gpg.lock'
5713 The lock file for the trust database.
5715 '~/.gnupg/random_seed'
5716 A file used to preserve the state of the internal random pool.
5718 '~/.gnupg/openpgp-revocs.d/'
5719 This is the directory where gpg stores pre-generated revocation
5720 certificates. The file name corresponds to the OpenPGP fingerprint
5721 of the respective key. It is suggested to backup those
5722 certificates and if the primary private key is not stored on the
5723 disk to move them to an external storage device. Anyone who can
5724 access these files is able to revoke the corresponding key. You
5725 may want to print them out. You should backup all files in this
5726 directory and take care to keep this backup closed away.
5728 Operation is further controlled by a few environment variables:
5731 Used to locate the default home directory.
5734 If set directory used instead of "~/.gnupg".
5737 This variable is obsolete; it was used by GnuPG versions before
5741 This value is passed via gpg-agent to pinentry. It is useful to
5742 convey extra information to a custom pinentry.
5746 Used to size some displays to the full size of the screen.
5749 Apart from its use by GNU, it is used in the W32 version to
5750 override the language selection done through the Registry. If used
5751 and set to a valid and available language name (LANGID), the file
5752 with the translation is loaded from 'GPGDIR/gnupg.nls/LANGID.mo'.
5753 Here GPGDIR is the directory out of which the gpg binary has been
5754 loaded. If it can't be loaded the Registry is tried and as last
5755 resort the native Windows locale system is used.
5758 This variable is only used by the regression test suite as a helper
5759 under operating systems without proper support to figure out the
5760 name of a process' text file.
5762 When calling the gpg-agent component 'gpg' sends a set of environment
5763 variables to gpg-agent. The names of these variables can be listed
5766 gpg-connect-agent 'getinfo std_env_names' /bye | awk '$1=="D" {print $2}'
5769 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPG Examples, Next: Unattended Usage of GPG, Prev: GPG Configuration, Up: Invoking GPG
5774 gpg -se -r 'Bob' 'file'
5775 sign and encrypt for user Bob
5777 gpg -clear-sign 'file'
5778 make a cleartext signature
5781 make a detached signature
5783 gpg -u 0x12345678 -sb 'file'
5784 make a detached signature with the key 0x12345678
5786 gpg -list-keys 'user_ID'
5789 gpg -fingerprint 'user_ID'
5792 gpg -verify 'pgpfile'
5793 gpg -verify 'sigfile' ['datafile']
5794 Verify the signature of the file but do not output the data unless
5795 requested. The second form is used for detached signatures, where
5796 'sigfile' is the detached signature (either ASCII armored or
5797 binary) and 'datafile' are the signed data; if this is not given,
5798 the name of the file holding the signed data is constructed by
5799 cutting off the extension (".asc" or ".sig") of 'sigfile' or by
5800 asking the user for the filename. If the option '--output' is also
5801 used the signed data is written to the file specified by that
5802 option; use '-' to write the signed data to stdout.
5807 The options '--import-filter' and '--export-filter' use expressions with
5808 this syntax (square brackets indicate an optional part and curly braces
5809 a repetition, white space between the elements are allowed):
5811 [lc] {[{flag}] PROPNAME op VALUE [lc]}
5813 The name of a property (PROPNAME) may only consist of letters, digits
5814 and underscores. The description for the filter type describes which
5815 properties are defined. If an undefined property is used it evaluates
5816 to the empty string. Unless otherwise noted, the VALUE must always be
5817 given and may not be the empty string. No quoting is defined for the
5818 value, thus the value may not contain the strings '&&' or '||', which
5819 are used as logical connection operators. The flag '--' can be used to
5820 remove this restriction.
5822 Numerical values are computed as long int; standard C notation
5823 applies. LC is the logical connection operator; either '&&' for a
5824 conjunction or '||' for a disjunction. A conjunction is assumed at the
5825 begin of an expression. Conjunctions have higher precedence than
5826 disjunctions. If VALUE starts with one of the characters used in any OP
5827 a space after the OP is required.
5829 The supported operators (OP) are:
5832 Substring must match.
5835 Substring must not match.
5838 The full string must match.
5841 The full string must not match.
5844 The numerical value must match.
5847 The numerical value must not match.
5850 The numerical value of the field must be LE than the value.
5853 The numerical value of the field must be LT than the value.
5856 The numerical value of the field must be GT than the value.
5859 The numerical value of the field must be GE than the value.
5862 The string value of the field must be less or equal than the value.
5865 The string value of the field must be less than the value.
5868 The string value of the field must be greater than the value.
5871 The string value of the field must be greater or equal than the
5875 True if value is not empty (no value allowed).
5878 True if value is empty (no value allowed).
5881 Alias for "PROPNAME != 0" (no value allowed).
5884 Alias for "PROPNAME == 0" (no value allowed).
5886 Values for FLAG must be space separated. The supported flags are:
5889 VALUE spans to the end of the expression.
5891 The string match in this part is done case-sensitive.
5893 Leading and trailing spaces are not removed from VALUE. The
5894 optional single space after OP is here required.
5896 The filter options concatenate several specifications for a filter of
5897 the same type. For example the four options in this example:
5899 --import-filter keep-uid="uid =~ Alfa"
5900 --import-filter keep-uid="&& uid !~ Test"
5901 --import-filter keep-uid="|| uid =~ Alpha"
5902 --import-filter keep-uid="uid !~ Test"
5904 which is equivalent to
5907 keep-uid="uid =~ Alfa" && uid !~ Test" || uid =~ Alpha" && "uid !~ Test"
5909 imports only the user ids of a key containing the strings "Alfa" or
5910 "Alpha" but not the string "test".
5915 The program returns 0 if there are no severe errors, 1 if at least a
5916 signature was bad, and other error codes for fatal errors.
5918 Note that signature verification requires exact knowledge of what has
5919 been signed and by whom it has been signed. Using only the return code
5920 is thus not an appropriate way to verify a signature by a script.
5921 Either make proper use or the status codes or use the 'gpgv' tool which
5922 has been designed to make signature verification easy for scripts.
5927 Use a good password for your user account and make sure that all
5928 security issues are always fixed on your machine. Also employ diligent
5929 physical protection to your machine. Consider to use a good passphrase
5930 as a last resort protection to your secret key in the case your machine
5931 gets stolen. It is important that your secret key is never leaked.
5932 Using an easy to carry around token or smartcard with the secret key is
5935 If you are going to verify detached signatures, make sure that the
5936 program knows about it; either give both filenames on the command line
5937 or use '-' to specify STDIN.
5939 For scripted or other unattended use of 'gpg' make sure to use the
5940 machine-parseable interface and not the default interface which is
5941 intended for direct use by humans. The machine-parseable interface
5942 provides a stable and well documented API independent of the locale or
5943 future changes of 'gpg'. To enable this interface use the options
5944 '--with-colons' and '--status-fd'. For certain operations the option
5945 '--command-fd' may come handy too. See this man page and the file
5946 'DETAILS' for the specification of the interface. Note that the GnuPG
5947 "info" pages as well as the PDF version of the GnuPG manual features a
5948 chapter on unattended use of GnuPG. As an alternative the library
5949 'GPGME' can be used as a high-level abstraction on top of that
5952 INTEROPERABILITY WITH OTHER OPENPGP PROGRAMS
5953 ********************************************
5955 GnuPG tries to be a very flexible implementation of the OpenPGP
5956 standard. In particular, GnuPG implements many of the optional parts of
5957 the standard, such as the SHA-512 hash, and the ZLIB and BZIP2
5958 compression algorithms. It is important to be aware that not all
5959 OpenPGP programs implement these optional algorithms and that by forcing
5960 their use via the '--cipher-algo', '--digest-algo',
5961 '--cert-digest-algo', or '--compress-algo' options in GnuPG, it is
5962 possible to create a perfectly valid OpenPGP message, but one that
5963 cannot be read by the intended recipient.
5965 There are dozens of variations of OpenPGP programs available, and
5966 each supports a slightly different subset of these optional algorithms.
5967 For example, until recently, no (unhacked) version of PGP supported the
5968 BLOWFISH cipher algorithm. A message using BLOWFISH simply could not be
5969 read by a PGP user. By default, GnuPG uses the standard OpenPGP
5970 preferences system that will always do the right thing and create
5971 messages that are usable by all recipients, regardless of which OpenPGP
5972 program they use. Only override this safe default if you really know
5975 If you absolutely must override the safe default, or if the
5976 preferences on a given key are invalid for some reason, you are far
5977 better off using the '--pgp6', '--pgp7', or '--pgp8' options. These
5978 options are safe as they do not force any particular algorithms in
5979 violation of OpenPGP, but rather reduce the available algorithms to a
5985 On older systems this program should be installed as setuid(root). This
5986 is necessary to lock memory pages. Locking memory pages prevents the
5987 operating system from writing memory pages (which may contain
5988 passphrases or other sensitive material) to disk. If you get no warning
5989 message about insecure memory your operating system supports locking
5990 without being root. The program drops root privileges as soon as locked
5991 memory is allocated.
5993 Note also that some systems (especially laptops) have the ability to
5994 "suspend to disk" (also known as "safe sleep" or "hibernate"). This
5995 writes all memory to disk before going into a low power or even powered
5996 off mode. Unless measures are taken in the operating system to protect
5997 the saved memory, passphrases or other sensitive material may be
5998 recoverable from it later.
6000 Before you report a bug you should first search the mailing list
6001 archives for similar problems and second check whether such a bug has
6002 already been reported to our bug tracker at <https://bugs.gnupg.org>.
6005 File: gnupg.info, Node: Unattended Usage of GPG, Prev: GPG Examples, Up: Invoking GPG
6007 4.5 Unattended Usage
6008 ====================
6010 'gpg' is often used as a backend engine by other software. To help with
6011 this a machine interface has been defined to have an unambiguous way to
6012 do this. The options '--status-fd' and '--batch' are almost always
6017 * Programmatic use of GnuPG:: Programmatic use of GnuPG
6018 * Ephemeral home directories:: Ephemeral home directories
6019 * The quick key manipulation interface:: The quick key manipulation interface
6020 * Unattended GPG key generation:: Unattended key generation
6023 File: gnupg.info, Node: Programmatic use of GnuPG, Next: Ephemeral home directories, Up: Unattended Usage of GPG
6025 4.5.1 Programmatic use of GnuPG
6026 -------------------------------
6028 Please consider using GPGME instead of calling 'gpg' directly. GPGME
6029 offers a stable, backend-independent interface for many cryptographic
6030 operations. It supports OpenPGP and S/MIME, and also allows interaction
6031 with various GnuPG components.
6033 GPGME provides a C-API, and comes with bindings for C++, Qt, and
6034 Python. Bindings for other languages are available.
6037 File: gnupg.info, Node: Ephemeral home directories, Next: The quick key manipulation interface, Prev: Programmatic use of GnuPG, Up: Unattended Usage of GPG
6039 4.5.2 Ephemeral home directories
6040 --------------------------------
6042 Sometimes you want to contain effects of some operation, for example you
6043 want to import a key to inspect it, but you do not want this key to be
6044 added to your keyring. In earlier versions of GnuPG, it was possible to
6045 specify alternate keyring files for both public and secret keys. In
6046 modern GnuPG versions, however, we changed how secret keys are stored in
6047 order to better protect secret key material, and it was not possible to
6048 preserve this interface.
6050 The preferred way to do this is to use ephemeral home directories.
6051 This technique works across all versions of GnuPG.
6053 Create a temporary directory, create (or copy) a configuration that
6054 meets your needs, make 'gpg' use this directory either using the
6055 environment variable GNUPGHOME, or the option '--homedir'. GPGME
6056 supports this too on a per-context basis, by modifying the engine info
6057 of contexts. Now execute whatever operation you like, import and export
6058 key material as necessary. Once finished, you can delete the directory.
6059 All GnuPG backend services that were started will detect this and shut
6063 File: gnupg.info, Node: The quick key manipulation interface, Next: Unattended GPG key generation, Prev: Ephemeral home directories, Up: Unattended Usage of GPG
6065 4.5.3 The quick key manipulation interface
6066 ------------------------------------------
6068 Recent versions of GnuPG have an interface to manipulate keys without
6069 using the interactive command '--edit-key'. This interface was added
6070 mainly for the benefit of GPGME (please consider using GPGME, see the
6071 manual subsection "Programmatic use of GnuPG"). This interface is
6072 described in the subsection "How to manage your keys".
6075 File: gnupg.info, Node: Unattended GPG key generation, Prev: The quick key manipulation interface, Up: Unattended Usage of GPG
6077 4.5.4 Unattended key generation
6078 -------------------------------
6080 The command '--generate-key' may be used along with the option '--batch'
6081 for unattended key generation. This is the most flexible way of
6082 generating keys, but it is also the most complex one. Consider using
6083 the quick key manipulation interface described in the previous
6084 subsection "The quick key manipulation interface".
6086 The parameters for the key are either read from stdin or given as a
6087 file on the command line. The format of the parameter file is as
6090 * Text only, line length is limited to about 1000 characters.
6091 * UTF-8 encoding must be used to specify non-ASCII characters.
6092 * Empty lines are ignored.
6093 * Leading and trailing white space is ignored.
6094 * A hash sign as the first non white space character indicates a
6096 * Control statements are indicated by a leading percent sign, the
6097 arguments are separated by white space from the keyword.
6098 * Parameters are specified by a keyword, followed by a colon.
6099 Arguments are separated by white space.
6100 * The first parameter must be 'Key-Type'; control statements may be
6102 * The order of the parameters does not matter except for 'Key-Type'
6103 which must be the first parameter. The parameters are only used
6104 for the generated keyblock (primary and subkeys); parameters from
6105 previous sets are not used. Some syntactically checks may be
6107 * Key generation takes place when either the end of the parameter
6108 file is reached, the next 'Key-Type' parameter is encountered or at
6109 the control statement '%commit' is encountered.
6114 Print TEXT as diagnostic.
6117 Suppress actual key generation (useful for syntax checking).
6120 Perform the key generation. Note that an implicit commit is done
6121 at the next Key-Type parameter.
6124 Do not write the key to the default or commandline given keyring
6125 but to FILENAME. This must be given before the first commit to
6126 take place, duplicate specification of the same filename is
6127 ignored, the last filename before a commit is used. The filename
6128 is used until a new filename is used (at commit points) and all
6129 keys are written to that file. If a new filename is given, this
6130 file is created (and overwrites an existing one).
6132 See the previous subsection "Ephemeral home directories" for a more
6133 robust way to contain side-effects.
6136 This option is a no-op for GnuPG 2.1 and later.
6138 See the previous subsection "Ephemeral home directories".
6142 This option is a no-op for GnuPG 2.1 and later.
6145 Using this option allows the creation of keys without any
6146 passphrase protection. This option is mainly intended for
6150 If given the keys are created using a faster and a somewhat less
6151 secure random number generator. This option may be used for keys
6152 which are only used for a short time and do not require full
6153 cryptographic strength. It takes only effect if used together with
6154 the control statement '%no-protection'.
6159 Starts a new parameter block by giving the type of the primary key.
6160 The algorithm must be capable of signing. This is a required
6161 parameter. ALGO may either be an OpenPGP algorithm number or a
6162 string with the algorithm name. The special value 'default' may be
6163 used for ALGO to create the default key type; in this case a
6164 'Key-Usage' shall not be given and 'default' also be used for
6168 The requested length of the generated key in bits. The default is
6169 returned by running the command 'gpg --gpgconf-list'. For ECC keys
6170 this parameter is ignored.
6173 The requested elliptic curve of the generated key. This is a
6174 required parameter for ECC keys. It is ignored for non-ECC keys.
6177 This is optional and used to generate a CSR or certificate for an
6178 already existing key. Key-Length will be ignored when given.
6180 Key-Usage: USAGE-LIST
6181 Space or comma delimited list of key usages. Allowed values are
6182 'encrypt', 'sign', and 'auth'. This is used to generate the key
6183 flags. Please make sure that the algorithm is capable of this
6184 usage. Note that OpenPGP requires that all primary keys are
6185 capable of certification, so no matter what usage is given here,
6186 the 'cert' flag will be on. If no 'Key-Usage' is specified and the
6187 'Key-Type' is not 'default', all allowed usages for that particular
6188 algorithm are used; if it is not given but 'default' is used the
6189 usage will be 'sign'.
6192 This generates a secondary key (subkey). Currently only one subkey
6193 can be handled. See also 'Key-Type' above.
6195 Subkey-Length: NBITS
6196 Length of the secondary key (subkey) in bits. The default is
6197 returned by running the command 'gpg --gpgconf-list'.
6200 Key curve for a subkey; similar to 'Key-Curve'.
6202 Subkey-Usage: USAGE-LIST
6203 Key usage lists for a subkey; similar to 'Key-Usage'.
6206 If you want to specify a passphrase for the secret key, enter it
6207 here. Default is to use the Pinentry dialog to ask for a
6211 Name-Comment: COMMENT
6213 The three parts of a user name. Remember to use UTF-8 encoding
6214 here. If you don't give any of them, no user ID is created.
6216 Expire-Date: ISO-DATE|(NUMBER[d|w|m|y])
6217 Set the expiration date for the key (and the subkey). It may
6218 either be entered in ISO date format (e.g. "20000815T145012") or
6219 as number of days, weeks, month or years after the creation date.
6220 The special notation "seconds=N" is also allowed to specify a
6221 number of seconds since creation. Without a letter days are
6222 assumed. Note that there is no check done on the overflow of the
6223 type used by OpenPGP for timestamps. Thus you better make sure
6224 that the given value make sense. Although OpenPGP works with time
6225 intervals, GnuPG uses an absolute value internally and thus the
6226 last year we can represent is 2105.
6228 Creation-Date: ISO-DATE
6229 Set the creation date of the key as stored in the key information
6230 and which is also part of the fingerprint calculation. Either a
6231 date like "1986-04-26" or a full timestamp like "19860426T042640"
6232 may be used. The time is considered to be UTC. The special
6233 notation "seconds=N" may be used to directly specify a the number
6234 of seconds since Epoch (Unix time). If it is not given the current
6238 Set the cipher, hash, and compression preference values for this
6239 key. This expects the same type of string as the sub-command
6240 'setpref' in the '--edit-key' menu.
6242 Revoker: ALGO:FPR [sensitive]
6243 Add a designated revoker to the generated key. Algo is the public
6244 key algorithm of the designated revoker (i.e. RSA=1, DSA=17, etc.)
6245 FPR is the fingerprint of the designated revoker. The optional
6246 'sensitive' flag marks the designated revoker as sensitive
6247 information. Only v4 keys may be designated revokers.
6250 This is an optional parameter that specifies the preferred
6251 keyserver URL for the key.
6254 This is an optional parameter only used with the status lines
6255 KEY_CREATED and KEY_NOT_CREATED. STRING may be up to 100 characters
6256 and should not contain spaces. It is useful for batch key
6257 generation to associate a key parameter block with a status line.
6259 Here is an example on how to create a key in an ephemeral home
6261 $ export GNUPGHOME="$(mktemp -d)"
6263 %echo Generating a basic OpenPGP key
6268 Name-Real: Joe Tester
6269 Name-Comment: with stupid passphrase
6270 Name-Email: joe@foo.bar
6273 # Do a commit here, so that we can later print "done" :-)
6277 $ gpg --batch --generate-key foo
6279 $ gpg --list-secret-keys
6280 /tmp/tmp.0NQxB74PEf/pubring.kbx
6281 -------------------------------
6282 sec dsa1024 2016-12-16 [SCA]
6283 768E895903FC1C44045C8CB95EEBDB71E9E849D0
6284 uid [ultimate] Joe Tester (with stupid passphrase) <joe@foo.bar>
6285 ssb elg1024 2016-12-16 [E]
6287 If you want to create a key with the default algorithms you would use
6289 %echo Generating a default key
6291 Subkey-Type: default
6292 Name-Real: Joe Tester
6293 Name-Comment: with stupid passphrase
6294 Name-Email: joe@foo.bar
6297 # Do a commit here, so that we can later print "done" :-)
6302 File: gnupg.info, Node: Invoking GPGSM, Next: Invoking SCDAEMON, Prev: Invoking GPG, Up: Top
6307 'gpgsm' is a tool similar to 'gpg' to provide digital encryption and
6308 signing services on X.509 certificates and the CMS protocol. It is
6309 mainly used as a backend for S/MIME mail processing. 'gpgsm' includes a
6310 full featured certificate management and complies with all rules defined
6311 for the German Sphinx project.
6313 *Note Option Index::, for an index to 'GPGSM''s commands and options.
6317 * GPGSM Commands:: List of all commands.
6318 * GPGSM Options:: List of all options.
6319 * GPGSM Configuration:: Configuration files.
6320 * GPGSM Examples:: Some usage examples.
6322 Developer information:
6323 * Unattended Usage:: Using 'gpgsm' from other programs.
6324 * GPGSM Protocol:: The protocol the server mode uses.
6327 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPGSM Commands, Next: GPGSM Options, Up: Invoking GPGSM
6332 Commands are not distinguished from options except for the fact that
6333 only one command is allowed.
6337 * General GPGSM Commands:: Commands not specific to the functionality.
6338 * Operational GPGSM Commands:: Commands to select the type of operation.
6339 * Certificate Management:: How to manage certificates.
6342 File: gnupg.info, Node: General GPGSM Commands, Next: Operational GPGSM Commands, Up: GPGSM Commands
6344 5.1.1 Commands not specific to the function
6345 -------------------------------------------
6348 Print the program version and licensing information. Note that you
6349 cannot abbreviate this command.
6352 Print a usage message summarizing the most useful command-line
6353 options. Note that you cannot abbreviate this command.
6356 Print warranty information. Note that you cannot abbreviate this
6360 Print a list of all available options and commands. Note that you
6361 cannot abbreviate this command.
6364 File: gnupg.info, Node: Operational GPGSM Commands, Next: Certificate Management, Prev: General GPGSM Commands, Up: GPGSM Commands
6366 5.1.2 Commands to select the type of operation
6367 ----------------------------------------------
6370 Perform an encryption. The keys the data is encrypted to must be
6371 set using the option '--recipient'.
6374 Perform a decryption; the type of input is automatically
6375 determined. It may either be in binary form or PEM encoded;
6376 automatic determination of base-64 encoding is not done.
6379 Create a digital signature. The key used is either the fist one
6380 found in the keybox or those set with the '--local-user' option.
6383 Check a signature file for validity. Depending on the arguments a
6384 detached signature may also be checked.
6387 Run in server mode and wait for commands on the 'stdin'.
6389 '--call-dirmngr COMMAND [ARGS]'
6390 Behave as a Dirmngr client issuing the request COMMAND with the
6391 optional list of ARGS. The output of the Dirmngr is printed
6392 stdout. Please note that file names given as arguments should have
6393 an absolute file name (i.e. commencing with '/') because they are
6394 passed verbatim to the Dirmngr and the working directory of the
6395 Dirmngr might not be the same as the one of this client. Currently
6396 it is not possible to pass data via stdin to the Dirmngr. COMMAND
6397 should not contain spaces.
6399 This is command is required for certain maintaining tasks of the
6400 dirmngr where a dirmngr must be able to call back to 'gpgsm'. See
6401 the Dirmngr manual for details.
6403 '--call-protect-tool ARGUMENTS'
6404 Certain maintenance operations are done by an external program call
6405 'gpg-protect-tool'; this is usually not installed in a directory
6406 listed in the PATH variable. This command provides a simple
6407 wrapper to access this tool. ARGUMENTS are passed verbatim to this
6408 command; use '--help' to get a list of supported operations.
6411 File: gnupg.info, Node: Certificate Management, Prev: Operational GPGSM Commands, Up: GPGSM Commands
6413 5.1.3 How to manage the certificates and keys
6414 ---------------------------------------------
6418 This command allows the creation of a certificate signing request
6419 or a self-signed certificate. It is commonly used along with the
6420 '--output' option to save the created CSR or certificate into a
6421 file. If used with the '--batch' a parameter file is used to
6422 create the CSR or certificate and it is further possible to create
6423 non-self-signed certificates.
6427 List all available certificates stored in the local key database.
6428 Note that the displayed data might be reformatted for better human
6429 readability and illegal characters are replaced by safe
6432 '--list-secret-keys'
6434 List all available certificates for which a corresponding a secret
6437 '--list-external-keys PATTERN'
6438 List certificates matching PATTERN using an external server. This
6439 utilizes the 'dirmngr' service.
6442 Same as '--list-keys' but also prints all keys making up the chain.
6446 List all available certificates stored in the local key database
6447 using a format useful mainly for debugging.
6450 Same as '--dump-keys' but also prints all keys making up the chain.
6452 '--dump-secret-keys'
6453 List all available certificates for which a corresponding a secret
6454 key is available using a format useful mainly for debugging.
6456 '--dump-external-keys PATTERN'
6457 List certificates matching PATTERN using an external server. This
6458 utilizes the 'dirmngr' service. It uses a format useful mainly for
6461 '--show-certs [FILES]'
6462 This command takes certificate files as input and prints
6463 information about them in the same format as '--dump-cert' does.
6464 Each file may either contain a single binary certificate or several
6465 PEM encoded certificates. If no files are given, the input is
6468 Please note that the listing format may be changed in future
6469 releases and that the option '--with-colons' has currently no
6472 '--keydb-clear-some-cert-flags'
6473 This is a debugging aid to reset certain flags in the key database
6474 which are used to cache certain certificate statuses. It is
6475 especially useful if a bad CRL or a weird running OCSP responder
6476 did accidentally revoke certificate. There is no security issue
6477 with this command because 'gpgsm' always make sure that the
6478 validity of a certificate is checked right before it is used.
6480 '--delete-keys PATTERN'
6481 Delete the keys matching PATTERN. Note that there is no command to
6482 delete the secret part of the key directly. In case you need to do
6483 this, you should run the command 'gpgsm --dump-secret-keys KEYID'
6484 before you delete the key, copy the string of hex-digits in the
6485 "keygrip" line and delete the file consisting of these hex-digits
6486 and the suffix '.key' from the 'private-keys-v1.d' directory below
6487 our GnuPG home directory (usually '~/.gnupg').
6489 '--export [PATTERN]'
6490 Export all certificates stored in the Keybox or those specified by
6491 the optional PATTERN. Those pattern consist of a list of user ids
6492 (*note how-to-specify-a-user-id::). When used along with the
6493 '--armor' option a few informational lines are prepended before
6494 each block. There is one limitation: As there is no commonly
6495 agreed upon way to pack more than one certificate into an ASN.1
6496 structure, the binary export (i.e. without using 'armor') works
6497 only for the export of one certificate. Thus it is required to
6498 specify a PATTERN which yields exactly one certificate. Ephemeral
6499 certificate are only exported if all PATTERN are given as
6500 fingerprints or keygrips.
6502 '--export-secret-key-p12 KEY-ID'
6503 Export the private key and the certificate identified by KEY-ID
6504 using the PKCS#12 format. When used with the '--armor' option a
6505 few informational lines are prepended to the output. Note, that
6506 the PKCS#12 format is not very secure and proper transport security
6507 should be used to convey the exported key. (*Note option
6510 '--export-secret-key-p8 KEY-ID'
6511 '--export-secret-key-raw KEY-ID'
6512 Export the private key of the certificate identified by KEY-ID with
6513 any encryption stripped. The '...-raw' command exports in PKCS#1
6514 format; the '...-p8' command exports in PKCS#8 format. When used
6515 with the '--armor' option a few informational lines are prepended
6516 to the output. These commands are useful to prepare a key for use
6520 Import the certificates from the PEM or binary encoded files as
6521 well as from signed-only messages. This command may also be used
6522 to import a secret key from a PKCS#12 file.
6525 Read information about the private keys from the smartcard and
6526 import the certificates from there. This command utilizes the
6527 'gpg-agent' and in turn the 'scdaemon'.
6529 '--change-passphrase USER_ID'
6531 Change the passphrase of the private key belonging to the
6532 certificate specified as USER_ID. Note, that changing the
6533 passphrase/PIN of a smartcard is not yet supported.
6536 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPGSM Options, Next: GPGSM Configuration, Prev: GPGSM Commands, Up: Invoking GPGSM
6541 'GPGSM' features a bunch of options to control the exact behaviour and
6542 to change the default configuration.
6546 * Configuration Options:: How to change the configuration.
6547 * Certificate Options:: Certificate related options.
6548 * Input and Output:: Input and Output.
6549 * CMS Options:: How to change how the CMS is created.
6550 * Esoteric Options:: Doing things one usually do not want to do.
6553 File: gnupg.info, Node: Configuration Options, Next: Certificate Options, Up: GPGSM Options
6555 5.2.1 How to change the configuration
6556 -------------------------------------
6558 These options are used to change the configuration and are usually found
6562 Reads configuration from FILE instead of from the default per-user
6563 configuration file. The default configuration file is named
6564 'gpgsm.conf' and expected in the '.gnupg' directory directly below
6565 the home directory of the user.
6568 Set the name of the home directory to DIR. If this option is not
6569 used, the home directory defaults to '~/.gnupg'. It is only
6570 recognized when given on the command line. It also overrides any
6571 home directory stated through the environment variable 'GNUPGHOME'
6572 or (on Windows systems) by means of the Registry entry
6573 HKCU\SOFTWARE\GNU\GNUPG:HOMEDIR.
6575 On Windows systems it is possible to install GnuPG as a portable
6576 application. In this case only this command line option is
6577 considered, all other ways to set a home directory are ignored.
6579 To install GnuPG as a portable application under Windows, create an
6580 empty file named 'gpgconf.ctl' in the same directory as the tool
6581 'gpgconf.exe'. The root of the installation is then that
6582 directory; or, if 'gpgconf.exe' has been installed directly below a
6583 directory named 'bin', its parent directory. You also need to make
6584 sure that the following directories exist and are writable:
6585 'ROOT/home' for the GnuPG home and 'ROOT/usr/local/var/cache/gnupg'
6586 for internal cache files.
6590 Outputs additional information while running. You can increase the
6591 verbosity by giving several verbose commands to 'gpgsm', such as
6594 '--keyserver STRING'
6595 This is a deprecated option. It was used to add an LDAP server to
6596 use for X.509 certificate and CRL lookup. The alias '--ldapserver'
6597 existed from version 2.2.28 to 2.2.33 and 2.3.2 to 2.3.4 but is now
6600 LDAP servers must be given in the configuration for 'dirmngr'.
6602 '--policy-file FILENAME'
6603 Change the default name of the policy file to FILENAME. The
6604 default name is 'policies.txt'.
6606 '--agent-program FILE'
6607 Specify an agent program to be used for secret key operations. The
6608 default value is determined by running the command 'gpgconf'. Note
6609 that the pipe symbol ('|') is used for a regression test suite hack
6610 and may thus not be used in the file name.
6612 '--dirmngr-program FILE'
6613 Specify a dirmngr program to be used for CRL checks. The default
6614 value is '/usr/local/bin/dirmngr'.
6616 '--prefer-system-dirmngr'
6617 This option is obsolete and ignored.
6620 Entirely disable the use of the Dirmngr.
6623 Do not start the gpg-agent or the dirmngr if it has not yet been
6624 started and its service is required. This option is mostly useful
6625 on machines where the connection to gpg-agent has been redirected
6626 to another machines. If dirmngr is required on the remote machine,
6627 it may be started manually using 'gpgconf --launch dirmngr'.
6629 '--no-secmem-warning'
6630 Do not print a warning when the so called "secure memory" cannot be
6634 When running in server mode, append all logging output to FILE.
6635 Use 'socket://' to log to socket.
6638 File: gnupg.info, Node: Certificate Options, Next: Input and Output, Prev: Configuration Options, Up: GPGSM Options
6640 5.2.2 Certificate related options
6641 ---------------------------------
6643 '--enable-policy-checks'
6644 '--disable-policy-checks'
6645 By default policy checks are enabled. These options may be used to
6648 '--enable-crl-checks'
6649 '--disable-crl-checks'
6650 By default the CRL checks are enabled and the DirMngr is used to
6651 check for revoked certificates. The disable option is most useful
6652 with an off-line network connection to suppress this check and also
6653 to avoid that new certificates introduce a web bug by including a
6654 certificate specific CRL DP. The disable option also disables an
6655 issuer certificate lookup via the authorityInfoAccess property of
6656 the certificate; the '--enable-issuer-key-retrieve' can be used to
6657 make use of that property anyway.
6659 '--enable-trusted-cert-crl-check'
6660 '--disable-trusted-cert-crl-check'
6661 By default the CRL for trusted root certificates are checked like
6662 for any other certificates. This allows a CA to revoke its own
6663 certificates voluntary without the need of putting all ever issued
6664 certificates into a CRL. The disable option may be used to switch
6665 this extra check off. Due to the caching done by the Dirmngr,
6666 there will not be any noticeable performance gain. Note, that this
6667 also disables possible OCSP checks for trusted root certificates.
6668 A more specific way of disabling this check is by adding the
6669 "relax" keyword to the root CA line of the 'trustlist.txt'
6671 '--force-crl-refresh'
6672 Tell the dirmngr to reload the CRL for each request. For better
6673 performance, the dirmngr will actually optimize this by suppressing
6674 the loading for short time intervals (e.g. 30 minutes). This
6675 option is useful to make sure that a fresh CRL is available for
6676 certificates hold in the keybox. The suggested way of doing this
6677 is by using it along with the option '--with-validation' for a key
6678 listing command. This option should not be used in a configuration
6681 '--enable-issuer-based-crl-check'
6682 Run a CRL check even for certificates which do not have any CRL
6683 distribution point. This requires that a suitable LDAP server has
6684 been configured in Dirmngr and that the CRL can be found using the
6685 issuer. This option reverts to what GnuPG did up to version
6686 2.2.20. This option is in general not useful.
6690 By default OCSP checks are disabled. The enable option may be used
6691 to enable OCSP checks via Dirmngr. If CRL checks are also enabled,
6692 CRLs will be used as a fallback if for some reason an OCSP request
6693 will not succeed. Note, that you have to allow OCSP requests in
6694 Dirmngr's configuration too (option '--allow-ocsp') and configure
6695 Dirmngr properly. If you do not do so you will get the error code
6698 '--auto-issuer-key-retrieve'
6699 If a required certificate is missing while validating the chain of
6700 certificates, try to load that certificate from an external
6701 location. This usually means that Dirmngr is employed to search
6702 for the certificate. Note that this option makes a "web bug" like
6703 behavior possible. LDAP server operators can see which keys you
6704 request, so by sending you a message signed by a brand new key
6705 (which you naturally will not have on your local keybox), the
6706 operator can tell both your IP address and the time when you
6707 verified the signature.
6709 '--validation-model NAME'
6710 This option changes the default validation model. The only
6711 possible values are "shell" (which is the default), "chain" which
6712 forces the use of the chain model and "steed" for a new simplified
6713 model. The chain model is also used if an option in the
6714 'trustlist.txt' or an attribute of the certificate requests it.
6715 However the standard model (shell) is in that case always tried
6718 '--ignore-cert-extension OID'
6719 Add OID to the list of ignored certificate extensions. The OID is
6720 expected to be in dotted decimal form, like '2.5.29.3'. This
6721 option may be used more than once. Critical flagged certificate
6722 extensions matching one of the OIDs in the list are treated as if
6723 they are actually handled and thus the certificate will not be
6724 rejected due to an unknown critical extension. Use this option
6725 with care because extensions are usually flagged as critical for a
6729 File: gnupg.info, Node: Input and Output, Next: CMS Options, Prev: Certificate Options, Up: GPGSM Options
6731 5.2.3 Input and Output
6732 ----------------------
6736 Create PEM encoded output. Default is binary output.
6739 Create Base-64 encoded output; i.e. PEM without the header lines.
6742 Assume the input data is PEM encoded. Default is to autodetect the
6743 encoding but this is may fail.
6746 Assume the input data is plain base-64 encoded.
6749 Assume the input data is binary encoded.
6751 '--p12-charset NAME'
6752 'gpgsm' uses the UTF-8 encoding when encoding passphrases for
6753 PKCS#12 files. This option may be used to force the passphrase to
6754 be encoded in the specified encoding NAME. This is useful if the
6755 application used to import the key uses a different encoding and
6756 thus will not be able to import a file generated by 'gpgsm'.
6757 Commonly used values for NAME are 'Latin1' and 'CP850'. Note that
6758 'gpgsm' itself automagically imports any file with a passphrase
6759 encoded to the most commonly used encodings.
6761 '--default-key USER_ID'
6762 Use USER_ID as the standard key for signing. This key is used if
6763 no other key has been defined as a signing key. Note, that the
6764 first '--local-users' option also sets this key if it has not yet
6765 been set; however '--default-key' always overrides this.
6767 '--local-user USER_ID'
6769 Set the user(s) to be used for signing. The default is the first
6770 secret key found in the database.
6774 Encrypt to the user id NAME. There are several ways a user id may
6775 be given (*note how-to-specify-a-user-id::).
6779 Write output to FILE. The default is to write it to stdout.
6782 Displays extra information with the '--list-keys' commands.
6783 Especially a line tagged 'grp' is printed which tells you the
6784 keygrip of a key. This string is for example used as the file name
6785 of the secret key. Implies '--with-colons'.
6788 When doing a key listing, do a full validation check for each key
6789 and print the result. This is usually a slow operation because it
6790 requires a CRL lookup and other operations.
6792 When used along with '--import', a validation of the certificate to
6793 import is done and only imported if it succeeds the test. Note
6794 that this does not affect an already available certificate in the
6795 DB. This option is therefore useful to simply verify a certificate.
6797 '--with-md5-fingerprint'
6798 For standard key listings, also print the MD5 fingerprint of the
6802 Include the keygrip in standard key listings. Note that the
6803 keygrip is always listed in '--with-colons' mode.
6806 Include info about the presence of a secret key in public key
6807 listings done with '--with-colons'.
6810 File: gnupg.info, Node: CMS Options, Next: Esoteric Options, Prev: Input and Output, Up: GPGSM Options
6812 5.2.4 How to change how the CMS is created
6813 ------------------------------------------
6816 Using N of -2 includes all certificate except for the root cert, -1
6817 includes all certs, 0 does not include any certs, 1 includes only
6818 the signers cert and all other positive values include up to N
6819 certificates starting with the signer cert. The default is -2.
6822 Use the cipher algorithm with the ASN.1 object identifier OID for
6823 encryption. For convenience the strings '3DES', 'AES' and 'AES256'
6824 may be used instead of their OIDs. The default is 'AES'
6825 (2.16.840.1.101.3.4.1.2).
6827 '--digest-algo name'
6828 Use 'name' as the message digest algorithm. Usually this algorithm
6829 is deduced from the respective signing certificate. This option
6830 forces the use of the given algorithm and may lead to severe
6831 interoperability problems.
6834 File: gnupg.info, Node: Esoteric Options, Prev: CMS Options, Up: GPGSM Options
6836 5.2.5 Doing things one usually do not want to do
6837 ------------------------------------------------
6840 Change the current user to UID which may either be a number or a
6841 name. This can be used from the root account to run gpgsm for
6842 another user. If UID is not the current UID a standard PATH is set
6843 and the envvar GNUPGHOME is unset. To override the latter the
6844 option '--homedir' can be used. This option has only an effect
6845 when used on the command line. This option has currently no effect
6848 '--extra-digest-algo NAME'
6849 Sometimes signatures are broken in that they announce a different
6850 digest algorithm than actually used. 'gpgsm' uses a one-pass data
6851 processing model and thus needs to rely on the announced digest
6852 algorithms to properly hash the data. As a workaround this option
6853 may be used to tell 'gpgsm' to also hash the data using the
6854 algorithm NAME; this slows processing down a little bit but allows
6855 verification of such broken signatures. If 'gpgsm' prints an error
6856 like "digest algo 8 has not been enabled" you may want to try this
6857 option, with 'SHA256' for NAME.
6859 '--compliance STRING'
6860 Set the compliance mode. Valid values are shown when using "help"
6863 '--min-rsa-length N'
6864 This option adjusts the compliance mode "de-vs" for stricter key
6865 size requirements. For example, a value of 3000 turns rsa2048 and
6866 dsa2048 keys into non-VS-NfD compliant keys.
6868 '--require-compliance'
6869 To check that data has been encrypted according to the rules of the
6870 current compliance mode, a gpgsm user needs to evaluate the status
6871 lines. This is allows frontends to handle compliance check in a
6872 more flexible way. However, for scripted use the required
6873 evaluation of the status-line requires quite some effort; this
6874 option can be used instead to make sure that the gpgsm process
6875 exits with a failure if the compliance rules are not fulfilled.
6876 Note that this option has currently an effect only in "de-vs" mode.
6878 '--ignore-cert-with-oid OID'
6879 Add OID to the list of OIDs to be checked while reading
6880 certificates from smartcards. The OID is expected to be in dotted
6881 decimal form, like '2.5.29.3'. This option may be used more than
6882 once. As of now certificates with an extended key usage matching
6883 one of those OIDs are ignored during a '--learn-card' operation and
6884 not imported. This option can help to keep the local key database
6885 clear of unneeded certificates stored on smartcards.
6887 '--faked-system-time EPOCH'
6888 This option is only useful for testing; it sets the system time
6889 back or forth to EPOCH which is the number of seconds elapsed since
6890 the year 1970. Alternatively EPOCH may be given as a full ISO time
6891 string (e.g. "20070924T154812").
6893 '--with-ephemeral-keys'
6894 Include ephemeral flagged keys in the output of key listings. Note
6895 that they are included anyway if the key specification for a
6896 listing is given as fingerprint or keygrip.
6898 '--debug-level LEVEL'
6899 Select the debug level for investigating problems. LEVEL may be a
6900 numeric value or by a keyword:
6903 No debugging at all. A value of less than 1 may be used
6904 instead of the keyword.
6906 Some basic debug messages. A value between 1 and 2 may be
6907 used instead of the keyword.
6909 More verbose debug messages. A value between 3 and 5 may be
6910 used instead of the keyword.
6912 Even more detailed messages. A value between 6 and 8 may be
6913 used instead of the keyword.
6915 All of the debug messages you can get. A value greater than 8
6916 may be used instead of the keyword. The creation of hash
6917 tracing files is only enabled if the keyword is used.
6919 How these messages are mapped to the actual debugging flags is not
6920 specified and may change with newer releases of this program. They
6921 are however carefully selected to best aid in debugging.
6924 Set debug flags. All flags are or-ed and FLAGS may be given in C
6925 syntax (e.g. 0x0042) or as a comma separated list of flag names.
6926 To get a list of all supported flags the single word "help" can be
6927 used. This option is only useful for debugging and the behavior
6928 may change at any time without notice.
6930 Note, that all flags set using this option may get overridden by
6934 Same as '--debug=0xffffffff'
6936 '--debug-allow-core-dump'
6937 Usually 'gpgsm' tries to avoid dumping core by well written code
6938 and by disabling core dumps for security reasons. However, bugs
6939 are pretty durable beasts and to squash them it is sometimes useful
6940 to have a core dump. This option enables core dumps unless the Bad
6941 Thing happened before the option parsing.
6943 '--debug-no-chain-validation'
6944 This is actually not a debugging option but only useful as such.
6945 It lets 'gpgsm' bypass all certificate chain validation checks.
6947 '--debug-ignore-expiration'
6948 This is actually not a debugging option but only useful as such.
6949 It lets 'gpgsm' ignore all notAfter dates, this is used by the
6953 Read the passphrase from file descriptor 'n'. Only the first line
6954 will be read from file descriptor 'n'. If you use 0 for 'n', the
6955 passphrase will be read from STDIN. This can only be used if only
6956 one passphrase is supplied.
6958 Note that this passphrase is only used if the option '--batch' has
6961 '--pinentry-mode mode'
6962 Set the pinentry mode to 'mode'. Allowed values for 'mode' are:
6964 Use the default of the agent, which is 'ask'.
6966 Force the use of the Pinentry.
6968 Emulate use of Pinentry's cancel button.
6970 Return a Pinentry error ("No Pinentry").
6972 Redirect Pinentry queries to the caller. Note that in
6973 contrast to Pinentry the user is not prompted again if he
6974 enters a bad password.
6976 '--request-origin ORIGIN'
6977 Tell gpgsm to assume that the operation ultimately originated at
6978 ORIGIN. Depending on the origin certain restrictions are applied
6979 and the Pinentry may include an extra note on the origin.
6980 Supported values for ORIGIN are: 'local' which is the default,
6981 'remote' to indicate a remote origin or 'browser' for an operation
6982 requested by a web browser.
6984 '--no-common-certs-import'
6985 Suppress the import of common certificates on keybox creation.
6987 All the long options may also be given in the configuration file
6988 after stripping off the two leading dashes.
6991 File: gnupg.info, Node: GPGSM Configuration, Next: GPGSM Examples, Prev: GPGSM Options, Up: Invoking GPGSM
6993 5.3 Configuration files
6994 =======================
6996 There are a few configuration files to control certain aspects of
6997 'gpgsm''s operation. Unless noted, they are expected in the current
6998 home directory (*note option --homedir::).
7001 This is the standard configuration file read by 'gpgsm' on startup.
7002 It may contain any valid long option; the leading two dashes may
7003 not be entered and the option may not be abbreviated. This default
7004 name may be changed on the command line (*note gpgsm-option
7005 --options::). You should backup this file.
7008 This is an optional configuration file read by 'gpgsm' on startup.
7009 It may contain options pertaining to all components of GnuPG. Its
7010 current main use is for the "use-keyboxd" option.
7013 This is a list of allowed CA policies. This file should list the
7014 object identifiers of the policies line by line. Empty lines and
7015 lines starting with a hash mark are ignored. Policies missing in
7016 this file and not marked as critical in the certificate will print
7017 only a warning; certificates with policies marked as critical and
7018 not listed in this file will fail the signature verification. You
7019 should backup this file.
7021 For example, to allow only the policy 2.289.9.9, the file should
7028 This is the list of root certificates used for qualified
7029 certificates. They are defined as certificates capable of creating
7030 legally binding signatures in the same way as handwritten
7031 signatures are. Comments start with a hash mark and empty lines
7032 are ignored. Lines do have a length limit but this is not a
7033 serious limitation as the format of the entries is fixed and
7034 checked by 'gpgsm': A non-comment line starts with optional
7035 whitespace, followed by exactly 40 hex characters, white space and
7036 a lowercased 2 letter country code. Additional data delimited with
7037 by a white space is current ignored but might late be used for
7040 Note that even if a certificate is listed in this file, this does
7041 not mean that the certificate is trusted; in general the
7042 certificates listed in this file need to be listed also in
7043 'trustlist.txt'. This is a global file an installed in the sysconf
7044 directory (e.g. '/etc/gnupg/qualified.txt').
7046 Every time 'gpgsm' uses a certificate for signing or verification
7047 this file will be consulted to check whether the certificate under
7048 question has ultimately been issued by one of these CAs. If this
7049 is the case the user will be informed that the verified signature
7050 represents a legally binding ("qualified") signature. When
7051 creating a signature using such a certificate an extra prompt will
7052 be issued to let the user confirm that such a legally binding
7053 signature shall really be created.
7055 Because this software has not yet been approved for use with such
7056 certificates, appropriate notices will be shown to indicate this
7060 This is plain text file with a few help entries used with
7061 'pinentry' as well as a large list of help items for 'gpg' and
7062 'gpgsm'. The standard file has English help texts; to install
7063 localized versions use filenames like 'help.LL.txt' with LL
7064 denoting the locale. GnuPG comes with a set of predefined help
7065 files in the data directory (e.g.
7066 '/usr/local/share/gnupg/gnupg/help.de.txt') and allows overriding
7067 of any help item by help files stored in the system configuration
7068 directory (e.g. '/etc/gnupg/help.de.txt'). For a reference of the
7069 help file's syntax, please see the installed 'help.txt' file.
7072 This file is a collection of common certificates used to populated
7073 a newly created 'pubring.kbx'. An administrator may replace this
7074 file with a custom one. The format is a concatenation of PEM
7075 encoded X.509 certificates. This global file is installed in the
7076 data directory (e.g. '/usr/local/share/gnupg/com-certs.pem').
7078 Note that on larger installations, it is useful to put predefined
7079 files into the directory '/etc/skel/.gnupg/' so that newly created users
7080 start up with a working configuration. For existing users a small
7081 helper script is provided to create these files (*note addgnupghome::).
7083 For internal purposes 'gpgsm' creates and maintains a few other
7084 files; they all live in the current home directory (*note option
7085 --homedir::). Only 'gpgsm' may modify these files.
7088 This a database file storing the certificates as well as meta
7089 information. For debugging purposes the tool 'kbxutil' may be used
7090 to show the internal structure of this file. You should backup
7094 This content of this file is used to maintain the internal state of
7095 the random number generator across invocations. The same file is
7096 used by other programs of this software too.
7099 If this file exists 'gpgsm' will first try to connect to this
7100 socket for accessing 'gpg-agent' before starting a new 'gpg-agent'
7101 instance. Under Windows this socket (which in reality be a plain
7102 file describing a regular TCP listening port) is the standard way
7103 of connecting the 'gpg-agent'.