1 <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
2 <!DOCTYPE refentry PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.2//EN"
3 "http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.2/docbookx.dtd" [
4 <!ENTITY date SYSTEM "date.xml">
5 <!ENTITY version SYSTEM "version.xml">
8 <refentry id="certutil">
12 <title>NSS Security Tools</title>
13 <productname>nss-tools</productname>
14 <productnumber>&version;</productnumber>
18 <refentrytitle>CERTUTIL</refentrytitle>
19 <manvolnum>1</manvolnum>
23 <refname>certutil</refname>
24 <refpurpose>Manage keys and certificate in both NSS databases and other NSS tokens</refpurpose>
29 <command>certutil</command>
30 <arg><replaceable>options</replaceable></arg>
31 <arg>[<replaceable>arguments</replaceable>]</arg>
37 <para>This documentation is still work in progress. Please contribute to the initial review in <ulink url="https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=836477">Mozilla NSS bug 836477</ulink>
41 <refsection id="description">
42 <title>Description</title>
44 <para>The Certificate Database Tool, <command>certutil</command>, is a command-line utility that can create and modify certificate and key databases. It can specifically list, generate, modify, or delete certificates, create or change the password, generate new public and private key pairs, display the contents of the key database, or delete key pairs within the key database.</para>
45 <para>Certificate issuance, part of the key and certificate management process, requires that keys and certificates be created in the key database. This document discusses certificate and key database management. For information on the security module database management, see the <command>modutil</command> manpage.</para>
49 <refsection id="options">
50 <title>Command Options and Arguments</title>
51 <para>Running <command>certutil</command> always requires one and only one command option to specify the type of certificate operation. Each command option may take zero or more arguments. The command option <option>-H</option> will list all the command options and their relevant arguments.</para>
52 <para><command>Command Options</command></para>
57 <listitem><para>Add an existing certificate to a certificate database. The certificate database should already exist; if one is not present, this command option will initialize one by default.</para></listitem>
62 <listitem><para>Run a series of commands from the specified batch file. This requires the <option>-i</option> argument.</para></listitem>
67 <listitem><para>Create a new binary certificate file from a binary certificate request file. Use the <option>-i</option> argument to specify the certificate request file. If this argument is not used, <command>certutil</command> prompts for a filename. </para></listitem>
72 <listitem><para>Delete a certificate from the certificate database.</para></listitem>
77 <listitem><para>Add an email certificate to the certificate database.</para></listitem>
82 <listitem><para>Delete a private key from a key database. Specify the key to delete with the -n argument. Specify the database from which to delete the key with the
83 <option>-d</option> argument. Use the <option>-k</option> argument to specify explicitly whether to delete a DSA, RSA, or ECC key. If you don't use the <option>-k</option> argument, the option looks for an RSA key matching the specified nickname.
86 When you delete keys, be sure to also remove any certificates associated with those keys from the certificate database, by using -D. Some smart cards do not let you remove a public key you have generated. In such a case, only the private key is deleted from the key pair. You can display the public key with the command certutil -K -h tokenname. </para></listitem>
91 <listitem><para>Generate a new public and private key pair within a key database. The key database should already exist; if one is not present, this command option will initialize one by default. Some smart cards can store only one key pair. If you create a new key pair for such a card, the previous pair is overwritten.</para></listitem>
96 <listitem><para>Display a list of the command options and arguments.</para></listitem>
101 <listitem><para>List the key ID of keys in the key database. A key ID is the modulus of the RSA key or the publicValue of the DSA key. IDs are displayed in hexadecimal ("0x" is not shown).</para></listitem>
106 <listitem><para>List all the certificates, or display information about a named certificate, in a certificate database.
107 Use the -h tokenname argument to specify the certificate database on a particular hardware or software token.</para></listitem>
112 <listitem><para>Modify a certificate's trust attributes using the values of the -t argument.</para></listitem>
117 <listitem><para>Create new certificate and key databases.</para></listitem>
122 <listitem><para>Print the certificate chain.</para></listitem>
127 <listitem><para>Create a certificate request file that can be submitted to a Certificate Authority (CA) for processing into a finished certificate. Output defaults to standard out unless you use -o output-file argument.
129 Use the -a argument to specify ASCII output.</para></listitem>
134 <listitem><para>Create an individual certificate and add it to a certificate database.</para></listitem>
139 <listitem><para>Reset the key database or token.</para></listitem>
144 <listitem><para>List all available modules or print a single named module.</para></listitem>
149 <listitem><para>Check the validity of a certificate and its attributes.</para></listitem>
154 <listitem><para>Change the password to a key database.</para></listitem>
159 <listitem><para>Merge two databases into one.</para></listitem>
163 <term>--upgrade-merge</term>
164 <listitem><para>Upgrade an old database and merge it into a new database. This is used to migrate legacy NSS databases (<filename>cert8.db</filename> and <filename>key3.db</filename>) into the newer SQLite databases (<filename>cert9.db</filename> and <filename>key4.db</filename>).</para></listitem>
168 <para><command>Arguments</command></para>
169 <para>Arguments modify a command option and are usually lower case, numbers, or symbols.</para>
173 <listitem><para>Use ASCII format or allow the use of ASCII format for input or output. This formatting follows RFC 1113.
174 For certificate requests, ASCII output defaults to standard output unless redirected.</para></listitem>
178 <term>-b validity-time</term>
179 <listitem><para>Specify a time at which a certificate is required to be valid. Use when checking certificate validity with the <option>-V</option> option. The format of the <emphasis>validity-time</emphasis> argument is <emphasis>YYMMDDHHMMSS[+HHMM|-HHMM|Z]</emphasis>, which allows offsets to be set relative to the validity end time. Specifying seconds (<emphasis>SS</emphasis>) is optional. When specifying an explicit time, use a Z at the end of the term, <emphasis>YYMMDDHHMMSSZ</emphasis>, to close it. When specifying an offset time, use <emphasis>YYMMDDHHMMSS+HHMM</emphasis> or <emphasis>YYMMDDHHMMSS-HHMM</emphasis> for adding or subtracting time, respectively.
182 If this option is not used, the validity check defaults to the current system time.</para></listitem>
186 <term>-c issuer</term>
187 <listitem><para>Identify the certificate of the CA from which a new certificate will derive its authenticity.
188 Use the exact nickname or alias of the CA certificate, or use the CA's email address. Bracket the issuer string
189 with quotation marks if it contains spaces. </para></listitem>
193 <term>-d [prefix]directory</term>
195 <para>Specify the database directory containing the certificate and key database files.</para>
196 <para><command>certutil</command> supports two types of databases: the legacy security databases (<filename>cert8.db</filename>, <filename>key3.db</filename>, and <filename>secmod.db</filename>) and new SQLite databases (<filename>cert9.db</filename>, <filename>key4.db</filename>, and <filename>pkcs11.txt</filename>). </para>
197 <para>NSS recognizes the following prefixes:</para>
199 <listitem><para><command>sql:</command> requests the newer database</para></listitem>
200 <listitem><para><command>dbm:</command> requests the legacy database</para></listitem>
202 <para>If no prefix is specified the default type is retrieved from NSS_DEFAULT_DB_TYPE. If NSS_DEFAULT_DB_TYPE is not set then <command>dbm:</command> is the default.</para>
207 <term>--dump-ext-val OID </term>
208 <listitem><para>For single cert, print binary DER encoding of extension OID.</para></listitem>
213 <listitem><para>Check a certificate's signature during the process of validating a certificate.</para></listitem>
217 <term>--email email-address</term>
218 <listitem><para>Specify the email address of a certificate to list. Used with the -L command option.</para></listitem>
222 <term>--extGeneric OID:critical-flag:filename[,OID:critical-flag:filename]... </term>
225 Add one or multiple extensions that certutil cannot encode yet, by loading their encodings from external files.
229 <para>OID (example): 1.2.3.4</para>
232 <para>critical-flag: critical or not-critical</para>
235 <para>filename: full path to a file containing an encoded extension</para>
242 <term>-f password-file</term>
243 <listitem><para>Specify a file that will automatically supply the password to include in a certificate
244 or to access a certificate database. This is a plain-text file containing one password. Be sure to prevent
245 unauthorized access to this file.</para></listitem>
249 <term>-g keysize</term>
250 <listitem><para>Set a key size to use when generating new public and private key pairs. The minimum is 512 bits and the maximum is 16384 bits. The default is 1024 bits. Any size between the minimum and maximum is allowed.</para></listitem>
255 <term>-h tokenname</term>
256 <listitem><para>Specify the name of a token to use or act on. If not specified the default token is the internal database slot.</para></listitem>
260 <term>-i input_file</term>
261 <listitem><para>Pass an input file to the command. Depending on the command option, an input file can be a specific certificate, a certificate request file, or a batch file of commands.</para></listitem>
265 <term>-k key-type-or-id</term>
267 <para>Specify the type or specific ID of a key.</para>
269 The valid key type options are rsa, dsa, ec, or all. The default
270 value is rsa. Specifying the type of key can avoid mistakes caused by
271 duplicate nicknames. Giving a key type generates a new key pair;
272 giving the ID of an existing key reuses that key pair (which is
273 required to renew certificates).
280 <listitem><para>Display detailed information when validating a certificate with the -V option.</para></listitem>
284 <term>-m serial-number</term>
285 <listitem><para>Assign a unique serial number to a certificate being created. This operation should be performed by a CA. If no serial number is provided a default serial number is made from the current time. Serial numbers are limited to integers </para></listitem>
289 <term>-n nickname</term>
290 <listitem><para>Specify the nickname of a certificate or key to list, create, add to a database, modify, or validate. Bracket the nickname string with quotation marks if it contains spaces.</para></listitem>
294 <term>-o output-file</term>
295 <listitem><para>Specify the output file name for new certificates or binary certificate requests. Bracket the output-file string with quotation marks if it contains spaces. If this argument is not used the output destination defaults to standard output.</para></listitem>
299 <term>-P dbPrefix</term>
300 <listitem><para>Specify the prefix used on the certificate and key database file. This argument is provided to support legacy servers. Most applications do not use a database prefix.</para></listitem>
304 <term>-p phone</term>
305 <listitem><para>Specify a contact telephone number to include in new certificates or certificate requests. Bracket this string with quotation marks if it contains spaces.</para></listitem>
309 <term>-q pqgfile or curve-name</term>
311 <para>Read an alternate PQG value from the specified file when generating DSA key pairs. If this argument is not used, <command>certutil</command> generates its own PQG value. PQG files are created with a separate DSA utility.</para>
312 <para>Elliptic curve name is one of the ones from SUITE B: nistp256, nistp384, nistp521</para>
314 If NSS has been compiled with support curves outside of SUITE B:
315 sect163k1, nistk163, sect163r1, sect163r2,
316 nistb163, sect193r1, sect193r2, sect233k1, nistk233,
317 sect233r1, nistb233, sect239k1, sect283k1, nistk283,
318 sect283r1, nistb283, sect409k1, nistk409, sect409r1,
319 nistb409, sect571k1, nistk571, sect571r1, nistb571,
320 secp160k1, secp160r1, secp160r2, secp192k1, secp192r1,
321 nistp192, secp224k1, secp224r1, nistp224, secp256k1,
322 secp256r1, secp384r1, secp521r1,
323 prime192v1, prime192v2, prime192v3,
324 prime239v1, prime239v2, prime239v3, c2pnb163v1,
325 c2pnb163v2, c2pnb163v3, c2pnb176v1, c2tnb191v1,
326 c2tnb191v2, c2tnb191v3,
327 c2pnb208w1, c2tnb239v1, c2tnb239v2, c2tnb239v3,
328 c2pnb272w1, c2pnb304w1,
329 c2tnb359w1, c2pnb368w1, c2tnb431r1, secp112r1,
330 secp112r2, secp128r1, secp128r2, sect113r1, sect113r2
340 <listitem><para>Display a certificate's binary DER encoding when listing information about that certificate with the -L option.</para></listitem>
344 <term>-s subject</term>
345 <listitem><para>Identify a particular certificate owner for new certificates or certificate requests. Bracket this string with quotation marks if it contains spaces. The subject identification format follows RFC #1485.</para></listitem>
349 <term>-t trustargs</term>
350 <listitem><para>Specify the trust attributes to modify in an existing certificate or to apply to a certificate when creating it or adding it to a database. There are three available trust categories for each certificate, expressed in the order <emphasis>SSL, email, object signing</emphasis> for each trust setting. In each category position, use none, any, or all
351 of the attribute codes:
356 <command>p</command> - Valid peer
361 <command>P</command> - Trusted peer (implies p)
366 <command>c</command> - Valid CA
371 <command>T</command> - Trusted CA (implies c)
376 <command>C</command> - trusted CA for client authentication (ssl server only)
381 <command>u</command> - user
386 The attribute codes for the categories are separated by commas, and the entire set of attributes enclosed by quotation marks. For example:
388 <para><command>-t "TCu,Cu,Tu"</command></para>
390 Use the -L option to see a list of the current certificates and trust attributes in a certificate database. </para></listitem>
394 <term>-u certusage</term>
395 <listitem><para>Specify a usage context to apply when validating a certificate with the -V option.</para><para>The contexts are the following:</para>
398 <para><command>C</command> (as an SSL client)</para>
401 <para><command>V</command> (as an SSL server)</para>
404 <para><command>L</command> (as an SSL CA)</para>
407 <para><command>A</command> (as Any CA)</para>
410 <para><command>Y</command> (Verify CA)</para>
413 <para><command>S</command> (as an email signer)</para>
416 <para><command>R</command> (as an email recipient)</para>
419 <para><command>O</command> (as an OCSP status responder)</para>
422 <para><command>J</command> (as an object signer)</para>
424 </itemizedlist></listitem>
428 <term>-v valid-months</term>
429 <listitem><para>Set the number of months a new certificate will be valid. The validity period begins at the current system time unless an offset is added or subtracted with the <option>-w</option> option. If this argument is not used, the default validity period is three months. </para></listitem>
433 <term>-w offset-months</term>
434 <listitem><para>Set an offset from the current system time, in months,
435 for the beginning of a certificate's validity period. Use when creating
436 the certificate or adding it to a database. Express the offset in integers,
437 using a minus sign (-) to indicate a negative offset. If this argument is
438 not used, the validity period begins at the current system time. The length
439 of the validity period is set with the -v argument. </para></listitem>
444 <listitem><para>Force the key and certificate database to open in read-write mode. This is used with the <option>-U</option> and <option>-L</option> command options.</para></listitem>
449 <listitem><para>Use <command>certutil</command> to generate the signature for a certificate being created or added to a database, rather than obtaining a signature from a separate CA.</para></listitem>
454 <listitem><para>Set an alternate exponent value to use in generating a new RSA public key for the database, instead of the default value of 65537. The available alternate values are 3 and 17.</para></listitem>
458 <term>-z noise-file</term>
459 <listitem><para>Read a seed value from the specified file to generate a new private and public key pair. This argument makes it possible to use hardware-generated seed values or manually create a value from the keyboard. The minimum file size is 20 bytes.</para></listitem>
463 <term>-0 SSO_password</term>
464 <listitem><para>Set a site security officer password on a token.</para></listitem>
468 <term>-1 | --keyUsage keyword,keyword</term>
469 <listitem><para>Set an X.509 V3 Certificate Type Extension in the certificate. There are several available keywords:</para>
517 <listitem><para>Add a basic constraint extension to a certificate that is being created or added to a database. This extension supports the certificate chain verification process. <command>certutil</command> prompts for the certificate constraint extension to select.</para>
518 <para>X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
523 <listitem><para>Add an authority key ID extension to a certificate that is being created or added to a database. This extension supports the identification of a particular certificate, from among multiple certificates associated with one subject name, as the correct issuer of a certificate. The Certificate Database Tool will prompt you to select the authority key ID extension.</para>
524 <para>X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
529 <listitem><para>Add a CRL distribution point extension to a certificate that is being created or added to a database. This extension identifies the URL of a certificate's associated certificate revocation list (CRL). <command>certutil</command> prompts for the URL.</para>
530 <para>X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
534 <term>-5 | --nsCertType keyword,keyword</term>
535 <listitem><para>Add an X.509 V3 certificate type extension to a certificate that is being created or added to the database. There are several available keywords:</para>
579 <para>X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
583 <term>-6 | --extKeyUsage keyword,keyword</term>
584 <listitem><para>Add an extended key usage extension to a certificate that is being created or added to the database. Several keywords are available:</para>
632 <para>X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
636 <term>-7 emailAddrs</term>
637 <listitem><para>Add a comma-separated list of email addresses to the subject alternative name extension of a certificate or certificate request that is being created or added to the database. Subject alternative name extensions are described in Section 4.2.1.7 of RFC 3280.</para></listitem>
641 <term>-8 dns-names</term>
642 <listitem><para>Add a comma-separated list of DNS names to the subject alternative name extension of a certificate or certificate request that is being created or added to the database. Subject alternative name extensions are described in Section 4.2.1.7 of RFC 3280.</para></listitem>
646 <term>--extAIA</term>
647 <listitem><para>Add the Authority Information Access extension to the certificate. X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
651 <term>--extSIA</term>
652 <listitem><para>Add the Subject Information Access extension to the certificate. X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
657 <listitem><para>Add the Certificate Policies extension to the certificate. X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
662 <listitem><para>Add the Policy Mappings extension to the certificate. X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
667 <listitem><para>Add the Policy Constraints extension to the certificate. X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
672 <listitem><para>Add the Inhibit Any Policy Access extension to the certificate. X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
676 <term>--extSKID</term>
677 <listitem><para>Add the Subject Key ID extension to the certificate. X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
682 <listitem><para>Add a Name Constraint extension to the certificate. X.509 certificate extensions are described in RFC 5280.</para></listitem>
686 <term>--extSAN type:name[,type:name]...</term>
688 Create a Subject Alt Name extension with one or multiple names.
691 -type: directory, dn, dns, edi, ediparty, email, ip, ipaddr, other, registerid, rfc822, uri, x400, x400addr
697 <term>--empty-password</term>
698 <listitem><para>Use empty password when creating new certificate database with -N.</para></listitem>
702 <term>--keyAttrFlags attrflags</term>
704 PKCS #11 key Attributes. Comma separated list of key attribute flags, selected from the following list of choices: {token | session} {public | private} {sensitive | insensitive} {modifiable | unmodifiable} {extractable | unextractable}</para></listitem>
708 <term>--keyOpFlagsOn opflags</term>
709 <term>--keyOpFlagsOff opflags</term>
711 PKCS #11 key Operation Flags.
712 Comma separated list of one or more of the following:
713 {token | session} {public | private} {sensitive | insensitive} {modifiable | unmodifiable} {extractable | unextractable}
718 <term>--source-dir certdir</term>
719 <listitem><para>Identify the certificate database directory to upgrade.</para></listitem>
723 <term>--source-prefix certdir</term>
724 <listitem><para>Give the prefix of the certificate and key databases to upgrade.</para></listitem>
728 <term>--upgrade-id uniqueID</term>
729 <listitem><para>Give the unique ID of the database to upgrade.</para></listitem>
733 <term>--upgrade-token-name name</term>
734 <listitem><para>Set the name of the token to use while it is being upgraded.</para></listitem>
738 <term>-@ pwfile</term>
739 <listitem><para>Give the name of a password file to use for the database being upgraded.</para></listitem>
745 <refsection id="basic-usage">
746 <title>Usage and Examples</title>
748 Most of the command options in the examples listed here have more arguments available. The arguments included in these examples are the most common ones or are used to illustrate a specific scenario. Use the <option>-H</option> option to show the complete list of arguments for each command option.
750 <para><command>Creating New Security Databases</command></para>
752 Certificates, keys, and security modules related to managing certificates are stored in three related databases:
767 secmod.db or pkcs11.txt
772 These databases must be created before certificates or keys can be generated.
774 <programlisting>certutil -N -d [sql:]directory</programlisting>
776 <para><command>Creating a Certificate Request</command></para>
778 A certificate request contains most or all of the information that is used to generate the final certificate. This request is submitted separately to a certificate authority and is then approved by some mechanism (automatically or by human review). Once the request is approved, then the certificate is generated.
780 <programlisting>$ certutil -R -k key-type-or-id [-q pqgfile|curve-name] -g key-size -s subject [-h tokenname] -d [sql:]directory [-p phone] [-o output-file] [-a]</programlisting>
782 The <option>-R</option> command options requires four arguments:
787 <option>-k</option> to specify either the key type to generate or, when renewing a certificate, the existing key pair to use
792 <option>-g</option> to set the keysize of the key to generate
797 <option>-s</option> to set the subject name of the certificate
802 <option>-d</option> to give the security database directory
807 The new certificate request can be output in ASCII format (<option>-a</option>) or can be written to a specified file (<option>-o</option>).
812 <programlisting>$ certutil -R -k rsa -g 1024 -s "CN=John Smith,O=Example Corp,L=Mountain View,ST=California,C=US" -d sql:$HOME/nssdb -p 650-555-0123 -a -o cert.cer
814 Generating key. This may take a few moments...
818 <para><command>Creating a Certificate</command></para>
820 A valid certificate must be issued by a trusted CA. This can be done by specifying a CA certificate (<option>-c</option>) that is stored in the certificate database. If a CA key pair is not available, you can create a self-signed certificate using the <option>-x</option> argument with the <option>-S</option> command option.
822 <programlisting>$ certutil -S -k rsa|dsa|ec -n certname -s subject [-c issuer |-x] -t trustargs -d [sql:]directory [-m serial-number] [-v valid-months] [-w offset-months] [-p phone] [-1] [-2] [-3] [-4] [-5 keyword] [-6 keyword] [-7 emailAddress] [-8 dns-names] [--extAIA] [--extSIA] [--extCP] [--extPM] [--extPC] [--extIA] [--extSKID]</programlisting>
824 The series of numbers and <option>--ext*</option> options set certificate extensions that can be added to the certificate when it is generated by the CA. Interactive prompts will result.
827 For example, this creates a self-signed certificate:
829 <programlisting>$ certutil -S -s "CN=Example CA" -n my-ca-cert -x -t "C,C,C" -1 -2 -5 -m 3650</programlisting>
831 The interative prompts for key usage and whether any extensions are critical and responses have been ommitted for brevity.
834 From there, new certificates can reference the self-signed certificate:
836 <programlisting>$ certutil -S -s "CN=My Server Cert" -n my-server-cert -c "my-ca-cert" -t "u,u,u" -1 -5 -6 -8 -m 730</programlisting>
838 <para><command>Generating a Certificate from a Certificate Request</command></para>
840 When a certificate request is created, a certificate can be generated by using the request and then referencing a certificate authority signing certificate (the <emphasis>issuer</emphasis> specified in the <option>-c</option> argument). The issuing certificate must be in the certificate database in the specified directory.
842 <programlisting>certutil -C -c issuer -i cert-request-file -o output-file [-m serial-number] [-v valid-months] [-w offset-months] -d [sql:]directory [-1] [-2] [-3] [-4] [-5 keyword] [-6 keyword] [-7 emailAddress] [-8 dns-names]</programlisting>
846 <programlisting>$ certutil -C -c "my-ca-cert" -i /home/certs/cert.req -o cert.cer -m 010 -v 12 -w 1 -d sql:$HOME/nssdb -1 nonRepudiation,dataEncipherment -5 sslClient -6 clientAuth -7 jsmith@example.com</programlisting>
848 <para><command>Listing Certificates</command></para>
850 The <option>-L</option> command option lists all of the certificates listed in the certificate database. The path to the directory (<option>-d</option>) is required.
852 <programlisting>$ certutil -L -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb
854 Certificate Nickname Trust Attributes
857 CA Administrator of Instance pki-ca1's Example Domain ID u,u,u
858 TPS Administrator's Example Domain ID u,u,u
859 Google Internet Authority ,,
860 Certificate Authority - Example Domain CT,C,C</programlisting>
862 Using additional arguments with <option>-L</option> can return and print the information for a single, specific certificate. For example, the <option>-n</option> argument passes the certificate name, while the <option>-a</option> argument prints the certificate in ASCII format:
865 $ certutil -L -d sql:$HOME/nssdb -a -n my-ca-cert
866 -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
867 MIIB1DCCAT2gAwIBAgICDkIwDQYJKoZIhvcNAQEFBQAwFTETMBEGA1UEAxMKRXhh
868 bXBsZSBDQTAeFw0xMzAzMTMxOTEwMjlaFw0xMzA2MTMxOTEwMjlaMBUxEzARBgNV
869 BAMTCkV4YW1wbGUgQ0EwgZ8wDQYJKoZIhvcNAQEBBQADgY0AMIGJAoGBAJ4Kzqvz
870 JyBVgFqDXRYSyTBNw1DrxUU/3GvWA/ngjAwHEv0Cul/6sO/gsCvnABHiH6unns6x
871 XRzPORlC2WY3gkk7vmlsLvYpyecNazAi/NAwVnU/66HOsaoVFWE+gBQo99UrN2yk
872 0BiK/GMFlLm5dXQROgA9ZKKyFdI0LIXtf6SbAgMBAAGjMzAxMBEGCWCGSAGG+EIB
873 AQQEAwIHADAMBgNVHRMEBTADAQH/MA4GA1UdDwEB/wQEAwICBDANBgkqhkiG9w0B
874 AQUFAAOBgQA6chkzkACN281d1jKMrc+RHG2UMaQyxiteaLVZO+Ro1nnRUvseDf09
875 XKYFwPMJjWCihVku6bw/ihZfuMHhxK22Nue6inNQ6eDu7WmrqL8z3iUrQwxs+WiF
876 ob2rb8XRVVJkzXdXxlk4uo3UtNvw8sAz7sWD71qxKaIHU5q49zijfg==
877 -----END CERTIFICATE-----
879 <para>For a human-readable display</para>
880 <programlisting>$ certutil -L -d sql:$HOME/nssdb -n my-ca-cert
884 Serial Number: 3650 (0xe42)
885 Signature Algorithm: PKCS #1 SHA-1 With RSA Encryption
886 Issuer: "CN=Example CA"
888 Not Before: Wed Mar 13 19:10:29 2013
889 Not After : Thu Jun 13 19:10:29 2013
890 Subject: "CN=Example CA"
891 Subject Public Key Info:
892 Public Key Algorithm: PKCS #1 RSA Encryption
895 9e:0a:ce:ab:f3:27:20:55:80:5a:83:5d:16:12:c9:30:
896 4d:c3:50:eb:c5:45:3f:dc:6b:d6:03:f9:e0:8c:0c:07:
897 12:fd:02:ba:5f:fa:b0:ef:e0:b0:2b:e7:00:11:e2:1f:
898 ab:a7:9e:ce:b1:5d:1c:cf:39:19:42:d9:66:37:82:49:
899 3b:be:69:6c:2e:f6:29:c9:e7:0d:6b:30:22:fc:d0:30:
900 56:75:3f:eb:a1:ce:b1:aa:15:15:61:3e:80:14:28:f7:
901 d5:2b:37:6c:a4:d0:18:8a:fc:63:05:94:b9:b9:75:74:
902 11:3a:00:3d:64:a2:b2:15:d2:34:2c:85:ed:7f:a4:9b
903 Exponent: 65537 (0x10001)
905 Name: Certificate Type
908 Name: Certificate Basic Constraints
909 Data: Is a CA with no maximum path length.
911 Name: Certificate Key Usage
913 Usages: Certificate Signing
915 Signature Algorithm: PKCS #1 SHA-1 With RSA Encryption
917 3a:72:19:33:90:00:8d:db:cd:5d:d6:32:8c:ad:cf:91:
918 1c:6d:94:31:a4:32:c6:2b:5e:68:b5:59:3b:e4:68:d6:
919 79:d1:52:fb:1e:0d:fd:3d:5c:a6:05:c0:f3:09:8d:60:
920 a2:85:59:2e:e9:bc:3f:8a:16:5f:b8:c1:e1:c4:ad:b6:
921 36:e7:ba:8a:73:50:e9:e0:ee:ed:69:ab:a8:bf:33:de:
922 25:2b:43:0c:6c:f9:68:85:a1:bd:ab:6f:c5:d1:55:52:
923 64:cd:77:57:c6:59:38:ba:8d:d4:b4:db:f0:f2:c0:33:
924 ee:c5:83:ef:5a:b1:29:a2:07:53:9a:b8:f7:38:a3:7e
926 86:D8:A5:8B:8A:26:BE:9E:17:A8:7B:66:10:6B:27:80
928 48:78:09:EF:C5:D4:0C:BD:D2:64:45:59:EB:03:13:15:F7:A9:D6:F7
930 Certificate Trust Flags:
939 Object Signing Flags:
946 <para><command>Listing Keys</command></para>
948 Keys are the original material used to encrypt certificate data. The keys generated for certificates are stored separately, in the key database.
951 To list all keys in the database, use the <option>-K</option> command option and the (required) <option>-d</option> argument to give the path to the directory.
953 <programlisting>$ certutil -K -d sql:$HOME/nssdb
954 certutil: Checking token "NSS Certificate DB" in slot "NSS User Private Key and Certificate Services "
955 < 0> rsa 455a6673bde9375c2887ec8bf8016b3f9f35861d Thawte Freemail Member's Thawte Consulting (Pty) Ltd. ID
956 < 1> rsa 40defeeb522ade11090eacebaaf1196a172127df Example Domain Administrator Cert
957 < 2> rsa 1d0b06f44f6c03842f7d4f4a1dc78b3bcd1b85a5 John Smith user cert</programlisting>
959 There are ways to narrow the keys listed in the search results:
964 To return a specific key, use the <option>-n</option> <emphasis>name</emphasis> argument with the name of the key.
969 If there are multiple security devices loaded, then the <option>-h</option> <emphasis>tokenname</emphasis> argument can search a specific token or all tokens.
974 If there are multiple key types available, then the <option>-k</option> <emphasis>key-type</emphasis> argument can search a specific type of key, like RSA, DSA, or ECC.
979 <para><command>Listing Security Modules</command></para>
981 The devices that can be used to store certificates -- both internal databases and external devices like smart cards -- are recognized and used by loading security modules. The <option>-U</option> command option lists all of the security modules listed in the <filename>secmod.db</filename> database. The path to the directory (<option>-d</option>) is required.
983 <programlisting>$ certutil -U -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb
985 slot: NSS User Private Key and Certificate Services
986 token: NSS Certificate DB
988 slot: NSS Internal Cryptographic Services
989 token: NSS Generic Crypto Services</programlisting>
991 <para><command>Adding Certificates to the Database</command></para>
993 Existing certificates or certificate requests can be added manually to the certificate database, even if they were generated elsewhere. This uses the <option>-A</option> command option.
995 <programlisting>certutil -A -n certname -t trustargs -d [sql:]directory [-a] [-i input-file]</programlisting>
999 <programlisting>$ certutil -A -n "CN=My SSL Certificate" -t "u,u,u" -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb -i /home/example-certs/cert.cer</programlisting>
1001 A related command option, <option>-E</option>, is used specifically to add email certificates to the certificate database. The <option>-E</option> command has the same arguments as the <option>-A</option> command. The trust arguments for certificates have the format <emphasis>SSL,S/MIME,Code-signing</emphasis>, so the middle trust settings relate most to email certificates (though the others can be set). For example:
1003 <programlisting>$ certutil -E -n "CN=John Smith Email Cert" -t ",Pu," -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb -i /home/example-certs/email.cer</programlisting>
1005 <para><command>Deleting Certificates to the Database</command></para>
1007 Certificates can be deleted from a database using the <option>-D</option> option. The only required options are to give the security database directory and to identify the certificate nickname.
1009 <programlisting>certutil -D -d [sql:]directory -n "nickname"</programlisting>
1013 <programlisting>$ certutil -D -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb -n "my-ssl-cert"</programlisting>
1015 <para><command>Validating Certificates</command></para>
1017 A certificate contains an expiration date in itself, and expired certificates are easily rejected. However, certificates can also be revoked before they hit their expiration date. Checking whether a certificate has been revoked requires validating the certificate. Validation can also be used to ensure that the certificate is only used for the purposes it was initially issued for. Validation is carried out by the <option>-V</option> command option.
1019 <programlisting>certutil -V -n certificate-name [-b time] [-e] [-u cert-usage] -d [sql:]directory</programlisting>
1021 For example, to validate an email certificate:
1023 <programlisting>$ certutil -V -n "John Smith's Email Cert" -e -u S,R -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb</programlisting>
1025 <para><command>Modifying Certificate Trust Settings</command></para>
1027 The trust settings (which relate to the operations that a certificate is allowed to be used for) can be changed after a certificate is created or added to the database. This is especially useful for CA certificates, but it can be performed for any type of certificate.
1029 <programlisting>certutil -M -n certificate-name -t trust-args -d [sql:]directory</programlisting>
1033 <programlisting>$ certutil -M -n "My CA Certificate" -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb -t "CTu,CTu,CTu"</programlisting>
1035 <para><command>Printing the Certificate Chain</command></para>
1037 Certificates can be issued in <emphasis>chains</emphasis> because every certificate authority itself has a certificate; when a CA issues a certificate, it essentially stamps that certificate with its own fingerprint. The <option>-O</option> prints the full chain of a certificate, going from the initial CA (the root CA) through ever intermediary CA to the actual certificate. For example, for an email certificate with two CAs in the chain:
1039 <programlisting>$ certutil -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb -O -n "jsmith@example.com"
1040 "Builtin Object Token:Thawte Personal Freemail CA" [E=personal-freemail@thawte.com,CN=Thawte Personal Freemail CA,OU=Certification Services Division,O=Thawte Consulting,L=Cape Town,ST=Western Cape,C=ZA]
1042 "Thawte Personal Freemail Issuing CA - Thawte Consulting" [CN=Thawte Personal Freemail Issuing CA,O=Thawte Consulting (Pty) Ltd.,C=ZA]
1044 "(null)" [E=jsmith@example.com,CN=Thawte Freemail Member]</programlisting>
1046 <para><command>Resetting a Token</command></para>
1048 The device which stores certificates -- both external hardware devices and internal software databases -- can be blanked and reused. This operation is performed on the device which stores the data, not directly on the security databases, so the location must be referenced through the token name (<option>-h</option>) as well as any directory path. If there is no external token used, the default value is internal.
1050 <programlisting>certutil -T -d [sql:]directory -h token-name -0 security-officer-password</programlisting>
1052 Many networks have dedicated personnel who handle changes to security tokens (the security officer). This person must supply the password to access the specified token. For example:
1054 <programlisting>$ certutil -T -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb -h nethsm -0 secret</programlisting>
1056 <para><command>Upgrading or Merging the Security Databases</command></para>
1058 Many networks or applications may be using older BerkeleyDB versions of the certificate database (<filename>cert8.db</filename>). Databases can be upgraded to the new SQLite version of the database (<filename>cert9.db</filename>) using the <option>--upgrade-merge</option> command option or existing databases can be merged with the new <filename>cert9.db</filename> databases using the <option>---merge</option> command.
1061 The <option>--upgrade-merge</option> command must give information about the original database and then use the standard arguments (like <option>-d</option>) to give the information about the new databases. The command also requires information that the tool uses for the process to upgrade and write over the original database.
1063 <programlisting>certutil --upgrade-merge -d [sql:]directory [-P dbprefix] --source-dir directory --source-prefix dbprefix --upgrade-id id --upgrade-token-name name [-@ password-file]</programlisting>
1067 <programlisting>$ certutil --upgrade-merge -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb --source-dir /opt/my-app/alias/ --source-prefix serverapp- --upgrade-id 1 --upgrade-token-name internal</programlisting>
1069 The <option>--merge</option> command only requires information about the location of the original database; since it doesn't change the format of the database, it can write over information without performing interim step.
1071 <programlisting>certutil --merge -d [sql:]directory [-P dbprefix] --source-dir directory --source-prefix dbprefix [-@ password-file]</programlisting>
1075 <programlisting>$ certutil --merge -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb --source-dir /opt/my-app/alias/ --source-prefix serverapp-</programlisting>
1077 <para><command>Running certutil Commands from a Batch File</command></para>
1079 A series of commands can be run sequentially from a text file with the <option>-B</option> command option. The only argument for this specifies the input file.
1081 <programlisting>$ certutil -B -i /path/to/batch-file</programlisting>
1084 <refsection id="databases"><title>NSS Database Types</title>
1085 <para>NSS originally used BerkeleyDB databases to store security information.
1086 The last versions of these <emphasis>legacy</emphasis> databases are:</para>
1090 cert8.db for certificates
1100 secmod.db for PKCS #11 module information
1105 <para>BerkeleyDB has performance limitations, though, which prevent it from being easily used by multiple applications simultaneously. NSS has
1106 some flexibility that allows applications to use their own, independent database engine while keeping a shared database and working around the access issues. Still, NSS
1107 requires more flexibility to provide a truly shared security database.</para>
1109 <para>In 2009, NSS introduced a new set of databases that are SQLite databases rather than
1110 BerkeleyDB. These new databases provide more accessibility and performance:</para>
1114 cert9.db for certificates
1124 pkcs11.txt, a listing of all of the PKCS #11 modules, contained in a new subdirectory in the security databases directory
1129 <para>Because the SQLite databases are designed to be shared, these are the <emphasis>shared</emphasis> database type. The shared database type is preferred; the legacy format is included for backward compatibility.</para>
1131 <para>By default, the tools (<command>certutil</command>, <command>pk12util</command>, <command>modutil</command>) assume that the given security databases follow the more common legacy type.
1132 Using the SQLite databases must be manually specified by using the <command>sql:</command> prefix with the given security directory. For example:</para>
1134 <programlisting>$ certutil -L -d sql:/home/my/sharednssdb</programlisting>
1136 <para>To set the shared database type as the default type for the tools, set the <envar>NSS_DEFAULT_DB_TYPE</envar> environment variable to <envar>sql</envar>:</para>
1137 <programlisting>export NSS_DEFAULT_DB_TYPE="sql"</programlisting>
1139 <para>This line can be set added to the <filename>~/.bashrc</filename> file to make the change permanent.</para>
1141 <para>Most applications do not use the shared database by default, but they can be configured to use them. For example, this how-to article covers how to configure Firefox and Thunderbird to use the new shared NSS databases:</para>
1145 https://wiki.mozilla.org/NSS_Shared_DB_Howto</para>
1148 <para>For an engineering draft on the changes in the shared NSS databases, see the NSS project wiki:</para>
1152 https://wiki.mozilla.org/NSS_Shared_DB
1159 <refsection id="seealso">
1160 <title>See Also</title>
1161 <para>pk12util (1)</para>
1162 <para>modutil (1)</para>
1163 <para><command>certutil</command> has arguments or operations that use features defined in several IETF RFCs.</para>
1167 http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc5280
1172 http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc1113
1177 http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc1485
1182 <para>The NSS wiki has information on the new database design and how to configure applications to use it.</para>
1186 https://wiki.mozilla.org/NSS_Shared_DB_Howto</para>
1190 https://wiki.mozilla.org/NSS_Shared_DB
1196 <!-- don't change -->
1197 <refsection id="resources">
1198 <title>Additional Resources</title>
1199 <para>For information about NSS and other tools related to NSS (like JSS), check out the NSS project wiki at <ulink url="http://www.mozilla.org/projects/security/pki/nss/">http://www.mozilla.org/projects/security/pki/nss/</ulink>. The NSS site relates directly to NSS code changes and releases.</para>
1200 <para>Mailing lists: https://lists.mozilla.org/listinfo/dev-tech-crypto</para>
1201 <para>IRC: Freenode at #dogtag-pki</para>
1204 <!-- fill in your name first; keep the other names for reference -->
1205 <refsection id="authors">
1206 <title>Authors</title>
1207 <para>The NSS tools were written and maintained by developers with Netscape, Red Hat, Sun, Oracle, Mozilla, and Google.</para>
1209 Authors: Elio Maldonado <emaldona@redhat.com>, Deon Lackey <dlackey@redhat.com>.
1213 <!-- don't change -->
1214 <refsection id="license">
1215 <title>LICENSE</title>
1216 <para>Licensed under the Mozilla Public License, v. 2.0. If a copy of the MPL was not distributed with this file, You can obtain one at http://mozilla.org/MPL/2.0/.