Introduction

One of the most versatile SSL tools is OpenSSL which is an open source implementation of the SSL protocol. There are versions of OpenSSL for nearly every platform, including Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X. OpenSSL is commonly used to create the CSR and private key for many different platforms, including Apache. Generate the CSR code and Private key for your certificate by running this command: openssl req -new -newkey rsa:2048 -nodes -keyout server.key -out servercsr.txt Note: server.key and servercsr.txt are the Private key and the CSR code files. Note: server.key and servercsr.txt are the Private key and the CSR code files. Feel free to use any file names, as long as you keep the.key and.txt extensions. Tip: if you want to generate the Private key and CSR code in another location from the get go, skip step 3.1. And replace the openssl part of the command with.OpenSSL base folder. All SSL Certificates require a private key to work. The private key is a separate file that’s used in the encryption/decryption of data sent between your server and the connecting clients. A private key is created by you—the certificate owner—when you request your certificate with a Certificate Signing Request (CSR). The private key however is stored on the machine that generated the CSR (presumably the server requiring the cert, but not necessarily) and is NOT included in the contents of the CSR, and may not be derived from the CSR. It is kept private. In general terms, the server generating the CSR generates a key pair (public and private).

A Certificate Signing Request (CSR) is the first step in setting up an SSL Certificate on your website. SSL certificates are provided by Certificate Authorities (CA), which require a Certificate Signing Request (CSR).

This guide will instruct you on how to generate a Certificate Signing Request using OpenSSL.

• Access to a user account with root or sudo privileges
• A command line/terminal window
• If you’re working on a remote server, an established SSH connection to the server
• OpenSSL needs to be installed on your system to generate the key
• A text editor, such as nano, to view your key

Open a terminal window. Use your SSH connection to log into your remote server. Office 2013 trial key generator.

Note: If you are working locally, you don’t need an SSH connection. Also, most Linux systems will launch a terminal window by pressing Ctrl-Alt-T or Ctrl-Alt-F1.

It is advised to issue a new private key each time you generate a CSR. Hence, the steps below instruct on how to generate both the private key and the CSR.

Make sure to replace your_domain with the actual domain you’re generating a CSR for.

The commands are broken out as follows:

• openssl – activates the OpenSSL software
• req – indicates that we want a CSR
• –new –newkey – generate a new key
• rsa:2048 – generate a 2048-bit RSA mathematical key
• –nodes – no DES, meaning do not encrypt the private key in a PKCS#12 file
• –keyout – indicates the domain you’re generating a key for
• –out – specifies the name of the file your CSR will be saved as

Note: Use 2048-bit key pairs. The 4096-bit key pairs are more secure, however, they require a lot more server resources.

Your system should launch a text-based questionnaire for you to fill out.

Enter your information in the fields as follows:

• Country Name – use a 2-letter country code (US for the United States)
• State – the state in which the domain owner is incorporated
• Locality – the city in which the domain owner is incorporated
• Organization name – the legal entity that owns the domain
• Organizational unit name – the name of the department or group in your organization that deals with certificates
• Common name – typically the fully qualified domain name (FQDN), i.e. what the users type in a web browser to navigate to your website
• Email address – the webmaster’s email address
• Challenge password – an optional password for your key pair

Please take into account that Organization Name and Unit Name must not contain the following characters:

< > ~ ! @ # $ % ^ * / ( ) ?.,&

Once the software finishes, you should be able to find the CSR file in your working directory.

You can also enter the following:

The system should list out all certificate signing requests on the system. The one that matches the domain name you provided in Step 2 appended with the .csr extension is the one you need to look into.

You can open the .csr file in a text editor to find the alphanumeric code that was generated.

Enter the following command:

This text can be copied and pasted into a submittal form to request your SSL certificate from a Certificate Authority.

Openssl Generate Csr From Private Key Password

Make sure you copy the entire text. Some CAs may allow you to simply upload the .csr file you generated. Below is an example of a CSR.

Openssl Generate Csr From Private Key Data

You needn’t send the private key to the CA. Once you get your SSL certificate, the private key on the server will bind with it to encrypt communication.

Now you know how to generate an OpenSSL certificate signing request. Before submitting the CSR to a certificate authority, we recommend verifying the information it holds. Use one of the widely available online CSR decoders.

SSL is a crucial protocol for securing traffic between a website and its visitors. It helps to protect sensitive information online, such as credit card data.

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