How to Generate a CSR for Apache Web Server Using OpenSSL The following instructions will guide you through the CSR generation process on Apache OpenSSL. To learn more about CSRs and the importance of your private key, reference our Overview of Certificate Signing Request article. 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). To generate a private key file called privkey.pem in your current working directory, type openssl genrsa -out privkey.pem 2048; Type openssl req -new -key privkey.pem -out request.csr This command generates a CSR in the PEM format in your current working directory.

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. Sep 11, 2018 The first thing to do would be to generate a 2048-bit RSA key pair locally. This pair will contain both your private and public key. You can use Java key tool or some other tool, but we will be working with OpenSSL. To generate a public and private key with a certificate signing request (CSR), run the following OpenSSL command. Second one will have.csr extension, which is the CSR. Generate CSR from an existing Private Key. You may already have an existing key pair with you and you would like to use the same for requesting certificate. In this case, you can use below command: openssl req -key mywebsite.key -new -out mywebsite.csr. What I am trying to do is, create a CSR and with a private key that is password protected (the key). In OpenSSL I can create a private key with a password like so: openssl genrsa -des3 -out privkey.pem 2048 Is there some way I can use the key I just created and generate a CSR using the key?

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. However, it also has hundreds of different functions that allow you to view the details of a CSR or certificate, compare an MD5 hash of the certificate and private key (to make sure they match), verify that a certificate is installed properly on any website, and convert the certificate to a different format. A compiled version of OpenSSL for Windows can be found here.

If you don't want to bother with OpenSSL, you can do many of the same things with our SSL Certificate Tools. Below, we have listed the most common OpenSSL commands and their usage:

General OpenSSL Commands

These commands allow you to generate CSRs, Certificates, Private Keys and do other miscellaneous tasks.

Generate a new private key and Certificate Signing Request
Generate a self-signed certificate (see How to Create and Install an Apache Self Signed Certificate for more info)
Generate a certificate signing request (CSR) for an existing private key
Generate a certificate signing request based on an existing certificate
Remove a passphrase from a private key

Checking Using OpenSSL

John w keys pump generating plant. If you need to check the information within a Certificate, CSR or Private Key, use these commands. You can also check CSRs and check certificates using our online tools.

Check a Certificate Signing Request (CSR)
Check a private key
Check a certificate
Check a PKCS#12 file (.pfx or .p12)

Debugging Using OpenSSL

If you are receiving an error that the private doesn't match the certificate or that a certificate that you installed to a site is not trusted, try one of these commands. If you are trying to verify that an SSL certificate is installed correctly, be sure to check out the SSL Checker.

Check an MD5 hash of the public key to ensure that it matches with what is in a CSR or private key
Check an SSL connection. All the certificates (including Intermediates) should be displayed

Converting Using OpenSSL

Public Private Key Encryption

Use Openssl To Generate Private Key And Csr

These commands allow you to convert certificates and keys to different formats to make them compatible with specific types of servers or software. For example, you can convert a normal PEM file that would work with Apache to a PFX (PKCS#12) file and use it with Tomcat or IIS. Use our SSL Converter to convert certificates without messing with OpenSSL.

Convert a DER file (.crt .cer .der) to PEM
Convert a PEM file to DER
Convert a PKCS#12 file (.pfx .p12) containing a private key and certificates to PEM
You can add -nocerts to only output the private key or add -nokeys to only output the certificates.
Convert a PEM certificate file and a private key to PKCS#12 (.pfx .p12)

Openssl Command To Generate Key And Csr

Originally posted on Sun Jan 13, 2008
Generate key on putty windows.