1 <!DOCTYPE book PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.2//EN"
2 "http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.2/docbookx.dtd"
3 [<!ENTITY mdash "—">]>
5 - Copyright (C) 2004, 2005, 2007-2010 Internet Systems Consortium, Inc. ("ISC")
6 - Copyright (C) 2000-2003 Internet Software Consortium.
8 - Permission to use, copy, modify, and/or distribute this software for any
9 - purpose with or without fee is hereby granted, provided that the above
10 - copyright notice and this permission notice appear in all copies.
12 - THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND ISC DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES WITH
13 - REGARD TO THIS SOFTWARE INCLUDING ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY
14 - AND FITNESS. IN NO EVENT SHALL ISC BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, DIRECT,
15 - INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER RESULTING FROM
16 - LOSS OF USE, DATA OR PROFITS, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE
17 - OR OTHER TORTIOUS ACTION, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR
18 - PERFORMANCE OF THIS SOFTWARE.
21 <!-- $Id: dnssec-keygen.docbook,v 1.36 2010-12-23 04:07:59 marka Exp $ -->
22 <refentry id="man.dnssec-keygen">
24 <date>June 30, 2000</date>
28 <refentrytitle><application>dnssec-keygen</application></refentrytitle>
29 <manvolnum>8</manvolnum>
30 <refmiscinfo>BIND9</refmiscinfo>
34 <refname><application>dnssec-keygen</application></refname>
35 <refpurpose>DNSSEC key generation tool</refpurpose>
46 <holder>Internet Systems Consortium, Inc. ("ISC")</holder>
53 <holder>Internet Software Consortium.</holder>
59 <command>dnssec-keygen</command>
60 <arg><option>-a <replaceable class="parameter">algorithm</replaceable></option></arg>
61 <arg ><option>-b <replaceable class="parameter">keysize</replaceable></option></arg>
62 <arg><option>-n <replaceable class="parameter">nametype</replaceable></option></arg>
63 <arg><option>-3</option></arg>
64 <arg><option>-A <replaceable class="parameter">date/offset</replaceable></option></arg>
65 <arg><option>-C</option></arg>
66 <arg><option>-c <replaceable class="parameter">class</replaceable></option></arg>
67 <arg><option>-D <replaceable class="parameter">date/offset</replaceable></option></arg>
68 <arg><option>-E <replaceable class="parameter">engine</replaceable></option></arg>
69 <arg><option>-e</option></arg>
70 <arg><option>-f <replaceable class="parameter">flag</replaceable></option></arg>
71 <arg><option>-G</option></arg>
72 <arg><option>-g <replaceable class="parameter">generator</replaceable></option></arg>
73 <arg><option>-h</option></arg>
74 <arg><option>-I <replaceable class="parameter">date/offset</replaceable></option></arg>
75 <arg><option>-i <replaceable class="parameter">interval</replaceable></option></arg>
76 <arg><option>-K <replaceable class="parameter">directory</replaceable></option></arg>
77 <arg><option>-k</option></arg>
78 <arg><option>-P <replaceable class="parameter">date/offset</replaceable></option></arg>
79 <arg><option>-p <replaceable class="parameter">protocol</replaceable></option></arg>
80 <arg><option>-q</option></arg>
81 <arg><option>-R <replaceable class="parameter">date/offset</replaceable></option></arg>
82 <arg><option>-r <replaceable class="parameter">randomdev</replaceable></option></arg>
83 <arg><option>-S <replaceable class="parameter">key</replaceable></option></arg>
84 <arg><option>-s <replaceable class="parameter">strength</replaceable></option></arg>
85 <arg><option>-t <replaceable class="parameter">type</replaceable></option></arg>
86 <arg><option>-v <replaceable class="parameter">level</replaceable></option></arg>
87 <arg><option>-z</option></arg>
88 <arg choice="req">name</arg>
93 <title>DESCRIPTION</title>
94 <para><command>dnssec-keygen</command>
95 generates keys for DNSSEC (Secure DNS), as defined in RFC 2535
96 and RFC 4034. It can also generate keys for use with
97 TSIG (Transaction Signatures) as defined in RFC 2845, or TKEY
98 (Transaction Key) as defined in RFC 2930.
101 The <option>name</option> of the key is specified on the command
102 line. For DNSSEC keys, this must match the name of the zone for
103 which the key is being generated.
108 <title>OPTIONS</title>
112 <term>-a <replaceable class="parameter">algorithm</replaceable></term>
115 Selects the cryptographic algorithm. For DNSSEC keys, the value
116 of <option>algorithm</option> must be one of RSAMD5, RSASHA1,
117 DSA, NSEC3RSASHA1, NSEC3DSA, RSASHA256, RSASHA512 or ECCGOST.
118 For TSIG/TKEY, the value must
119 be DH (Diffie Hellman), HMAC-MD5, HMAC-SHA1, HMAC-SHA224,
120 HMAC-SHA256, HMAC-SHA384, or HMAC-SHA512. These values are
124 If no algorithm is specified, then RSASHA1 will be used by
125 default, unless the <option>-3</option> option is specified,
126 in which case NSEC3RSASHA1 will be used instead. (If
127 <option>-3</option> is used and an algorithm is specified,
128 that algorithm will be checked for compatibility with NSEC3.)
131 Note 1: that for DNSSEC, RSASHA1 is a mandatory to implement
132 algorithm, and DSA is recommended. For TSIG, HMAC-MD5 is
136 Note 2: DH, HMAC-MD5, and HMAC-SHA1 through HMAC-SHA512
137 automatically set the -T KEY option.
143 <term>-b <replaceable class="parameter">keysize</replaceable></term>
146 Specifies the number of bits in the key. The choice of key
147 size depends on the algorithm used. RSA keys must be
148 between 512 and 2048 bits. Diffie Hellman keys must be between
149 128 and 4096 bits. DSA keys must be between 512 and 1024
150 bits and an exact multiple of 64. HMAC keys must be
151 between 1 and 512 bits.
154 The key size does not need to be specified if using a default
155 algorithm. The default key size is 1024 bits for zone signing
156 keys (ZSK's) and 2048 bits for key signing keys (KSK's,
157 generated with <option>-f KSK</option>). However, if an
158 algorithm is explicitly specified with the <option>-a</option>,
159 then there is no default key size, and the <option>-b</option>
166 <term>-n <replaceable class="parameter">nametype</replaceable></term>
169 Specifies the owner type of the key. The value of
170 <option>nametype</option> must either be ZONE (for a DNSSEC
171 zone key (KEY/DNSKEY)), HOST or ENTITY (for a key associated with
173 USER (for a key associated with a user(KEY)) or OTHER (DNSKEY).
174 These values are case insensitive. Defaults to ZONE for DNSKEY
184 Use an NSEC3-capable algorithm to generate a DNSSEC key.
185 If this option is used and no algorithm is explicitly
186 set on the command line, NSEC3RSASHA1 will be used by
187 default. Note that RSASHA256, RSASHA512 and ECCGOST algorithms
197 Compatibility mode: generates an old-style key, without
198 any metadata. By default, <command>dnssec-keygen</command>
199 will include the key's creation date in the metadata stored
200 with the private key, and other dates may be set there as well
201 (publication date, activation date, etc). Keys that include
202 this data may be incompatible with older versions of BIND; the
203 <option>-C</option> option suppresses them.
209 <term>-c <replaceable class="parameter">class</replaceable></term>
212 Indicates that the DNS record containing the key should have
213 the specified class. If not specified, class IN is used.
219 <term>-E <replaceable class="parameter">engine</replaceable></term>
222 Uses a crypto hardware (OpenSSL engine) for random number
223 and, when supported, key generation. When compiled with PKCS#11
224 support it defaults to pkcs11; the empty name resets it to
234 If generating an RSAMD5/RSASHA1 key, use a large exponent.
240 <term>-f <replaceable class="parameter">flag</replaceable></term>
243 Set the specified flag in the flag field of the KEY/DNSKEY record.
244 The only recognized flags are KSK (Key Signing Key) and REVOKE.
253 Generate a key, but do not publish it or sign with it. This
254 option is incompatible with -P and -A.
260 <term>-g <replaceable class="parameter">generator</replaceable></term>
263 If generating a Diffie Hellman key, use this generator.
264 Allowed values are 2 and 5. If no generator
265 is specified, a known prime from RFC 2539 will be used
266 if possible; otherwise the default is 2.
275 Prints a short summary of the options and arguments to
276 <command>dnssec-keygen</command>.
282 <term>-K <replaceable class="parameter">directory</replaceable></term>
285 Sets the directory in which the key files are to be written.
294 Deprecated in favor of -T KEY.
300 <term>-p <replaceable class="parameter">protocol</replaceable></term>
303 Sets the protocol value for the generated key. The protocol
304 is a number between 0 and 255. The default is 3 (DNSSEC).
305 Other possible values for this argument are listed in
306 RFC 2535 and its successors.
315 Quiet mode: Suppresses unnecessary output, including
316 progress indication. Without this option, when
317 <command>dnssec-keygen</command> is run interactively
318 to generate an RSA or DSA key pair, it will print a string
319 of symbols to <filename>stderr</filename> indicating the
320 progress of the key generation. A '.' indicates that a
321 random number has been found which passed an initial
322 sieve test; '+' means a number has passed a single
323 round of the Miller-Rabin primality test; a space
324 means that the number has passed all the tests and is
331 <term>-r <replaceable class="parameter">randomdev</replaceable></term>
334 Specifies the source of randomness. If the operating
335 system does not provide a <filename>/dev/random</filename>
336 or equivalent device, the default source of randomness
337 is keyboard input. <filename>randomdev</filename>
339 the name of a character device or file containing random
340 data to be used instead of the default. The special value
341 <filename>keyboard</filename> indicates that keyboard
342 input should be used.
348 <term>-S <replaceable class="parameter">key</replaceable></term>
351 Create a new key which is an explicit successor to an
352 existing key. The name, algorithm, size, and type of the
353 key will be set to match the existing key. The activation
354 date of the new key will be set to the inactivation date of
355 the existing one. The publication date will be set to the
356 activation date minus the prepublication interval, which
363 <term>-s <replaceable class="parameter">strength</replaceable></term>
366 Specifies the strength value of the key. The strength is
367 a number between 0 and 15, and currently has no defined
374 <term>-T <replaceable class="parameter">rrtype</replaceable></term>
377 Specifies the resource record type to use for the key.
378 <option>rrtype</option> must be either DNSKEY or KEY. The
379 default is DNSKEY when using a DNSSEC algorithm, but it can be
380 overridden to KEY for use with SIG(0).
383 Using any TSIG algorithm (HMAC-* or DH) forces this option
390 <term>-t <replaceable class="parameter">type</replaceable></term>
393 Indicates the use of the key. <option>type</option> must be
394 one of AUTHCONF, NOAUTHCONF, NOAUTH, or NOCONF. The default
395 is AUTHCONF. AUTH refers to the ability to authenticate
396 data, and CONF the ability to encrypt data.
402 <term>-v <replaceable class="parameter">level</replaceable></term>
405 Sets the debugging level.
414 <title>TIMING OPTIONS</title>
417 Dates can be expressed in the format YYYYMMDD or YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.
418 If the argument begins with a '+' or '-', it is interpreted as
419 an offset from the present time. For convenience, if such an offset
420 is followed by one of the suffixes 'y', 'mo', 'w', 'd', 'h', or 'mi',
421 then the offset is computed in years (defined as 365 24-hour days,
422 ignoring leap years), months (defined as 30 24-hour days), weeks,
423 days, hours, or minutes, respectively. Without a suffix, the offset
424 is computed in seconds.
429 <term>-P <replaceable class="parameter">date/offset</replaceable></term>
432 Sets the date on which a key is to be published to the zone.
433 After that date, the key will be included in the zone but will
434 not be used to sign it. If not set, and if the -G option has
435 not been used, the default is "now".
441 <term>-A <replaceable class="parameter">date/offset</replaceable></term>
444 Sets the date on which the key is to be activated. After that
445 date, the key will be included in the zone and used to sign
446 it. If not set, and if the -G option has not been used, the
453 <term>-R <replaceable class="parameter">date/offset</replaceable></term>
456 Sets the date on which the key is to be revoked. After that
457 date, the key will be flagged as revoked. It will be included
458 in the zone and will be used to sign it.
464 <term>-I <replaceable class="parameter">date/offset</replaceable></term>
467 Sets the date on which the key is to be retired. After that
468 date, the key will still be included in the zone, but it
469 will not be used to sign it.
475 <term>-D <replaceable class="parameter">date/offset</replaceable></term>
478 Sets the date on which the key is to be deleted. After that
479 date, the key will no longer be included in the zone. (It
480 may remain in the key repository, however.)
486 <term>-i <replaceable class="parameter">interval</replaceable></term>
489 Sets the prepublication interval for a key. If set, then
490 the publication and activation dates must be separated by at least
491 this much time. If the activation date is specified but the
492 publication date isn't, then the publication date will default
493 to this much time before the activation date; conversely, if
494 the publication date is specified but activation date isn't,
495 then activation will be set to this much time after publication.
498 If the key is being created as an explicit successor to another
499 key, then the default prepublication interval is 30 days;
500 otherwise it is zero.
503 As with date offsets, if the argument is followed by one of
504 the suffixes 'y', 'mo', 'w', 'd', 'h', or 'mi', then the
505 interval is measured in years, months, weeks, days, hours,
506 or minutes, respectively. Without a suffix, the interval is
517 <title>GENERATED KEYS</title>
519 When <command>dnssec-keygen</command> completes
521 it prints a string of the form <filename>Knnnn.+aaa+iiiii</filename>
522 to the standard output. This is an identification string for
523 the key it has generated.
527 <para><filename>nnnn</filename> is the key name.
531 <para><filename>aaa</filename> is the numeric representation
537 <para><filename>iiiii</filename> is the key identifier (or
542 <para><command>dnssec-keygen</command>
543 creates two files, with names based
544 on the printed string. <filename>Knnnn.+aaa+iiiii.key</filename>
545 contains the public key, and
546 <filename>Knnnn.+aaa+iiiii.private</filename> contains the
551 The <filename>.key</filename> file contains a DNS KEY record
553 can be inserted into a zone file (directly or with a $INCLUDE
557 The <filename>.private</filename> file contains
559 fields. For obvious security reasons, this file does not have
560 general read permission.
563 Both <filename>.key</filename> and <filename>.private</filename>
564 files are generated for symmetric encryption algorithms such as
565 HMAC-MD5, even though the public and private key are equivalent.
570 <title>EXAMPLE</title>
572 To generate a 768-bit DSA key for the domain
573 <userinput>example.com</userinput>, the following command would be
576 <para><userinput>dnssec-keygen -a DSA -b 768 -n ZONE example.com</userinput>
579 The command would print a string of the form:
581 <para><userinput>Kexample.com.+003+26160</userinput>
584 In this example, <command>dnssec-keygen</command> creates
585 the files <filename>Kexample.com.+003+26160.key</filename>
587 <filename>Kexample.com.+003+26160.private</filename>.
592 <title>SEE ALSO</title>
594 <refentrytitle>dnssec-signzone</refentrytitle><manvolnum>8</manvolnum>
596 <citetitle>BIND 9 Administrator Reference Manual</citetitle>,
597 <citetitle>RFC 2539</citetitle>,
598 <citetitle>RFC 2845</citetitle>,
599 <citetitle>RFC 4034</citetitle>.
604 <title>AUTHOR</title>
605 <para><corpauthor>Internet Systems Consortium</corpauthor>