node-opcua-pki

node-opcua-pki

Installation

install globally

$ npm install -g node-opcua-pki
$ crypto_create_CA --help

use with npx

npx node-opcua-pki --help
npx node-opcua-pki certificate --help

Note: see https://reference.opcfoundation.org/GDS/docs/F.1/

commands

command	Help
demo	create default certificate for node-opcua demos
createCA	create a Certificate Authority
createPKI	create a Public Key Infrastructure
certificate	create a new certificate
csr	create a new certificate signing request(CSR)
sign	sign a CSR and generate a certificate
revoke	revoke an existing certificate
dump	display a certificate
toder	convert a certificate to a DER format
fingerprint	print the certificate fingerprint

Options: --help display help

create a PKI

node-opcua-pki createPKI

Options:

option	description	type	default
-r, --root	the location of the Certificate folder	[string]	[default: "{CWD}/certificates"]
--PKIFolder	the location of the Public Key Infrastructure	[string]	[default: "{root}/PKI"]
-k, --keySize, --keyLength	the private key size in bits (1024,2048,3072,4096)	[number]	[default: 2048]
-s, --silent	minimize output	[boolean]	[default: false]

The result

└─ 📂certificates
    └─📂PKI
       ├─📂issuers
       │ ├─📂certs                 contains known Certificate Authorities' certificates
       │ └─📂crl                   contains Certificate Revocation List associates with the CA Certificates
       ├─📂own
       │ ├─📂certs                 where to store generated public certificates generated for the private key.
       │ └─📂private
       │    └─🔐private_key.pem  the private key in PEM format
       ├─📂rejected                  contains certificates that have been rejected.
       └─📂trusted
         ├─📂certs                 contains the X.509 v3 Certificates that are trusted.
         └─📂crl                   contains the X.509 v3 CRLs for any Certificates in the ./certs directory.

create a Certificate Signing Request (CSR)

Options:

option	description	type	default
-a, --applicationUri	the application URI	[string]	[default: "urn:{hostname}:Node-OPCUA-Server"]
-o, --output	the name of the generated signing_request	[string]	[default: "my_certificate_signing_request.csr"]
--dns	the list of valid domain name (comma separated)	[string]	[default: "{hostname}"]
--ip	the list of valid IPs (comma separated)	[string]	[default: ""]
--subject	the certificate subject ( for instance /C=FR/ST=Centre/L=Orleans/O=SomeOrganization/CN=Hello )	[string]	[default: "/CN=Certificate"]
-r, --root	the location of the Certificate folder	[string]	[default: "{CWD}/certificates"]
--PKIFolder	the location of the Public Key Infrastructure	[string]	[default: "{root}/PKI"]

Create a certificate authority

		default value
--subject	the CA certificate subject	"/C=FR/ST=IDF/L=Paris/O=Local NODE-OPCUA Certificate Authority/CN=NodeOPCUA-CA"
--root, -r	the location of the Certificate folder	"{CWD}/certificates"
--CAFolder, -c	the location of the Certificate Authority folder	"{root}/CA"]
--keySize, -k, --keyLength	the private key size in bits (1024, 2048 ,3072, 4096)

The result

└─ 📂certificates
    └─📂PKI
       ├─📂CA           Certificate Authority
       ├─📂rejected     The Certificate store contains certificates that have been rejected.
       │ ├─📂certs      Contains the X.509 v3 Certificates which have been rejected.
       ├─📂trusted      The Certificate store contains trusted Certificates.
       │ ├─📂certs      Contains the X.509 v3 Certificates that are trusted.
       │ └─📂crl        Contains the X.509 v3 CRLs for any Certificates in the ./certs directory.
       ├─📂issuers      The Certificate store contains the CA Certificates needed for validation.
       │ ├─📂certs      Contains the X.509 v3 Certificates that are needed for validation.
       │ ├─📂crl        Contains the X.509 v3 CRLs for any Certificates in the ./certs directory.

sign a signing request (requires a CA)

option	description	type	default
-i, --csr	the csr	[string] [required]	[default: "my_certificate_signing_request.csr"]
-o, --output	the name of the generated certificate	[string] [required]	[default: "my_certificate.pem"]
-v, --validity	the certificate validity in days	[number]	[default: 365]
-r, --root	the location of the Certificate folder	[string]	[default: "{CWD}/certificates"]
-c, --CAFolder	the location of the Certificate Authority folder	[string]	[default: "{root}/CA"]

demo command

this command creates a bunch of certificates with various characteristics for demo and testing purposes.

crypto_create_CA  demo [--dev] [--silent] [--clean]

Options:

--help	display help
--dev	create all sort of fancy certificates for dev testing purposes
--clean	Purge existing directory [use with care!]
--silent, -s	minimize output
--root, -r	the location of the Certificate folder	{CWD}/certificates

Example:

$crypto_create_CA  demo --dev

certificate command

$crypto_create_CA certificate --help

Options:

--help	display help
--applicationUri, -a	the application URI	urn:{hostname}:Node-OPCUA-Server
--output, -o	the name of the generated certificate	my_certificate.pem
--selfSigned, -s	if true, the certificate will be self-signed	false
--validity, -v	the certificate validity in days
--silent, -s	minimize output
--root, -r	the location of the Certificate folder	{CWD}/certificates
--CAFolder, -c	the location of the Certificate Authority folder	{root}/CA
--PKIFolder, -p	the location of the Public Key Infrastructure	{root}/PKI
--privateKey, -p	optional:the private key to use to generate certificate
--subject	the certificate subject ( for instance /C=FR/ST=Centre/L=Orleans/O=SomeOrganization/CN=Hello )

examples

• create a self-signed certificate

npx node-opcua-pki certificate --dns=machine1.com,machine2.com --ip="192.1.2.3;192.3.4.5" -a 'urn:{hostname}:My-OPCUA-Server' --selfSigned -o  my_self_signed_certificate.pem

References

• https://www.entrust.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/pathvalidation_wp.pdf
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Certification_path_validation_algorithm
• https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc5280

prerequisite:

This module requires OpenSSL or LibreSSL to be installed.

On Windows, a version of OpenSSL is automatically downloaded and installed at run time, if not present. You will need an internet connection open.

You need to install it on Linux, (or in your docker image), or on macOS

• on ubuntu/Debian:

apt install openssl

or alpine:

apk add openssl

Support

Sterfive provides this module free of charge, “as is,” with the hope that it will be useful to you. However, any support requests, bug fixes, or enhancements are handled exclusively through our paid services. We believe strongly that independent open-source companies should be fairly compensated for their contributions to the community.

We highly recommend subscribing to our support program to ensure your requests are addressed and resolved. Please note that we only consider requests from members of our support program or sponsors.

Getting professional support

NodeOPCUA PKI is developed and maintained by sterfive.com.

To get professional support, consider subscribing to the node-opcua membership community:

or contact sterfive for dedicated consulting and more advanced support.

❤️ Supporting the development effort - Sponsors & Backers

If you like node-opcua-pki and if you are relying on it in one of your projects, please consider becoming a backer and sponsoring us, this will help us to maintain a high-quality stack and constant evolution of this module.

If your company would like to participate and influence the development of future versions of node-opcua please contact sterfive.