OpenSSL Generating a Private Key
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Generate the Private Key File
Apache with mod_ssl Enabled
- Generate the private key using openssl.
- # openssl genrsa -des3 -out <name>_passphrase.key 1024
- Enter a pass phrase for the key.
- Create a copy of the key with no pass phrase.
- # cp <name>_passphrase.key <name>_nopassphrase.key
- # openssl rsa -in <name>_nopassphrase.key -out <name>.key
- Verify the checksum of the key, this will be used to verify the CSR and the self signed certificate.
- # openssl rsa -noout -modulus -in <name>.key | openssl md5
- At this point, create a backup of the <name>_passphrase.key and <name>.key on separate media.
- For use in Apache, use the SSL key with no pass phrase to generate any CSRs.