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howtos:decrypt_a_private_key

If you have a private key which is encrypted (meaning that you must enter a pass phrase to use it), you can decrypt the private key for use without a password. A typical openssl command and resulting interactive session is shown here:

  > openssl rsa -in hostkeySECURE.pem -out hostkeyNOPASSWORD.pem
  Enter pass phrase for hostkeySECURE.pem:
  writing RSA key
  >

Here's an explanation of the command line options:

  • -in hostkeySECURE.pem - read in the encrypted private key from the file hostkeySECURE.pem.
  • -out hostkeyNOPASSWORD.pem - write out the unencrypted private key to the file hostkeyNOPASSWORD.pem.
howtos/decrypt_a_private_key.txt · Last modified: 02/12/2018 21:34 by 127.0.0.1