OPENSSL-REQ(1ossl)

📦
version 15.1 · 2 versions
, in freebsd 15.1

💖 NAME 💖

openssl-req is the main character of the OPENSSL-REQ(1ossl) manual — it primarily creates and processes certificate requests (CSRs) in PKCS#10 format, and it can also create self-signed certificates for stuff like root CAs, no cap. ✨

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

openssl req [-help] [-cipher] [-inform DER|PEM] [-outform DER|PEM] [-in
filename] [-passin arg] [-out filename] [-passout arg] [-text] [-pubkey]
[-noout] [-verify] [-modulus] [-new] [-newkey arg] [-pkeyopt opt:value]
[-noenc] [-nodes] [-key filename|uri] [-keyform DER|PEM|P12|ENGINE]
[-keyout filename] [-keygen_engine id] [-digest] [-config filename]
[-section name] [-x509] [-x509v1] [-CA filename|uri] [-CAkey
filename|uri] [-not_before date] [-not_after date] [-days n]
[-set_serial n] [-newhdr] [-copy_extensions arg] [-extensions section]
[-reqexts section] [-addext ext] [-precert] [-utf8] [-reqopt] [-subject]
[-subj arg] [-multivalue-rdn] [-sigopt nm:v] [-vfyopt nm:v] [-batch]
[-verbose] [-quiet] [-nameopt option] [-rand files] [-writerand file]
[-engine id] [-provider name] [-provider-path path] [-provparam
[name:]key=value] [-propquery propq]

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

Okay so this command is mostly here to create and process certificate requests (CSRs) in PKCS#10 format. It can also create self-signed certificates for use as root CAs, for example. Iconic behavior, honestly. 👑

✨ OPTIONS ✨

  • -help — prints out a usage message. Simple. Clean. We love a helpful queen. 💅
  • -inform DER|PEM — the CSR input file format to use; by default PEM is tried first. See openssl-format-options(1) for details. Format tea incoming. ☕
  • -outform DER|PEM — the output format; unspecified by default. See openssl-format-options(1) for details. The data is a PKCS#10 object. That last bit matters, bestie. 💖
  • -cipher name — specify the cipher to be used for encrypting the private key. If no cipher is specified, AES-256-CBC will be used by default. You can override this by providing any valid OpenSSL cipher name. Default cipher, but make it customizable. 🔥
  • -in filename — this specifies the input filename to read a request from. It defaults to standard input unless -x509 or -CA is specified. A request is only read if the creation options (-new or -newkey or -precert) are not specified. Read the room: creation mode means no input request. 🫶
  • -sigopt nm:v — pass options to the signature algorithm during sign operations. Names and values of these options are algorithm-specific. Signature algorithm says: details vary. ✨
  • -vfyopt nm:v — pass options to the signature algorithm during verify operations. Names and values of these options are algorithm-specific. Same deal, but for verifying. 🦋
  • -passin arg — the password source for private key and certificate input. For more information about the format of arg see openssl-passphrase-options(1). Password lore is in another manual. 🍓
  • -passout arg — the password source for the output file. For more information about the format of arg see openssl-passphrase-options(1). Again: password lore, other manual. 🍓
  • -out filename — this specifies the output filename to write to, or standard output by default. Write it where you want it, or just let it vibe to stdout. 🌊
  • -text — prints out the certificate request in text form. Human-readable moment. 📝
  • -subject — prints out the certificate request subject (or certificate subject if -x509 is in use). Subject reveal. 👀
  • -pubkey — prints out the public key. Public key, but make it printed. 🔑
  • -noout — this option prevents output of the encoded version of the certificate request. No encoded output for you. 🙈
  • -modulus — prints out the value of the modulus of the public key contained in the request. Modulus math, but visible. 🧮
  • -verify — verifies the self-signature on the request. If the verification fails, the program will immediately exit, i.e. further option processing (e.g. -text) is skipped. It’s giving strict bouncer energy: fail the check and you’re out immediately. 💀
  • -new — this option generates a new certificate request. It will prompt the user for the relevant field values. The actual fields prompted for and their maximum and minimum sizes are specified in the configuration file and any requested extensions. Fresh request, fresh prompts, fresh start. 🎀

If the -key option is not given it will generate a new private key using information specified in the configuration file or given with the -newkey and -pkeyopt options, else by default an RSA key with 2048 bits length. Default key behavior, right there. 🔐

  • -newkey arg — this option is used to generate a new private key unless -key is given. It is subsequently used as if it was given using the -key option. This option implies the -new flag to create a new certificate request or a new certificate in case -x509 is used. Key generation with main character energy. 👑

The argument takes one of several forms. Pick your fighter: 💫

  • [rsa:]nbits — generates an RSA key nbits in size. If nbits is omitted, i.e., -newkey rsa is specified, the default key size specified in the configuration file with the default_bits option is used if present, else 2048.
  • All other algorithms support the -newkey algname:file form — where file is an algorithm parameter file, created with openssl genpkey -genparam, or an X.509 certificate for a key with appropriate algorithm. Parameter file or cert, depending on the vibe.
  • param:file — generates a key using the parameter file or certificate file; the algorithm is determined by the parameters. Let the parameters decide.
  • algname[:file] — generates a key using the given algorithm algname. If a parameter file file is given then the parameters specified there are used, where the algorithm parameters must match algname. If algorithm parameters are not given, any necessary parameters should be specified via the -pkeyopt option. Algorithm name and params need to match — no mismatched chaos.
  • dsa:filename — generates a DSA key using the parameters in the file filename. ec:filename generates EC key (usable both with ECDSA or ECDH algorithms), gost2001:filename generates GOST R 34.10-2001 key (requires gost engine configured in the configuration file). If just gost2001 is specified a parameter set should be specified by -pkeyopt paramset:X. Specific algorithm lore, preserved exactly. 🧚
  • -pkeyopt opt:value — set the public key algorithm option opt to value. The precise set of options supported depends on the public key algorithm used and its implementation. See "KEY GENERATION OPTIONS" in openssl-genpkey(1) for more details. Options go in, algorithm-specific behavior comes out. ⚙️
  • -key filename|uri — this option provides the private key for signing a new certificate or certificate request. Unless -in is given, the corresponding public key is placed in the new certificate or certificate request, resulting in a self-signature. For certificate signing this option is overridden by the -CA option. This option also accepts PKCS#8 format private keys for PEM format files. Key material, but with format range. 🔑
  • -keyform DER|PEM|P12|ENGINE — the format of the private key; unspecified by default. See openssl-format-options(1) for details. Key format check, bestie. 📦
  • -keyout filename — this gives the filename to write any private key to that has been newly created or read from -key. If neither the -keyout option nor the -key option are given then the filename specified in the configuration file with the default_keyfile option is used, if present. Thus, if you want to write the private key and the -key option is provided, you should provide the -keyout option explicitly. If a new key is generated and no filename is specified the key is written to standard output. Do not skip -keyout if you actually want the key saved somewhere specific — that’s the whole point. 🎀
  • -noenc — if this option is specified then if a private key is created it will not be encrypted. No encryption on the new key. Slay, but know what you’re doing. 💅
  • -nodes — this option is deprecated since OpenSSL 3.0; use -noenc instead. Deprecated. The group chat has moved on to -noenc. 💀
  • -digest — this specifies the message digest to sign the request. Any digest supported by the OpenSSL dgst command can be used. This overrides the digest algorithm specified in the configuration file. Some public key algorithms may override this choice. For instance, DSA signatures always use SHA1, GOST R 34.10 signatures always use GOST R 34.11-94 (-md_gost94), Ed25519 and Ed448 never use any digest. Digest picks are real, but some algorithms have their own rules. 🌈
  • -config filename — this allows an alternative configuration file to be specified. Optional; for a description of the default value, see "COMMAND SUMMARY" in openssl(1). Config file, but make it alternative. 📁
  • -section name — specifies the name of the section to use; the default is req. Section named, default noted. 🎀
  • -subj arg — sets subject name for new request or supersedes the subject name when processing a certificate request. Subject name, set or override. 🪄

The arg must be formatted as "/type0=value0/type1=value1/type2=...". Special characters may be escaped by "\" (backslash), whitespace is retained. Empty values are permitted, but the corresponding type will not be included in the request. Giving a single "/" will lead to an empty sequence of RDNs (a NULL-DN). Multi-valued RDNs can be formed by placing a "+" character instead of a "/" between the AttributeValueAssertions (AVAs) that specify the members of the set. Example: Format rules are non-negotiable, but they’re right here. 💫

"/DC=org/DC=OpenSSL/DC=users/UID=123456+CN=John Doe"
  • -multivalue-rdn — this option has been deprecated and has no effect. Deprecated and literally does nothing. No cap. 💀
  • -x509 — this option outputs a certificate instead of a certificate request. This is typically used to generate test certificates. It is implied by the -CA option. Certificate mode, activated. 👑

This option implies the -new flag if -in is not given. If an existing request is specified with the -in option, it is converted to a certificate; otherwise a request is created from scratch. Unless specified using the -set_serial option, a large random number will be used for the serial number. Unless the -copy_extensions option is used, X.509 extensions are not copied from any provided request input file. Extensions do not sneak in unless you ask. 🚫

X.509 extensions to be added can be specified in the configuration file, possibly using the -config and -extensions options, and/or using the -addext option. Unless -x509v1 is given, generated certificates bear X.509 version 3. Unless specified otherwise, key identifier extensions are included as described in x509v3_config(5). Version 3 by default, with key identifier extensions unless told otherwise. 🌟

  • -x509v1 — request generation of certificates with X.509 version 1. This implies -x509. If X.509 extensions are given, anyway X.509 version 3 is set. Version 1 request, but extensions drag it back to version 3. 🌀
  • -CA filename|uri — specifies the "CA" certificate to be used for signing a new certificate and implies use of -x509. When present, this behaves like a "micro CA" as follows: The subject name of the "CA" certificate is placed as issuer name in the new certificate, which is then signed using the "CA" key given as specified below. Micro CA mode: tiny but fully in charge. 👑
  • -CAkey filename|uri — sets the "CA" private key to sign a certificate with. The private key must match the public key of the certificate given with -CA. If this option is not provided then the key must be present in the -CA input. Matching key required — no mismatched key chaos allowed. 🔐
  • -not_before date — when -x509 is in use this allows the start date to be explicitly set, otherwise it is ignored. The format of date is YYMMDDHHMMSSZ (the same as an ASN1 UTCTime structure), or YYYYMMDDHHMMSSZ (the same as an ASN1 GeneralizedTime structure). In both formats, seconds SS and timezone Z must be present. Alternatively, you can also use "today". Start date control, with very specific format rules and one iconic shortcut. 🕰️
  • -not_after date — okay so when you've got -x509 in play, this lets you straight-up pick the expiry date yourself. No -x509? Then it's ignored, periodt. 💅

The format of date is YYMMDDHHMMSSZ (same energy as an ASN1 UTCTime structure) or YYYYMMDDHHMMSSZ (same as an ASN1 GeneralizedTime structure). In both formats, the seconds SS and the timezone Z have to be there — no skipping them, bestie, it's not optional.

Alternatively you can just throw in "today" and call it a day.

Heads up: this overrides the -days option.

  • -days n — with -x509 active, this says how many days from today the cert should be valid for. No -x509? Ignored, sorry. n should be a positive integer, and the default is 30 days.

Not to be dramatic but: regardless of the -not_before option, the days are always counted from today. And when you use it together with -not_after, the explicit expiry date takes precedence. 💀

  • -set_serial n — the serial number to use when you're outputting a self-signed cert. You can write it as a decimal value, or as hex if you slap "0x" in front. Don't give one? It'll use a big random number instead. 🎲
  • -copy_extensions arg — controls how X.509 extensions inside certificate requests get handled when -x509 is in use. If arg is none, or you just don't pass this option at all, the extensions get ignored. If arg is copy or copyall, then all the extensions in the request get copied over to the certificate.

The main use of this option is letting a certificate request supply values for certain extensions, like subjectAltName. 🦋

  • -extensions section, -reqexts section — lets you override the name of the config file section that X.509 extensions get pulled from — either for the certificate (when -x509 is in use) or for the certificate request. This means you can have a bunch of different sections in the same config file, specifying requests for all sorts of different purposes. One config file, many vibes. ✨
  • -addext ext — adds one specific extension to the certificate (if -x509 is in use) or to the certificate request. The argument has to look like a "key=value" pair, exactly how it'd appear in a config file.

If you add an extension here that has the same OID as one defined in the extension section of the config file, this one overrides that one. Your add, your rules. 👑

You can pass this option multiple times — but when you do, the same key must not be given more than once.

  • -precert — adds a poison extension to the certificate, which makes it a "pre-certificate" (see RFC6962). You can submit that to Certificate Transparency logs to get signed certificate timestamps (SCTs), and then embed those SCTs into the pre-certificate as an extension — before removing the poison and signing the certificate. Whole little glow-up journey. 🧚

This implies the -new flag.

  • -utf8 — makes field values get interpreted as UTF8 strings; by default they're interpreted as ASCII. That means the field values — whether they're prompted from a terminal or pulled out of a config file — must be valid UTF8 strings. No fake UTF8 out here, it'll be caught. 🙈
  • -reqopt option — customises the printing format used with -text. The argument can be a single option or multiple options separated by commas.

See the discussion of the -certopt parameter in the openssl-x509(1) command for the deets.

  • -newhdr — adds the word NEW to the PEM file header and footer lines of the outputted request. Some software (Netscape certificate server) and some CAs need this. Old school but iconic. 🎀
  • -batch — non-interactive mode. No prompts, no chatting, just business. 🫶
  • -verbose — prints extra details about the operations being performed. For when you simply must know everything.
  • -quiet — prints fewer details about the operations being performed, which is handy during batch scripts or pipelines. Specifically: the "progress dots" during key generation are suppressed. Silence is golden. ⭐
  • -keygen_engine id — specifies an engine (by its unique id string) to be used for key generation operations.
  • -nameopt option — specifies how the subject or issuer names are displayed. See openssl-namedisplay-options(1) for the full rundown.
  • -rand files, -writerand file — see "Random State Options" in openssl(1) for details.
  • -engine id — see "Engine Options" in openssl(1). Also, quick vibe check: this option is deprecated. 🫠
  • -provider name, -provider-path path, -provparam [name:]key=value, -propquery propq — see "Provider Options" in openssl(1), provider(7), and property(7).

🌈 CONFIGURATION FILE FORMAT 🌈

The config options live in the req section of the configuration file. You can pick an alternate name by using the -section option. And, same as with literally all configuration files: if no value is specified in the specific section, then the initial unnamed or default section gets searched too. Fingers crossed it's in there. 💖

The options available are described in detail below.

  • input_password, output_password — the passwords for the input private key file (if there is one) and the output private key file (if one's gonna be created). The command line options passin and passout override whatever the config file says.
  • default_bits — specifies the default key size in bits.

This one gets used together with the -new option to generate a new key. You can override it by specifying an explicit key size in the -newkey option. The smallest accepted key size is 512 bits. And if no key size is specified at all, 2048 bits is used.

  • default_keyfile — the default filename to write a private key to. Not specified? Then the key gets written to standard output. The -keyout option can override this.
  • oid_file — specifies a file containing additional OBJECT IDENTIFIERS. Each line of the file should be: the numerical form of the object identifier, then whitespace, then the short name, then whitespace, and finally the long name. Order matters, bestie. ✨
  • oid_section — specifies a section in the configuration file containing extra object identifiers. Each line should be the short name of the object identifier, then =, then the numerical form. When this option is used, the short and long names are the same.
  • RANDFILE — at startup the specified file is loaded into the random number generator, and at exit 256 bytes will be written to it. It's used for private key generation. 🎲
  • encrypt_key — if this is set to no then, if a private key is generated, it is not encrypted. Equivalent to the -noenc command line option. For compatibility, encrypt_rsa_key is an equivalent option. iykyk.
  • default_md — specifies the digest algorithm to use. Any digest supported by the OpenSSL dgst command works here. Can be overridden on the command line. Heads up though: certain signing algorithms (i.e. Ed25519 and Ed448) will ignore any digest that's been set. They do what they want. 💅
  • string_mask — masks out the use of certain string types in certain fields. Most users will not need to change this option. It can be set to several values:
    • utf8only — only UTF8Strings are used (this is the default value)
    • pkix — any string type except T61Strings
    • nombstr — any string type except BMPStrings and UTF8Strings
    • default — any kind of string type

Note that utf8only is the PKIX recommendation in RFC2459 after 2003, and it's the default string_mask; default is not the default option (yes, we know, naming is chaos 😭). The nombstr value is a workaround for some software that has problems with variable-sized BMPStrings and UTF8Strings.

  • req_extensions — specifies the configuration file section containing a list of extensions to add to the certificate request. Can be overridden by the -reqexts (or -extensions) command line switch. See the x509v3_config(5) manual page for details of the extension section format.
  • x509_extensions — specifies the configuration file section containing a list of extensions to add to the certificate generated when -x509 is in use. Can be overridden by the -extensions command line switch.
  • prompt — if set to the value no, this disables prompting of certificate fields and just takes values from the config file directly. It also changes the expected format of the distinguished_name and attributes sections. Less talking, more doing. 🫶
  • utf8 — if set to the value yes then field values get interpreted as UTF8 strings; by default they're interpreted as ASCII. Which means the field values — whether prompted from a terminal or obtained from a config file — must be valid UTF8 strings.
  • attributes — specifies the section containing any request attributes; its format is the same as distinguished_name. Typically these may contain the challengePassword or unstructuredName types. They're currently ignored by OpenSSL's request signing utilities, but some CAs might want them.
  • distinguished_name — specifies the section containing the distinguished name fields to prompt for when generating a certificate or certificate request. The format is described in the next section. 👀

🌸 DISTINGUISHED NAME AND ATTRIBUTE SECTION FORMAT 🌸

Okay bestie, so there are literally two separate formats for the distinguished name and attribute sections, and which one you get depends on one little setting. Here we go:

If the prompt option is set to no, then these sections just consist of field names and values. Like, that's it. For example:

CN=My Name
OU=My Organization
emailAddress=someone@somewhere.org

The way this slaps is that it lets external programs (think GUI-based ones, iykyk) generate a template file with all the field names and values and then just hand it over to this command. There's an example of this kind of configuration file down in the EXAMPLES section, so keep scrolling 💅

Alternatively — if the prompt option is absent or not set to no — then the file contains field prompting information instead. That one is made of lines like this:

fieldName="prompt"
fieldName_default="default field value"
fieldName_min= 2
fieldName_max= 4

So fieldName is the field name being used, for example commonName (or CN). The "prompt" string is what's used to ask the user to enter the relevant details.

Here's the vibe check on what happens when they type: if the user enters nothing, then the default value is used. If there's no default value present, then the field is omitted. And get this — a field can still be omitted even if a default value is present, if the user just enters the '.' character. Iconic escape hatch, honestly 🦋

The number of characters entered must be between the fieldName_min and fieldName_max limits. And heads up — there may be additional restrictions based on the field being used (for example, countryName can only ever be two characters long and must fit in a PrintableString).

Now, some fields (such as organizationName) can be used more than once in a DN. That presents a problem, because configuration files will not recognize the same name occurring twice. To avoid this problem, if the fieldName contains some characters followed by a full stop, they will be ignored. So for example a second organizationName can be input by calling it "1.organizationName". Sneaky but valid ✨

The actual permitted field names are any object identifier short or long names. These are compiled into OpenSSL and include the usual values such as commonName, countryName, localityName, organizationName, organizationalUnitName, stateOrProvinceName. Additionally emailAddress is included as well as name, surname, givenName, initials, and dnQualifier.

Additional object identifiers can be defined with the oid_file or oid_section options in the configuration file. Any additional fields will be treated as though they were a DirectoryString.

💖 EXAMPLES 💖

Examine and verify a certificate request:

openssl req -in req.pem -text -verify -noout

Specify the cipher to be used for encrypting the private key:

openssl req -newkey rsa:2048 -keyout privatekey.pem -out request.csr -cipher aes-256-cbc

Create a private key and then generate a certificate request from it:

openssl genrsa -out key.pem 2048
openssl req -new -key key.pem -out req.pem

The same but just using req:

openssl req -newkey rsa:2048 -keyout key.pem -out req.pem

Generate a self-signed root certificate:

openssl req -x509 -newkey rsa:2048 -keyout key.pem -out req.pem

Create an SM2 private key and then generate a certificate request from it:

openssl ecparam -genkey -name SM2 -out sm2.key
openssl req -new -key sm2.key -out sm2.csr -sm3 -sigopt "distid:1234567812345678"

Examine and verify an SM2 certificate request:

openssl req -verify -in sm2.csr -sm3 -vfyopt "distid:1234567812345678"

Example of a file pointed to by the oid_file option:

1.2.3.4        shortName       A longer Name
1.2.3.6        otherName       Other longer Name

Example of a section pointed to by oid_section making use of variable expansion:

testoid1=1.2.3.5
testoid2=${testoid1}.6

Sample configuration file prompting for field values:

[ req ]
default_bits           = 2048
default_keyfile        = privkey.pem
distinguished_name     = req_distinguished_name
attributes             = req_attributes
req_extensions         = v3_ca

dirstring_type = nombstr

[ req_distinguished_name ]
countryName                    = Country Name (2 letter code)
countryName_default            = AU
countryName_min                = 2
countryName_max                = 2

localityName                   = Locality Name (eg, city)

organizationalUnitName         = Organizational Unit Name (eg, section)

commonName                     = Common Name (eg, YOUR name)
commonName_max                 = 64

emailAddress                   = Email Address
emailAddress_max               = 40

[ req_attributes ]
challengePassword              = A challenge password
challengePassword_min          = 4
challengePassword_max          = 20

[ v3_ca ]

subjectKeyIdentifier=hash
authorityKeyIdentifier=keyid:always,issuer:always
basicConstraints = critical, CA:true

Sample configuration containing all field values:

[ req ]
default_bits           = 2048
default_keyfile        = keyfile.pem
distinguished_name     = req_distinguished_name
attributes             = req_attributes
prompt                 = no
output_password        = mypass

[ req_distinguished_name ]
C                      = GB
ST                     = Test State or Province
L                      = Test Locality
O                      = Organization Name
OU                     = Organizational Unit Name
CN                     = Common Name
emailAddress           = test@email.address

[ req_attributes ]
challengePassword              = A challenge password

Example of giving the most common attributes (subject and extensions) on the command line:

openssl req -new -subj "/C=GB/CN=foo" \
                 -addext "subjectAltName = DNS:foo.co.uk" \
                 -addext "certificatePolicies = 1.2.3.4" \
                 -newkey rsa:2048 -keyout key.pem -out req.pem

🧚 NOTES 🧚

Real talk: the certificate requests generated by Xenroll with MSIE have extensions added. It includes the keyUsage extension, which determines the type of key (signature only or general purpose) and any additional OIDs entered by the script in an extendedKeyUsage extension. That's just how it is, bestie 🤷

🩺 DIAGNOSTICS 🩺

The following messages are frequently asked about:

Using configuration from /some/path/openssl.cnf
Unable to load config info

And this is followed some time later by:

unable to find 'distinguished_name' in config
problems making Certificate Request

Okay so the first error message is the actual clue: it can't find the configuration file! Certain operations (like examining a certificate request) don't need a configuration file, so its use isn't enforced. But generation of certificates or requests does need a configuration file. Lowkey this could be regarded as a bug 🙈

Another puzzling message is this one:

Attributes:
    a0:00

This is displayed when no attributes are present and the request includes the correct empty SET OF structure (the DER encoding of which is 0xa0 0x00). But if you just see:

Attributes:

then the SET OF is missing and the encoding is technically invalid (but it is tolerated, so, like, no panic). See the description of the command line option -asn1-kludge for more information.

💀 BUGS 💀

OpenSSL's handling of T61Strings (aka TeletexStrings) is broken: it effectively treats them as ISO-8859-1 (Latin 1), and Netscape and MSIE have similar behaviour. This can cause problems if you need characters that aren't available in PrintableStrings and you don't want to — or can't — use BMPStrings. Not me finding out the hard way 😭

As a consequence of the T61String handling, the only correct way to represent accented characters in OpenSSL is to use a BMPString: unfortunately Netscape currently chokes on these. So if you have to use accented characters with Netscape and MSIE then you currently need to use the invalid T61String form. Yes, that's cursed. It's what the page says, though 🫠

The current prompting is not very friendly. It doesn't allow you to confirm what you've just entered. And other things like extensions in certificate requests are statically defined in the configuration file — but some of these, like an email address in subjectAltName, should be input by the user. So, yeah. Known limitation, periodt.

🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

openssl(1), openssl-x509(1), openssl-ca(1), openssl-genrsa(1), openssl-gendsa(1), config(5), x509v3_config(5)

👑 HISTORY 👑

  • The default encryption cipher was changed from 3DES to AES-256 in OpenSSL 3.5.
  • The -section option was added in OpenSSL 3.0.0.
  • The -multivalue-rdn option has become obsolete in OpenSSL 3.0.0 and has no effect.
  • The -engine option was deprecated in OpenSSL 3.0. The -nodes option was deprecated in OpenSSL 3.0, too; use -noenc instead.
  • The -reqexts option has been made an alias of -extensions in OpenSSL 3.2.
  • Since OpenSSL 3.2, generated certificates bear X.509 version 3 unless -x509v1 is given, and key identifier extensions are included by default.
  • Since OpenSSL 3.3, the -verify option will exit with 1 on failure.

Copyright 2000-2025 The OpenSSL Project Authors. All Rights Reserved.

Licensed under the Apache License 2.0 (the "License"). You may not use this file except in compliance with the License. You can obtain a copy in the file LICENSE in the source distribution or at <https://www.openssl.org/source/license.html>.

That's the whole page, bestie — you made it to the end, I'm so proud 🥹💜 This one's from 3.5.6, dated 2026-04-07, and honestly you understood all of it. Slay 💅✨

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