OPENSSL-ENGINE(1ossl)

💖 NAME 💖

okay bestie, welcome to the OPENSSL-ENGINE(1ossl) page — this is all about openssl-engine, aka load and query engines. yes, engines. the deprecated little guys. providers are the main character now, but this page still spills all the tea. 💅✨

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

openssl engine [-help] [-v] [-vv] [-vvv] [-vvvv] [-c] [-t] [-tt] [-pre
command] ...  [-post command] ...  [engine ...]

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

🚨 deprecated alert: this command has been deprecated. Providers should be used instead of engines. no cap.

so what does it do? this command queries the status and capabilities of the engines you specify. you can drop engine names before and after all the other command-line flags. only those specified are queried — that's the whole vibe. 🫶

💅 OPTIONS 💅

• -help — display an option summary. 🎀

these flags all provide information about each specified engine, and they stack — each one adds more detail:

• -v — lists all the possible run-time control commands. 🔍
• -vv — adds a description of each command. 📝
• -vvv — adds the input flags. 🧚
• -vvvv — adds the internal input flags. 🧠
• -c — lists the capabilities of each engine. 🌟
• -t — tests if each specified engine is available, and displays the answer. ✅
• -tt — displays an error trace for any unavailable engine. 😭
• -pre command — command-line configuration of engines. the -pre command is given to the engine before it is loaded. the command is of the form cmd:val, where cmd is the command, and val is the value for the command. see the example below. 👀
• -post command — command-line configuration of engines. the -post command is given after the engine is loaded. same cmd:val form: cmd is the command, and val is the value for the command. see the example below. 👀

these two options are cumulative, so they may be given more than once in the same command. stack 'em, bestie. 🫶

🍓 EXAMPLES 🍓

to list all the commands available to a dynamic engine, run this cutie:

        $ openssl engine -t -tt -vvvv dynamic
        (dynamic) Dynamic engine loading support
             [ unavailable ]
             SO_PATH: Specifies the path to the new ENGINE shared library
                  (input flags): STRING
             NO_VCHECK: Specifies to continue even if version checking fails (boolean)
                  (input flags): NUMERIC
             ID: Specifies an ENGINE id name for loading
                  (input flags): STRING
             LIST_ADD: Whether to add a loaded ENGINE to the internal list (0=no,1=yes,2=mandatory)
                  (input flags): NUMERIC
             DIR_LOAD: Specifies whether to load from 'DIR_ADD' directories (0=no,1=yes,2=mandatory)
                  (input flags): NUMERIC
             DIR_ADD: Adds a directory from which ENGINEs can be loaded
                  (input flags): STRING
             LOAD: Load up the ENGINE specified by other settings
                  (input flags): NO_INPUT

to list the capabilities of the rsax engine, run:

        $ openssl engine -c
        (rsax) RSAX engine support
         [RSA]
        (dynamic) Dynamic engine loading support

🌈 ENVIRONMENT 🌈

• OPENSSL_ENGINES — the path to the engines directory. 🦋

👑 SEE ALSO 👑

go read openssl(1) and config(5) — iykyk, bestie. 💜

⭐ HISTORY ⭐

real talk: this command was deprecated in OpenSSL 3.0. 💀

🎀 COPYRIGHT 🎀

Copyright 2016-2020 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>.

source/version: OpenSSL 3.5.9 · date: 2026-09-29 — xoxo, bye bestie 💋✨🫶