OPENSSL-DSAPARAM(1SSL)

📦
version 4.0.3 · 13 versions
, in ubuntu stonking

💖 OPENSSL-DSAPARAM 💖

okay bestie, so this is openssl-dsaparam from the OpenSSL manual set — 1SSL section, if you're keeping track. it's the page about DSA parameter manipulation and generation and yes i know DSA is giving ✨vintage✨ but she's still iconic, so let's go 🫶

🌸 NAME 🌸

openssl-dsaparam — DSA parameter manipulation and generation

like. that's the whole job. manipulate them, generate them. no cap 💅

🎀 SYNOPSIS 🎀

openssl dsaparam [-help] [-inform DER|PEM] [-outform DER|PEM] [-in
filename] [-out filename] [-noout] [-text] [-genkey] [-verbose] [-quiet]
[-rand files] [-writerand file] [-provider name] [-provider-path path]
[-provparam [name:]key=value] [-propquery propq] [numbits] [numqbits]

look at all those little flags. she's booked and busy 💅

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so basically this command manipulates or generates DSA parameter files. that's the whole thing. that's the vibe.

and here's the tea, bestie: generating DSA parameters? slow. genuinely slow. not a little slow, like slow slow 😭 so literally everyone just generates one parameter set and then reuses it to make a bunch of distinct keys. it's giving "buy one get many free". iconic efficiency, we love her.

✨ OPTIONS ✨

  • -help — prints a usage message. the polite little "here's what i do" 🙈
  • -inform DER|PEM — the input format for the DSA params. it's unspecified by default. go peek at openssl-format-options(1) for the full lore, bestie.
  • -outform DER|PEM — the output format for the DSA params, and the default here is PEM. again, openssl-format-options(1) has the details.

also fyi the parameters are literally a sequence of ASN.1 INTEGERs: p, q, and g. that's it, that's them. and this setup is compatible with the RFC 3370 DSS-Parms structure. slay 🎀

  • -in filename — tells it which file to read parameters from. if you don't give this option, it reads from standard input instead. and heads up: if you also pass the numbits parameter, this option gets ignored entirely. she said "not today" 💀
  • -out filename — tells it which file to write parameters to. no option? standard output it is. now here's the spicy part: the output filename can be the same as the input filename, which means the file contents get replaced. and note — file I/O is not atomic. the output file gets truncated and then written. so yeah. be normal about that 😭
  • -noout — blocks the output of the encoded version of the parameters. she's shy.
  • -text — prints out the DSA parameters in human readable form 🫶
  • -genkey — generates a DSA using either the parameters you specified or the ones it generated. dealer's choice 💅
  • -verbose — extra details about what operations are being performed. she's a yapper, we love her.
  • -quiet — fewer details about what operations are being performed, which is lowkey handy during batch scripts and pipelines. 🤫
  • -rand files, -writerand file — go read "Random State Options" inside openssl(1) for this one bestie.
  • numbits — this optional argument says "generate me a parameter set of size numbits". and if you include it, the input file (whatever input file, if any) is ignored. again. she said bye 🍓
  • numqbits — this optional argument says "generate me a parameter set with a subprime parameter q of size numqbits". it must be the last argument, no exceptions, periodt. and yeah, if you include this one, the input file (if any) is ignored too.
  • -provider name
  • -provider-path path
  • -provparam [name:]key=value
  • -propquery propq — these four? go see "Provider Options" in openssl(1), plus provider(7) and property(7). 🧚

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

openssl(1), openssl-pkeyparam(1), openssl-gendsa(1), openssl-dsa(1), openssl-genrsa(1), openssl-rsa(1)

the whole friend group fr fr 💜

👑 HISTORY 👑

  • the -C option was removed in OpenSSL 3.0.
  • the -engine option was removed in OpenSSL 4.0.

gone but not forgotten 🕊️

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>.

and that's the whole page bestie!! this was OpenSSL 4.0.3, dated 2026-09-29, from the OPENSSL-DSAPARAM(1SSL) manual. now go forth and maybe consider ECDSA, but DSA still ate 💅✨💖

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