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This article describes the syntax for how to generate an AES or 3DES key. The hwsetup command line tool, included in Nexus Certificate Manager (CM), is used.

Syntax

Syntax: Generate AES or 3DES key
hwsetup -libname <pkcs11lib> [-slot <slot#>] [-id <CKA_ID>] [-label <CKA_LABEL>] [-login user|so] [-pin <PIN>] [-nopinpad] -genkey <key type> [-force]

Options and arguments

For a description of the options libnameslotpin, nopinpadid, noidlabellogin, extractable and force and their arguments, see Generate DSA/EC/RSA key pair.

Options and ArgumentsDescription
genkey <key type>

Use this option to generate a symmetric key. Replace <key type> with the desired key type. Key types AES (128), AES-128, AES-192, AES-256 or DES3 are supported in this version.

Default: DES3

Examples

To generate an AES 128-bit key:

Example: Generate AES 128-bit key
hwsetup -libname crypto -slot 1 -pin abcd -genkey AES -label "An AES-128 key"

To generate a 3DES key:

Example: Generate 3DES key
hwsetup -libname crypto -slot 1 -pin abcd -genkey DES3 -label "A 3DES key"