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f9a7c34f UM |
1 | OpenSSL - Frequently Asked Questions |
2 | -------------------------------------- | |
3 | ||
0ae485dc RL |
4 | [MISC] Miscellaneous questions |
5 | ||
49976df5 | 6 | * Which is the current version of OpenSSL? |
f9a7c34f UM |
7 | * Where is the documentation? |
8 | * How can I contact the OpenSSL developers? | |
0ae485dc RL |
9 | * Where can I get a compiled version of OpenSSL? |
10 | * Why aren't tools like 'autoconf' and 'libtool' used? | |
9c11a0e5 | 11 | * What is an 'engine' version? |
d4e573f3 | 12 | * How do I check the authenticity of the OpenSSL distribution? |
0ae485dc RL |
13 | |
14 | [LEGAL] Legal questions | |
15 | ||
c1ce32f1 | 16 | * Do I need patent licenses to use OpenSSL? |
17e75747 | 17 | * Can I use OpenSSL with GPL software? |
0ae485dc RL |
18 | |
19 | [USER] Questions on using the OpenSSL applications | |
20 | ||
f9a7c34f | 21 | * Why do I get a "PRNG not seeded" error message? |
24cc290b | 22 | * Why do I get an "unable to write 'random state'" error message? |
46e80a30 DSH |
23 | * How do I create certificates or certificate requests? |
24 | * Why can't I create certificate requests? | |
afee764c | 25 | * Why does <SSL program> fail with a certificate verify error? |
a331a305 | 26 | * Why can I only use weak ciphers when I connect to a server using OpenSSL? |
afee764c DSH |
27 | * How can I create DSA certificates? |
28 | * Why can't I make an SSL connection using a DSA certificate? | |
a331a305 | 29 | * How can I remove the passphrase on a private key? |
1a7b2d33 | 30 | * Why can't I use OpenSSL certificates with SSL client authentication? |
7522254b | 31 | * Why does my browser give a warning about a mismatched hostname? |
0b33bc6b | 32 | * How do I install a CA certificate into a browser? |
17e2c77a | 33 | * Why is OpenSSL x509 DN output not conformant to RFC2253? |
0ae485dc RL |
34 | |
35 | [BUILD] Questions about building and testing OpenSSL | |
36 | ||
37 | * Why does the linker complain about undefined symbols? | |
c32364f5 | 38 | * Why does the OpenSSL test fail with "bc: command not found"? |
a6ed5dd6 | 39 | * Why does the OpenSSL test fail with "bc: 1 no implemented"? |
f742e497 | 40 | * Why does the OpenSSL test fail with "bc: stack empty"? |
6bc847e4 | 41 | * Why does the OpenSSL compilation fail on Alpha Tru64 Unix? |
b364e5d2 | 42 | * Why does the OpenSSL compilation fail with "ar: command not found"? |
bf55ece1 | 43 | * Why does the OpenSSL compilation fail on Win32 with VC++? |
c4da6dd3 | 44 | * What is special about OpenSSL on Redhat? |
311e2099 RL |
45 | * Why does the OpenSSL compilation fail on MacOS X? |
46 | * Why does the OpenSSL test suite fail on MacOS X? | |
26a60b2e | 47 | * Why does the OpenSSL test suite fail in BN_sqr test [on a 64-bit platform]? |
75c40285 | 48 | * Why does OpenBSD-i386 build fail on des-586.s with "Unimplemented segment type"? |
f9a7c34f | 49 | |
0ae485dc RL |
50 | [PROG] Questions about programming with OpenSSL |
51 | ||
52 | * Is OpenSSL thread-safe? | |
53 | * I've compiled a program under Windows and it crashes: why? | |
54 | * How do I read or write a DER encoded buffer using the ASN1 functions? | |
6ef7b78e | 55 | * OpenSSL uses DER but I need BER format: does OpenSSL support BER? |
0ae485dc RL |
56 | * I've tried using <M_some_evil_pkcs12_macro> and I get errors why? |
57 | * I've called <some function> and it fails, why? | |
58 | * I just get a load of numbers for the error output, what do they mean? | |
59 | * Why do I get errors about unknown algorithms? | |
60 | * Why can't the OpenSSH configure script detect OpenSSL? | |
61 | * Can I use OpenSSL's SSL library with non-blocking I/O? | |
19732245 | 62 | * Why doesn't my server application receive a client certificate? |
e1f7ea25 | 63 | * Why does compilation fail due to an undefined symbol NID_uniqueIdentifier? |
6ef7b78e | 64 | * I think I've detected a memory leak, is this a bug? |
0ae485dc RL |
65 | |
66 | =============================================================================== | |
67 | ||
68 | [MISC] ======================================================================== | |
f9a7c34f | 69 | |
49976df5 UM |
70 | * Which is the current version of OpenSSL? |
71 | ||
72 | The current version is available from <URL: http://www.openssl.org>. | |
23fadaa0 | 73 | OpenSSL 0.9.7f was released on March 22, 2005. |
49976df5 UM |
74 | |
75 | In addition to the current stable release, you can also access daily | |
76 | snapshots of the OpenSSL development version at <URL: | |
77 | ftp://ftp.openssl.org/snapshot/>, or get it by anonymous CVS access. | |
78 | ||
79 | ||
f9a7c34f UM |
80 | * Where is the documentation? |
81 | ||
82 | OpenSSL is a library that provides cryptographic functionality to | |
83 | applications such as secure web servers. Be sure to read the | |
84 | documentation of the application you want to use. The INSTALL file | |
85 | explains how to install this library. | |
86 | ||
87 | OpenSSL includes a command line utility that can be used to perform a | |
88 | variety of cryptographic functions. It is described in the openssl(1) | |
89 | manpage. Documentation for developers is currently being written. A | |
90 | few manual pages already are available; overviews over libcrypto and | |
91 | libssl are given in the crypto(3) and ssl(3) manpages. | |
92 | ||
93 | The OpenSSL manpages are installed in /usr/local/ssl/man/ (or a | |
94 | different directory if you specified one as described in INSTALL). | |
95 | In addition, you can read the most current versions at | |
96 | <URL: http://www.openssl.org/docs/>. | |
97 | ||
98 | For information on parts of libcrypto that are not yet documented, you | |
99 | might want to read Ariel Glenn's documentation on SSLeay 0.9, OpenSSL's | |
100 | predecessor, at <URL: http://www.columbia.edu/~ariel/ssleay/>. Much | |
101 | of this still applies to OpenSSL. | |
102 | ||
fbb41ae0 DSH |
103 | There is some documentation about certificate extensions and PKCS#12 |
104 | in doc/openssl.txt | |
105 | ||
f9a7c34f | 106 | The original SSLeay documentation is included in OpenSSL as |
cacbb51e | 107 | doc/ssleay.txt. It may be useful when none of the other resources |
f9a7c34f UM |
108 | help, but please note that it reflects the obsolete version SSLeay |
109 | 0.6.6. | |
110 | ||
111 | ||
112 | * How can I contact the OpenSSL developers? | |
113 | ||
114 | The README file describes how to submit bug reports and patches to | |
115 | OpenSSL. Information on the OpenSSL mailing lists is available from | |
116 | <URL: http://www.openssl.org>. | |
117 | ||
118 | ||
0ae485dc | 119 | * Where can I get a compiled version of OpenSSL? |
f9a7c34f | 120 | |
d9f40bbe RL |
121 | You can finder pointers to binary distributions in |
122 | http://www.openssl.org/related/binaries.html . | |
123 | ||
0ae485dc RL |
124 | Some applications that use OpenSSL are distributed in binary form. |
125 | When using such an application, you don't need to install OpenSSL | |
126 | yourself; the application will include the required parts (e.g. DLLs). | |
f9a7c34f | 127 | |
d9f40bbe | 128 | If you want to build OpenSSL on a Windows system and you don't have |
0ae485dc RL |
129 | a C compiler, read the "Mingw32" section of INSTALL.W32 for information |
130 | on how to obtain and install the free GNU C compiler. | |
f9a7c34f | 131 | |
0ae485dc | 132 | A number of Linux and *BSD distributions include OpenSSL. |
f9a7c34f | 133 | |
f9a7c34f | 134 | |
0ae485dc | 135 | * Why aren't tools like 'autoconf' and 'libtool' used? |
f9a7c34f | 136 | |
ba93fd6a UM |
137 | autoconf will probably be used in future OpenSSL versions. If it was |
138 | less Unix-centric, it might have been used much earlier. | |
f9a7c34f | 139 | |
a0256f46 | 140 | * What is an 'engine' version? |
679df234 LJ |
141 | |
142 | With version 0.9.6 OpenSSL was extended to interface to external crypto | |
143 | hardware. This was realized in a special release '0.9.6-engine'. With | |
a0256f46 LJ |
144 | version 0.9.7 (not yet released) the changes were merged into the main |
145 | development line, so that the special release is no longer necessary. | |
b1d6e3f5 | 146 | |
d4e573f3 RL |
147 | * How do I check the authenticity of the OpenSSL distribution? |
148 | ||
149 | We provide MD5 digests and ASC signatures of each tarball. | |
150 | Use MD5 to check that a tarball from a mirror site is identical: | |
151 | ||
152 | md5sum TARBALL | awk '{print $1;}' | cmp - TARBALL.md5 | |
153 | ||
154 | You can check authenticity using pgp or gpg. You need the OpenSSL team | |
e6e1f4cb MC |
155 | member public key used to sign it (download it from a key server, see a |
156 | list of keys at <URL: http://www.openssl.org/about/>). Then | |
d4e573f3 RL |
157 | just do: |
158 | ||
159 | pgp TARBALL.asc | |
160 | ||
0ae485dc | 161 | [LEGAL] ======================================================================= |
b1d6e3f5 | 162 | |
0ae485dc | 163 | * Do I need patent licenses to use OpenSSL? |
b1d6e3f5 | 164 | |
0ae485dc RL |
165 | The patents section of the README file lists patents that may apply to |
166 | you if you want to use OpenSSL. For information on intellectual | |
167 | property rights, please consult a lawyer. The OpenSSL team does not | |
168 | offer legal advice. | |
169 | ||
af1048c2 BM |
170 | You can configure OpenSSL so as not to use IDEA, MDC2 and RC5 by using |
171 | ./config no-idea no-mdc2 no-rc5 | |
0ae485dc RL |
172 | |
173 | ||
17e75747 UM |
174 | * Can I use OpenSSL with GPL software? |
175 | ||
176 | On many systems including the major Linux and BSD distributions, yes (the | |
177 | GPL does not place restrictions on using libraries that are part of the | |
178 | normal operating system distribution). | |
179 | ||
180 | On other systems, the situation is less clear. Some GPL software copyright | |
181 | holders claim that you infringe on their rights if you use OpenSSL with | |
182 | their software on operating systems that don't normally include OpenSSL. | |
183 | ||
184 | If you develop open source software that uses OpenSSL, you may find it | |
e3fefbfd | 185 | useful to choose an other license than the GPL, or state explicitly that |
17e75747 UM |
186 | "This program is released under the GPL with the additional exemption that |
187 | compiling, linking, and/or using OpenSSL is allowed." If you are using | |
188 | GPL software developed by others, you may want to ask the copyright holder | |
189 | for permission to use their software with OpenSSL. | |
190 | ||
191 | ||
0ae485dc | 192 | [USER] ======================================================================== |
b1d6e3f5 | 193 | |
f9a7c34f UM |
194 | * Why do I get a "PRNG not seeded" error message? |
195 | ||
196 | Cryptographic software needs a source of unpredictable data to work | |
197 | correctly. Many open source operating systems provide a "randomness | |
c09a2978 BM |
198 | device" (/dev/urandom or /dev/random) that serves this purpose. |
199 | All OpenSSL versions try to use /dev/urandom by default; starting with | |
379e5689 | 200 | version 0.9.7, OpenSSL also tries /dev/random if /dev/urandom is not |
c09a2978 BM |
201 | available. |
202 | ||
203 | On other systems, applications have to call the RAND_add() or | |
204 | RAND_seed() function with appropriate data before generating keys or | |
205 | performing public key encryption. (These functions initialize the | |
206 | pseudo-random number generator, PRNG.) Some broken applications do | |
207 | not do this. As of version 0.9.5, the OpenSSL functions that need | |
208 | randomness report an error if the random number generator has not been | |
209 | seeded with at least 128 bits of randomness. If this error occurs and | |
210 | is not discussed in the documentation of the application you are | |
211 | using, please contact the author of that application; it is likely | |
212 | that it never worked correctly. OpenSSL 0.9.5 and later make the | |
213 | error visible by refusing to perform potentially insecure encryption. | |
214 | ||
215 | If you are using Solaris 8, you can add /dev/urandom and /dev/random | |
216 | devices by installing patch 112438 (Sparc) or 112439 (x86), which are | |
217 | available via the Patchfinder at <URL: http://sunsolve.sun.com> | |
218 | (Solaris 9 includes these devices by default). For /dev/random support | |
219 | for earlier Solaris versions, see Sun's statement at | |
220 | <URL: http://sunsolve.sun.com/pub-cgi/retrieve.pl?doc=fsrdb/27606&zone_32=SUNWski> | |
221 | (the SUNWski package is available in patch 105710). | |
8311d323 | 222 | |
d9a770e6 BM |
223 | On systems without /dev/urandom and /dev/random, it is a good idea to |
224 | use the Entropy Gathering Demon (EGD); see the RAND_egd() manpage for | |
225 | details. Starting with version 0.9.7, OpenSSL will automatically look | |
226 | for an EGD socket at /var/run/egd-pool, /dev/egd-pool, /etc/egd-pool and | |
227 | /etc/entropy. | |
2b670ea2 | 228 | |
24cc290b BM |
229 | Most components of the openssl command line utility automatically try |
230 | to seed the random number generator from a file. The name of the | |
231 | default seeding file is determined as follows: If environment variable | |
232 | RANDFILE is set, then it names the seeding file. Otherwise if | |
233 | environment variable HOME is set, then the seeding file is $HOME/.rnd. | |
234 | If neither RANDFILE nor HOME is set, versions up to OpenSSL 0.9.6 will | |
235 | use file .rnd in the current directory while OpenSSL 0.9.6a uses no | |
236 | default seeding file at all. OpenSSL 0.9.6b and later will behave | |
6af59bc0 | 237 | similarly to 0.9.6a, but will use a default of "C:\" for HOME on |
24cc290b BM |
238 | Windows systems if the environment variable has not been set. |
239 | ||
240 | If the default seeding file does not exist or is too short, the "PRNG | |
241 | not seeded" error message may occur. | |
242 | ||
243 | The openssl command line utility will write back a new state to the | |
244 | default seeding file (and create this file if necessary) unless | |
245 | there was no sufficient seeding. | |
246 | ||
35feed50 LJ |
247 | Pointing $RANDFILE to an Entropy Gathering Daemon socket does not work. |
248 | Use the "-rand" option of the OpenSSL command line tools instead. | |
249 | The $RANDFILE environment variable and $HOME/.rnd are only used by the | |
250 | OpenSSL command line tools. Applications using the OpenSSL library | |
251 | provide their own configuration options to specify the entropy source, | |
252 | please check out the documentation coming the with application. | |
8311d323 | 253 | |
2b670ea2 | 254 | |
24cc290b BM |
255 | * Why do I get an "unable to write 'random state'" error message? |
256 | ||
257 | ||
258 | Sometimes the openssl command line utility does not abort with | |
259 | a "PRNG not seeded" error message, but complains that it is | |
260 | "unable to write 'random state'". This message refers to the | |
261 | default seeding file (see previous answer). A possible reason | |
262 | is that no default filename is known because neither RANDFILE | |
263 | nor HOME is set. (Versions up to 0.9.6 used file ".rnd" in the | |
264 | current directory in this case, but this has changed with 0.9.6a.) | |
265 | ||
266 | ||
0ae485dc RL |
267 | * How do I create certificates or certificate requests? |
268 | ||
269 | Check out the CA.pl(1) manual page. This provides a simple wrapper round | |
270 | the 'req', 'verify', 'ca' and 'pkcs12' utilities. For finer control check | |
271 | out the manual pages for the individual utilities and the certificate | |
272 | extensions documentation (currently in doc/openssl.txt). | |
273 | ||
274 | ||
275 | * Why can't I create certificate requests? | |
276 | ||
277 | You typically get the error: | |
278 | ||
279 | unable to find 'distinguished_name' in config | |
280 | problems making Certificate Request | |
281 | ||
282 | This is because it can't find the configuration file. Check out the | |
283 | DIAGNOSTICS section of req(1) for more information. | |
284 | ||
285 | ||
286 | * Why does <SSL program> fail with a certificate verify error? | |
287 | ||
288 | This problem is usually indicated by log messages saying something like | |
289 | "unable to get local issuer certificate" or "self signed certificate". | |
290 | When a certificate is verified its root CA must be "trusted" by OpenSSL | |
291 | this typically means that the CA certificate must be placed in a directory | |
292 | or file and the relevant program configured to read it. The OpenSSL program | |
293 | 'verify' behaves in a similar way and issues similar error messages: check | |
294 | the verify(1) program manual page for more information. | |
295 | ||
296 | ||
297 | * Why can I only use weak ciphers when I connect to a server using OpenSSL? | |
298 | ||
299 | This is almost certainly because you are using an old "export grade" browser | |
300 | which only supports weak encryption. Upgrade your browser to support 128 bit | |
301 | ciphers. | |
302 | ||
303 | ||
304 | * How can I create DSA certificates? | |
305 | ||
306 | Check the CA.pl(1) manual page for a DSA certificate example. | |
307 | ||
308 | ||
309 | * Why can't I make an SSL connection to a server using a DSA certificate? | |
310 | ||
311 | Typically you'll see a message saying there are no shared ciphers when | |
312 | the same setup works fine with an RSA certificate. There are two possible | |
313 | causes. The client may not support connections to DSA servers most web | |
314 | browsers (including Netscape and MSIE) only support connections to servers | |
315 | supporting RSA cipher suites. The other cause is that a set of DH parameters | |
316 | has not been supplied to the server. DH parameters can be created with the | |
317 | dhparam(1) command and loaded using the SSL_CTX_set_tmp_dh() for example: | |
318 | check the source to s_server in apps/s_server.c for an example. | |
319 | ||
320 | ||
321 | * How can I remove the passphrase on a private key? | |
322 | ||
323 | Firstly you should be really *really* sure you want to do this. Leaving | |
324 | a private key unencrypted is a major security risk. If you decide that | |
325 | you do have to do this check the EXAMPLES sections of the rsa(1) and | |
326 | dsa(1) manual pages. | |
327 | ||
328 | ||
1a7b2d33 DSH |
329 | * Why can't I use OpenSSL certificates with SSL client authentication? |
330 | ||
331 | What will typically happen is that when a server requests authentication | |
332 | it will either not include your certificate or tell you that you have | |
333 | no client certificates (Netscape) or present you with an empty list box | |
334 | (MSIE). The reason for this is that when a server requests a client | |
335 | certificate it includes a list of CAs names which it will accept. Browsers | |
336 | will only let you select certificates from the list on the grounds that | |
337 | there is little point presenting a certificate which the server will | |
338 | reject. | |
339 | ||
340 | The solution is to add the relevant CA certificate to your servers "trusted | |
e3fefbfd | 341 | CA list". How you do this depends on the server software in uses. You can |
1a7b2d33 DSH |
342 | print out the servers list of acceptable CAs using the OpenSSL s_client tool: |
343 | ||
344 | openssl s_client -connect www.some.host:443 -prexit | |
345 | ||
959f67d6 | 346 | If your server only requests certificates on certain URLs then you may need |
1a7b2d33 DSH |
347 | to manually issue an HTTP GET command to get the list when s_client connects: |
348 | ||
349 | GET /some/page/needing/a/certificate.html | |
350 | ||
351 | If your CA does not appear in the list then this confirms the problem. | |
352 | ||
353 | ||
354 | * Why does my browser give a warning about a mismatched hostname? | |
355 | ||
356 | Browsers expect the server's hostname to match the value in the commonName | |
357 | (CN) field of the certificate. If it does not then you get a warning. | |
358 | ||
359 | ||
0b33bc6b DSH |
360 | * How do I install a CA certificate into a browser? |
361 | ||
362 | The usual way is to send the DER encoded certificate to the browser as | |
363 | MIME type application/x-x509-ca-cert, for example by clicking on an appropriate | |
364 | link. On MSIE certain extensions such as .der or .cacert may also work, or you | |
365 | can import the certificate using the certificate import wizard. | |
366 | ||
367 | You can convert a certificate to DER form using the command: | |
368 | ||
369 | openssl x509 -in ca.pem -outform DER -out ca.der | |
370 | ||
371 | Occasionally someone suggests using a command such as: | |
372 | ||
373 | openssl pkcs12 -export -out cacert.p12 -in cacert.pem -inkey cakey.pem | |
374 | ||
375 | DO NOT DO THIS! This command will give away your CAs private key and | |
376 | reduces its security to zero: allowing anyone to forge certificates in | |
377 | whatever name they choose. | |
378 | ||
17e2c77a LJ |
379 | * Why is OpenSSL x509 DN output not conformant to RFC2253? |
380 | ||
381 | The ways to print out the oneline format of the DN (Distinguished Name) have | |
382 | been extended in version 0.9.7 of OpenSSL. Using the new X509_NAME_print_ex() | |
383 | interface, the "-nameopt" option could be introduded. See the manual | |
384 | page of the "openssl x509" commandline tool for details. The old behaviour | |
385 | has however been left as default for the sake of compatibility. | |
0b33bc6b | 386 | |
0ae485dc RL |
387 | [BUILD] ======================================================================= |
388 | ||
49976df5 UM |
389 | * Why does the linker complain about undefined symbols? |
390 | ||
cacbb51e | 391 | Maybe the compilation was interrupted, and make doesn't notice that |
49976df5 UM |
392 | something is missing. Run "make clean; make". |
393 | ||
394 | If you used ./Configure instead of ./config, make sure that you | |
395 | selected the right target. File formats may differ slightly between | |
396 | OS versions (for example sparcv8/sparcv9, or a.out/elf). | |
397 | ||
0816bc22 UM |
398 | In case you get errors about the following symbols, use the config |
399 | option "no-asm", as described in INSTALL: | |
400 | ||
401 | BF_cbc_encrypt, BF_decrypt, BF_encrypt, CAST_cbc_encrypt, | |
402 | CAST_decrypt, CAST_encrypt, RC4, RC5_32_cbc_encrypt, RC5_32_decrypt, | |
403 | RC5_32_encrypt, bn_add_words, bn_div_words, bn_mul_add_words, | |
404 | bn_mul_comba4, bn_mul_comba8, bn_mul_words, bn_sqr_comba4, | |
405 | bn_sqr_comba8, bn_sqr_words, bn_sub_words, des_decrypt3, | |
406 | des_ede3_cbc_encrypt, des_encrypt, des_encrypt2, des_encrypt3, | |
407 | des_ncbc_encrypt, md5_block_asm_host_order, sha1_block_asm_data_order | |
408 | ||
569be071 | 409 | If none of these helps, you may want to try using the current snapshot. |
49976df5 UM |
410 | If the problem persists, please submit a bug report. |
411 | ||
412 | ||
0ae485dc | 413 | * Why does the OpenSSL test fail with "bc: command not found"? |
2b670ea2 | 414 | |
0ae485dc RL |
415 | You didn't install "bc", the Unix calculator. If you want to run the |
416 | tests, get GNU bc from ftp://ftp.gnu.org or from your OS distributor. | |
2b670ea2 | 417 | |
2b670ea2 | 418 | |
a6ed5dd6 | 419 | * Why does the OpenSSL test fail with "bc: 1 no implemented"? |
0ae485dc | 420 | |
1417f2dc RL |
421 | On some SCO installations or versions, bc has a bug that gets triggered |
422 | when you run the test suite (using "make test"). The message returned is | |
a6ed5dd6 | 423 | "bc: 1 not implemented". |
1417f2dc RL |
424 | |
425 | The best way to deal with this is to find another implementation of bc | |
426 | and compile/install it. GNU bc (see http://www.gnu.org/software/software.html | |
427 | for download instructions) can be safely used, for example. | |
f742e497 RL |
428 | |
429 | ||
430 | * Why does the OpenSSL test fail with "bc: stack empty"? | |
431 | ||
432 | On some DG/ux versions, bc seems to have a too small stack for calculations | |
433 | that the OpenSSL bntest throws at it. This gets triggered when you run the | |
434 | test suite (using "make test"). The message returned is "bc: stack empty". | |
435 | ||
436 | The best way to deal with this is to find another implementation of bc | |
437 | and compile/install it. GNU bc (see http://www.gnu.org/software/software.html | |
438 | for download instructions) can be safely used, for example. | |
0ae485dc RL |
439 | |
440 | ||
6bc847e4 | 441 | * Why does the OpenSSL compilation fail on Alpha Tru64 Unix? |
0ae485dc | 442 | |
6bc847e4 | 443 | On some Alpha installations running Tru64 Unix and Compaq C, the compilation |
0ae485dc RL |
444 | of crypto/sha/sha_dgst.c fails with the message 'Fatal: Insufficient virtual |
445 | memory to continue compilation.' As far as the tests have shown, this may be | |
446 | a compiler bug. What happens is that it eats up a lot of resident memory | |
447 | to build something, probably a table. The problem is clearly in the | |
448 | optimization code, because if one eliminates optimization completely (-O0), | |
449 | the compilation goes through (and the compiler consumes about 2MB of resident | |
450 | memory instead of 240MB or whatever one's limit is currently). | |
451 | ||
452 | There are three options to solve this problem: | |
453 | ||
454 | 1. set your current data segment size soft limit higher. Experience shows | |
455 | that about 241000 kbytes seems to be enough on an AlphaServer DS10. You do | |
456 | this with the command 'ulimit -Sd nnnnnn', where 'nnnnnn' is the number of | |
457 | kbytes to set the limit to. | |
458 | ||
459 | 2. If you have a hard limit that is lower than what you need and you can't | |
460 | get it changed, you can compile all of OpenSSL with -O0 as optimization | |
461 | level. This is however not a very nice thing to do for those who expect to | |
462 | get the best result from OpenSSL. A bit more complicated solution is the | |
463 | following: | |
464 | ||
465 | ----- snip:start ----- | |
466 | make DIRS=crypto SDIRS=sha "`grep '^CFLAG=' Makefile.ssl | \ | |
467 | sed -e 's/ -O[0-9] / -O0 /'`" | |
468 | rm `ls crypto/*.o crypto/sha/*.o | grep -v 'sha_dgst\.o'` | |
469 | make | |
470 | ----- snip:end ----- | |
471 | ||
472 | This will only compile sha_dgst.c with -O0, the rest with the optimization | |
473 | level chosen by the configuration process. When the above is done, do the | |
474 | test and installation and you're set. | |
475 | ||
d9248e57 AP |
476 | 3. Reconfigure the toolkit with no-sha0 option to leave out SHA0. It |
477 | should not be used and is not used in SSL/TLS nor any other recognized | |
478 | protocol in either case. | |
479 | ||
0ae485dc RL |
480 | |
481 | * Why does the OpenSSL compilation fail with "ar: command not found"? | |
482 | ||
483 | Getting this message is quite usual on Solaris 2, because Sun has hidden | |
484 | away 'ar' and other development commands in directories that aren't in | |
485 | $PATH by default. One of those directories is '/usr/ccs/bin'. The | |
486 | quickest way to fix this is to do the following (it assumes you use sh | |
487 | or any sh-compatible shell): | |
488 | ||
489 | ----- snip:start ----- | |
490 | PATH=${PATH}:/usr/ccs/bin; export PATH | |
491 | ----- snip:end ----- | |
492 | ||
493 | and then redo the compilation. What you should really do is make sure | |
494 | '/usr/ccs/bin' is permanently in your $PATH, for example through your | |
495 | '.profile' (again, assuming you use a sh-compatible shell). | |
496 | ||
497 | ||
498 | * Why does the OpenSSL compilation fail on Win32 with VC++? | |
499 | ||
500 | Sometimes, you may get reports from VC++ command line (cl) that it | |
501 | can't find standard include files like stdio.h and other weirdnesses. | |
502 | One possible cause is that the environment isn't correctly set up. | |
3d6a84c4 RL |
503 | To solve that problem for VC++ versions up to 6, one should run |
504 | VCVARS32.BAT which is found in the 'bin' subdirectory of the VC++ | |
505 | installation directory (somewhere under 'Program Files'). For VC++ | |
506 | version 7 (and up?), which is also called VS.NET, the file is called | |
507 | VSVARS32.BAT instead. | |
508 | This needs to be done prior to running NMAKE, and the changes are only | |
509 | valid for the current DOS session. | |
0ae485dc RL |
510 | |
511 | ||
c4da6dd3 LJ |
512 | * What is special about OpenSSL on Redhat? |
513 | ||
876811e2 LJ |
514 | Red Hat Linux (release 7.0 and later) include a preinstalled limited |
515 | version of OpenSSL. For patent reasons, support for IDEA, RC5 and MDC2 | |
516 | is disabled in this version. The same may apply to other Linux distributions. | |
517 | Users may therefore wish to install more or all of the features left out. | |
c4da6dd3 LJ |
518 | |
519 | To do this you MUST ensure that you do not overwrite the openssl that is in | |
520 | /usr/bin on your Red Hat machine. Several packages depend on this file, | |
521 | including sendmail and ssh. /usr/local/bin is a good alternative choice. The | |
522 | libraries that come with Red Hat 7.0 onwards have different names and so are | |
523 | not affected. (eg For Red Hat 7.2 they are /lib/libssl.so.0.9.6b and | |
524 | /lib/libcrypto.so.0.9.6b with symlinks /lib/libssl.so.2 and | |
525 | /lib/libcrypto.so.2 respectively). | |
526 | ||
527 | Please note that we have been advised by Red Hat attempting to recompile the | |
528 | openssl rpm with all the cryptography enabled will not work. All other | |
529 | packages depend on the original Red Hat supplied openssl package. It is also | |
530 | worth noting that due to the way Red Hat supplies its packages, updates to | |
531 | openssl on each distribution never change the package version, only the | |
532 | build number. For example, on Red Hat 7.1, the latest openssl package has | |
533 | version number 0.9.6 and build number 9 even though it contains all the | |
534 | relevant updates in packages up to and including 0.9.6b. | |
535 | ||
536 | A possible way around this is to persuade Red Hat to produce a non-US | |
537 | version of Red Hat Linux. | |
538 | ||
876811e2 LJ |
539 | FYI: Patent numbers and expiry dates of US patents: |
540 | MDC-2: 4,908,861 13/03/2007 | |
541 | IDEA: 5,214,703 25/05/2010 | |
542 | RC5: 5,724,428 03/03/2015 | |
543 | ||
311e2099 RL |
544 | |
545 | * Why does the OpenSSL compilation fail on MacOS X? | |
546 | ||
547 | If the failure happens when trying to build the "openssl" binary, with | |
548 | a large number of undefined symbols, it's very probable that you have | |
549 | OpenSSL 0.9.6b delivered with the operating system (you can find out by | |
550 | running '/usr/bin/openssl version') and that you were trying to build | |
551 | OpenSSL 0.9.7 or newer. The problem is that the loader ('ld') in | |
552 | MacOS X has a misfeature that's quite difficult to go around. | |
553 | Look in the file PROBLEMS for a more detailed explanation and for possible | |
554 | solutions. | |
555 | ||
556 | ||
557 | * Why does the OpenSSL test suite fail on MacOS X? | |
558 | ||
559 | If the failure happens when running 'make test' and the RC4 test fails, | |
560 | it's very probable that you have OpenSSL 0.9.6b delivered with the | |
561 | operating system (you can find out by running '/usr/bin/openssl version') | |
562 | and that you were trying to build OpenSSL 0.9.6d. The problem is that | |
563 | the loader ('ld') in MacOS X has a misfeature that's quite difficult to | |
564 | go around and has linked the programs "openssl" and the test programs | |
565 | with /usr/lib/libcrypto.dylib and /usr/lib/libssl.dylib instead of the | |
566 | libraries you just built. | |
567 | Look in the file PROBLEMS for a more detailed explanation and for possible | |
568 | solutions. | |
569 | ||
26a60b2e | 570 | * Why does the OpenSSL test suite fail in BN_sqr test [on a 64-bit platform]? |
e0b2073f AP |
571 | |
572 | Failure in BN_sqr test is most likely caused by a failure to configure the | |
26a60b2e AP |
573 | toolkit for current platform or lack of support for the platform in question. |
574 | Run './config -t' and './apps/openssl version -p'. Do these platform | |
575 | identifiers match? If they don't, then you most likely failed to run | |
576 | ./config and you're hereby advised to do so before filing a bug report. | |
577 | If ./config itself fails to run, then it's most likely problem with your | |
578 | local environment and you should turn to your system administrator (or | |
76a03d56 AP |
579 | similar). If identifiers match (and/or no alternative identifier is |
580 | suggested by ./config script), then the platform is unsupported. There might | |
581 | or might not be a workaround. Most notably on SPARC64 platforms with GNU | |
582 | C compiler you should be able to produce a working build by running | |
583 | './config -m32'. I understand that -m32 might not be what you want/need, | |
85f258d1 AP |
584 | but the build should be operational. For further details turn to |
585 | <openssl-dev@openssl.org>. | |
586 | ||
75c40285 | 587 | * Why does OpenBSD-i386 build fail on des-586.s with "Unimplemented segment type"? |
85f258d1 | 588 | |
75c40285 AP |
589 | As of 0.9.7 assembler routines were overhauled for position independence |
590 | of the machine code, which is essential for shared library support. For | |
591 | some reason OpenBSD is equipped with an out-of-date GNU assembler which | |
592 | finds the new code offensive. To work around the problem, configure with | |
0382c95e AP |
593 | no-asm (and sacrifice a great deal of performance) or patch your assembler |
594 | according to <URL: http://www.openssl.org/~appro/gas-1.92.3.OpenBSD.patch>. | |
75c40285 | 595 | For your convenience a pre-compiled replacement binary is provided at |
1a6356b2 AP |
596 | <URL: http://www.openssl.org/~appro/gas-1.92.3.static.aout.bin>. |
597 | Reportedly elder *BSD a.out platforms also suffer from this problem and | |
598 | remedy should be same. Provided binary is statically linked and should be | |
599 | working across wider range of *BSD branches, not just OpenBSD. | |
e0b2073f | 600 | |
0ae485dc RL |
601 | [PROG] ======================================================================== |
602 | ||
603 | * Is OpenSSL thread-safe? | |
604 | ||
605 | Yes (with limitations: an SSL connection may not concurrently be used | |
606 | by multiple threads). On Windows and many Unix systems, OpenSSL | |
607 | automatically uses the multi-threaded versions of the standard | |
608 | libraries. If your platform is not one of these, consult the INSTALL | |
609 | file. | |
610 | ||
611 | Multi-threaded applications must provide two callback functions to | |
612 | OpenSSL. This is described in the threads(3) manpage. | |
e8dbc159 | 613 | |
afee764c | 614 | |
46e80a30 DSH |
615 | * I've compiled a program under Windows and it crashes: why? |
616 | ||
a542db90 RL |
617 | This is usually because you've missed the comment in INSTALL.W32. |
618 | Your application must link against the same version of the Win32 | |
619 | C-Runtime against which your openssl libraries were linked. The | |
620 | default version for OpenSSL is /MD - "Multithreaded DLL". | |
621 | ||
622 | If you are using Microsoft Visual C++'s IDE (Visual Studio), in | |
623 | many cases, your new project most likely defaulted to "Debug | |
624 | Singlethreaded" - /ML. This is NOT interchangeable with /MD and your | |
625 | program will crash, typically on the first BIO related read or write | |
626 | operation. | |
627 | ||
628 | For each of the six possible link stage configurations within Win32, | |
629 | your application must link against the same by which OpenSSL was | |
630 | built. If you are using MS Visual C++ (Studio) this can be changed | |
631 | by: | |
632 | ||
633 | 1. Select Settings... from the Project Menu. | |
634 | 2. Select the C/C++ Tab. | |
635 | 3. Select "Code Generation from the "Category" drop down list box | |
636 | 4. Select the Appropriate library (see table below) from the "Use | |
637 | run-time library" drop down list box. Perform this step for both | |
638 | your debug and release versions of your application (look at the | |
639 | top left of the settings panel to change between the two) | |
640 | ||
641 | Single Threaded /ML - MS VC++ often defaults to | |
642 | this for the release | |
643 | version of a new project. | |
644 | Debug Single Threaded /MLd - MS VC++ often defaults to | |
645 | this for the debug version | |
646 | of a new project. | |
647 | Multithreaded /MT | |
648 | Debug Multithreaded /MTd | |
649 | Multithreaded DLL /MD - OpenSSL defaults to this. | |
650 | Debug Multithreaded DLL /MDd | |
651 | ||
652 | Note that debug and release libraries are NOT interchangeable. If you | |
653 | built OpenSSL with /MD your application must use /MD and cannot use /MDd. | |
46e80a30 DSH |
654 | |
655 | ||
c5a3b7e7 DSH |
656 | * How do I read or write a DER encoded buffer using the ASN1 functions? |
657 | ||
658 | You have two options. You can either use a memory BIO in conjunction | |
ec7c9ee8 DSH |
659 | with the i2d_*_bio() or d2i_*_bio() functions or you can use the |
660 | i2d_*(), d2i_*() functions directly. Since these are often the | |
c5a3b7e7 DSH |
661 | cause of grief here are some code fragments using PKCS7 as an example: |
662 | ||
ec7c9ee8 DSH |
663 | unsigned char *buf, *p; |
664 | int len; | |
c5a3b7e7 | 665 | |
ec7c9ee8 DSH |
666 | len = i2d_PKCS7(p7, NULL); |
667 | buf = OPENSSL_malloc(len); /* or Malloc, error checking omitted */ | |
668 | p = buf; | |
669 | i2d_PKCS7(p7, &p); | |
c5a3b7e7 DSH |
670 | |
671 | At this point buf contains the len bytes of the DER encoding of | |
672 | p7. | |
673 | ||
674 | The opposite assumes we already have len bytes in buf: | |
675 | ||
ec7c9ee8 DSH |
676 | unsigned char *p; |
677 | p = buf; | |
678 | p7 = d2i_PKCS7(NULL, &p, len); | |
c5a3b7e7 DSH |
679 | |
680 | At this point p7 contains a valid PKCS7 structure of NULL if an error | |
681 | occurred. If an error occurred ERR_print_errors(bio) should give more | |
682 | information. | |
683 | ||
684 | The reason for the temporary variable 'p' is that the ASN1 functions | |
685 | increment the passed pointer so it is ready to read or write the next | |
686 | structure. This is often a cause of problems: without the temporary | |
687 | variable the buffer pointer is changed to point just after the data | |
688 | that has been read or written. This may well be uninitialized data | |
689 | and attempts to free the buffer will have unpredictable results | |
690 | because it no longer points to the same address. | |
691 | ||
692 | ||
6ef7b78e DSH |
693 | * OpenSSL uses DER but I need BER format: does OpenSSL support BER? |
694 | ||
695 | The short answer is yes, because DER is a special case of BER and OpenSSL | |
696 | ASN1 decoders can process BER. | |
697 | ||
698 | The longer answer is that ASN1 structures can be encoded in a number of | |
699 | different ways. One set of ways is the Basic Encoding Rules (BER) with various | |
700 | permissible encodings. A restriction of BER is the Distinguished Encoding | |
701 | Rules (DER): these uniquely specify how a given structure is encoded. | |
702 | ||
703 | Therefore, because DER is a special case of BER, DER is an acceptable encoding | |
704 | for BER. | |
705 | ||
706 | ||
84b65340 DSH |
707 | * I've tried using <M_some_evil_pkcs12_macro> and I get errors why? |
708 | ||
709 | This usually happens when you try compiling something using the PKCS#12 | |
710 | macros with a C++ compiler. There is hardly ever any need to use the | |
711 | PKCS#12 macros in a program, it is much easier to parse and create | |
712 | PKCS#12 files using the PKCS12_parse() and PKCS12_create() functions | |
713 | documented in doc/openssl.txt and with examples in demos/pkcs12. The | |
714 | 'pkcs12' application has to use the macros because it prints out | |
715 | debugging information. | |
716 | ||
717 | ||
35af460f DSH |
718 | * I've called <some function> and it fails, why? |
719 | ||
02859fb7 BM |
720 | Before submitting a report or asking in one of the mailing lists, you |
721 | should try to determine the cause. In particular, you should call | |
35af460f | 722 | ERR_print_errors() or ERR_print_errors_fp() after the failed call |
02859fb7 BM |
723 | and see if the message helps. Note that the problem may occur earlier |
724 | than you think -- you should check for errors after every call where | |
725 | it is possible, otherwise the actual problem may be hidden because | |
726 | some OpenSSL functions clear the error state. | |
35af460f DSH |
727 | |
728 | ||
729 | * I just get a load of numbers for the error output, what do they mean? | |
730 | ||
731 | The actual format is described in the ERR_print_errors() manual page. | |
732 | You should call the function ERR_load_crypto_strings() before hand and | |
733 | the message will be output in text form. If you can't do this (for example | |
734 | it is a pre-compiled binary) you can use the errstr utility on the error | |
735 | code itself (the hex digits after the second colon). | |
736 | ||
737 | ||
46e80a30 DSH |
738 | * Why do I get errors about unknown algorithms? |
739 | ||
740 | This can happen under several circumstances such as reading in an | |
741 | encrypted private key or attempting to decrypt a PKCS#12 file. The cause | |
742 | is forgetting to load OpenSSL's table of algorithms with | |
743 | OpenSSL_add_all_algorithms(). See the manual page for more information. | |
744 | ||
745 | ||
e8dbc159 RL |
746 | * Why can't the OpenSSH configure script detect OpenSSL? |
747 | ||
a116afa4 LJ |
748 | Several reasons for problems with the automatic detection exist. |
749 | OpenSSH requires at least version 0.9.5a of the OpenSSL libraries. | |
750 | Sometimes the distribution has installed an older version in the system | |
751 | locations that is detected instead of a new one installed. The OpenSSL | |
752 | library might have been compiled for another CPU or another mode (32/64 bits). | |
753 | Permissions might be wrong. | |
754 | ||
755 | The general answer is to check the config.log file generated when running | |
756 | the OpenSSH configure script. It should contain the detailed information | |
757 | on why the OpenSSL library was not detected or considered incompatible. | |
31efc3a7 | 758 | |
500df82a | 759 | |
0ae485dc | 760 | * Can I use OpenSSL's SSL library with non-blocking I/O? |
bf55ece1 | 761 | |
0ae485dc | 762 | Yes; make sure to read the SSL_get_error(3) manual page! |
bf55ece1 | 763 | |
0ae485dc RL |
764 | A pitfall to avoid: Don't assume that SSL_read() will just read from |
765 | the underlying transport or that SSL_write() will just write to it -- | |
766 | it is also possible that SSL_write() cannot do any useful work until | |
767 | there is data to read, or that SSL_read() cannot do anything until it | |
768 | is possible to send data. One reason for this is that the peer may | |
769 | request a new TLS/SSL handshake at any time during the protocol, | |
770 | requiring a bi-directional message exchange; both SSL_read() and | |
771 | SSL_write() will try to continue any pending handshake. | |
bf55ece1 | 772 | |
bf55ece1 | 773 | |
19732245 LJ |
774 | * Why doesn't my server application receive a client certificate? |
775 | ||
776 | Due to the TLS protocol definition, a client will only send a certificate, | |
e3fefbfd | 777 | if explicitly asked by the server. Use the SSL_VERIFY_PEER flag of the |
19732245 LJ |
778 | SSL_CTX_set_verify() function to enable the use of client certificates. |
779 | ||
780 | ||
e1f7ea25 LJ |
781 | * Why does compilation fail due to an undefined symbol NID_uniqueIdentifier? |
782 | ||
e8233e69 LJ |
783 | For OpenSSL 0.9.7 the OID table was extended and corrected. In earlier |
784 | versions, uniqueIdentifier was incorrectly used for X.509 certificates. | |
785 | The correct name according to RFC2256 (LDAP) is x500UniqueIdentifier. | |
786 | Change your code to use the new name when compiling against OpenSSL 0.9.7. | |
e1f7ea25 LJ |
787 | |
788 | ||
6ef7b78e DSH |
789 | * I think I've detected a memory leak, is this a bug? |
790 | ||
791 | In most cases the cause of an apparent memory leak is an OpenSSL internal table | |
792 | that is allocated when an application starts up. Since such tables do not grow | |
793 | in size over time they are harmless. | |
794 | ||
795 | These internal tables can be freed up when an application closes using various | |
6141b86a RL |
796 | functions. Currently these include following: |
797 | ||
798 | Thread-local cleanup functions: | |
799 | ||
800 | ERR_remove_state() | |
801 | ||
802 | Application-global cleanup functions that are aware of usage (and therefore | |
803 | thread-safe): | |
804 | ||
805 | ENGINE_cleanup() and CONF_modules_unload() | |
806 | ||
807 | "Brutal" (thread-unsafe) Application-global cleanup functions: | |
808 | ||
809 | ERR_free_strings(), EVP_cleanup() and CRYPTO_cleanup_all_ex_data(). | |
6ef7b78e DSH |
810 | |
811 | ||
0ae485dc | 812 | =============================================================================== |
bf55ece1 | 813 |