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DNSSEC-KEYGEN(8)                                    BIND9                                   DNSSEC-KEYGEN(8)



NAME
       dnssec-keygen - DNSSEC key generation tool

SYNOPSIS
       dnssec-keygen {-a algorithm} {-b keysize} {-n nametype} [-c class] [-e] [-f flag] [-g generator] [-h]
                     [-k] [-p protocol] [-r randomdev] [-s strength] [-t type] [-v level] {name}

DESCRIPTION
       dnssec-keygen generates keys for DNSSEC (Secure DNS), as defined in RFC 2535 and RFC 4034. It can
       also generate keys for use with TSIG (Transaction Signatures), as defined in RFC 2845.

OPTIONS
       -a algorithm
           Selects the cryptographic algorithm. The value of algorithm must be one of RSAMD5 (RSA) or
           RSASHA1, DSA, NSEC3RSASHA1, NSEC3DSA, DH (Diffie Hellman), or HMAC-MD5. These values are case
           insensitive.

           Note 1: that for DNSSEC, RSASHA1 is a mandatory to implement algorithm, and DSA is recommended.
           For TSIG, HMAC-MD5 is mandatory.

           Note 2: HMAC-MD5 and DH automatically set the -k flag.

       -b keysize
           Specifies the number of bits in the key. The choice of key size depends on the algorithm used.
           RSAMD5 / RSASHA1 keys must be between 512 and 2048 bits. Diffie Hellman keys must be between 128
           and 4096 bits. DSA keys must be between 512 and 1024 bits and an exact multiple of 64. HMAC-MD5
           keys must be between 1 and 512 bits.

       -n nametype
           Specifies the owner type of the key. The value of nametype must either be ZONE (for a DNSSEC zone
           key (KEY/DNSKEY)), HOST or ENTITY (for a key associated with a host (KEY)), USER (for a key
           associated with a user(KEY)) or OTHER (DNSKEY). These values are case insensitive. Defaults to
           ZONE for DNSKEY generation.

       -c class
           Indicates that the DNS record containing the key should have the specified class. If not
           specified, class IN is used.

       -e
           If generating an RSAMD5/RSASHA1 key, use a large exponent.

       -f flag
           Set the specified flag in the flag field of the KEY/DNSKEY record. The only recognized flag is
           KSK (Key Signing Key) DNSKEY.

       -g generator
           If generating a Diffie Hellman key, use this generator. Allowed values are 2 and 5. If no
           generator is specified, a known prime from RFC 2539 will be used if possible; otherwise the
           default is 2.

       -h
           Prints a short summary of the options and arguments to dnssec-keygen.

       -k
           Generate KEY records rather than DNSKEY records.

       -p protocol
           Sets the protocol value for the generated key. The protocol is a number between 0 and 255. The
           default is 3 (DNSSEC). Other possible values for this argument are listed in RFC 2535 and its
           successors.

       -r randomdev
           Specifies the source of randomness. If the operating system does not provide a /dev/random or
           equivalent device, the default source of randomness is keyboard input.  randomdev specifies the
           name of a character device or file containing random data to be used instead of the default. The
           special value keyboard indicates that keyboard input should be used.

       -s strength
           Specifies the strength value of the key. The strength is a number between 0 and 15, and currently
           has no defined purpose in DNSSEC.

       -t type
           Indicates the use of the key.  type must be one of AUTHCONF, NOAUTHCONF, NOAUTH, or NOCONF. The
           default is AUTHCONF. AUTH refers to the ability to authenticate data, and CONF the ability to
           encrypt data.

       -v level
           Sets the debugging level.

GENERATED KEYS
       When dnssec-keygen completes successfully, it prints a string of the form Knnnn.+aaa+iiiii to the
       standard output. This is an identification string for the key it has generated.

       •   nnnn is the key name.

       •   aaa is the numeric representation of the algorithm.

       •   iiiii is the key identifier (or footprint).

       dnssec-keygen creates two files, with names based on the printed string.  Knnnn.+aaa+iiiii.key
       contains the public key, and Knnnn.+aaa+iiiii.private contains the private key.

       The .key file contains a DNS KEY record that can be inserted into a zone file (directly or with a
       $INCLUDE statement).

       The .private file contains algorithm-specific fields. For obvious security reasons, this file does
       not have general read permission.

       Both .key and .private files are generated for symmetric encryption algorithms such as HMAC-MD5, even
       though the public and private key are equivalent.

EXAMPLE
       To generate a 768-bit DSA key for the domain example.com, the following command would be issued:

       dnssec-keygen -a DSA -b 768 -n ZONE example.com

       The command would print a string of the form:

       Kexample.com.+003+26160

       In this example, dnssec-keygen creates the files Kexample.com.+__3+2616_.key and
       Kexample.com.+__3+2616_.private.

SEE ALSO
       dnssec-signzone(8), BIND 9 Administrator Reference Manual, RFC 2539, RFC 2845, RFC 4033.

AUTHOR
       Internet Systems Consortium

COPYRIGHT
       Copyright (C) 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008 Internet Systems Consortium, Inc. ("ISC")
       Copyright (C) 2000-2003 Internet Software Consortium.



BIND9                                           June 30, 2000                               DNSSEC-KEYGEN(8)