Creating a Self-Signed Certificate and Key Pair

The steps provided here use the OPC UA Sample Server and tools provided by the OPC Foundation for illustration and example purposes. You may use a different OPC UA server and configuration tools, but the main steps remain the same.

To create a self-signed OPC UA compliant certificate and key pair

1. Click the Start button on the Windows task bar and point to Programs.

2. Start the UA Configuration Utility. Point to the OPC Foundation folder that contains the sample applications.

3. Click UA 1.02, then Sample Applications, and then click UA Configuration Tool (OPC.UA.ConfigurationTool.exe). The UA Configuration Tool appears.

4. In the Application To Manage list box, enter Opc.Ua.SampleServer, if not pre-filled.

   

5. Click the Manage Application tab, and then click Create Application Certificate. The Create Certificate dialog box appears. Enter information in the appropriate text and list boxes.

   

   1. Store Type: From the Store Type drop-down list, select Directory if your OPC UA client is running on the local computer.

   2. Store Path: We recommend that you create a temporary directory to store and copy the certificate and the private key. For example, C:\Tmp\TestUACert. Otherwise, accept the default path or select another on your computer. In this example, we accept the default path.

   3. CA Key File: Optional if you are creating a self-signed certificate.

   4. CA Password: Optional if you are creating a self-signed certificate.

   5. Application Name: The name of your OPC UA server.

   6. Organization: Optional.

   7. Application URI: The text box will be pre-filled with your OPC UA server. You can specify another using this format:
      urn:<computer name>:<OPC UA server name>

   8. Subject Name: The text box will be pre-filled with your OPC UA server name. You can specify another using this format:
      CN=<OPC UA server name>/DC=<computer name>

   9. Domains: Enter the computer/node name. You can use "localhost" if on the local computer.

   10. Key Size: Select a key size from the list box.

   11. Lifetime: Select a key lifetime in number of months.

   12. Key Format: Select "PFX" from the list box.

6. Click OK.

   The certificate and keys are created in \certs and \private subdirectories under the Store Path you specified in step 3b.