openssl/doc/crypto/d2i_PrivateKey.pod

=pod

=head1 NAME

d2i_Private_key, d2i_AutoPrivateKey, i2d_PrivateKey - decode and encode
functions for reading and saving EVP_PKEY structures.

=head1 SYNOPSIS

 #include <openssl/evp.h>

 EVP_PKEY *d2i_PrivateKey(int type, EVP_PKEY **a, const unsigned char **pp,
                          long length);
 EVP_PKEY *d2i_AutoPrivateKey(EVP_PKEY **a, const unsigned char **pp,
                              long length);
 int i2d_PrivateKey(EVP_PKEY *a, unsigned char **pp);

=head1 DESCRIPTION

d2i_PrivateKey() decodes a private key using algorithm B<type>. It attempts to
use any key specific format or PKCS#8 unencrypted PrivateKeyInfo format. The
B<type> parameter should be a public key algorithm constant such as
B<EVP_PKEY_RSA>. An error occurs if the decoded key does not match B<type>.

d2i_AutoPrivateKey() is similar to d2i_PrivateKey() except it attempts to
automatically detect the private key format.

i2d_PrivateKey() encodes B<key>. It uses a key specific format or, if none is
defined for that key type, PKCS#8 unencrypted PrivateKeyInfo format.

These functions are similar to the d2i_X509() functions, and you should refer to
that page for a detailed description (see L<d2i_X509(3)>).

=head1 NOTES

All these functions use DER format and unencrypted keys. Applications wishing
to encrypt or decrypt private keys should use other functions such as
d2i_PKC8PrivateKey() instead.

If the B<*a> is not NULL when calling d2i_PrivateKey() or d2i_AutoPrivateKey()
(i.e. an existing structure is being reused) and the key format is PKCS#8
then B<*a> will be freed and replaced on a successful call.

=head1 RETURN VALUES

d2i_PrivateKey() and d2i_AutoPrivateKey() return a valid B<EVP_KEY> structure
or B<NULL> if an error occurs. The error code can be obtained by calling
L<ERR_get_error(3)>.

i2d_PrivateKey() returns the number of bytes successfully encoded or a
negative value if an error occurs. The error code can be obtained by calling
L<ERR_get_error(3)>.

=head1 SEE ALSO

L<crypto(3)>,
L<d2i_PKCS8PrivateKey(3)>

=cut