WebSphere Partner Gateway - Express uses a cryptographic system known as public key encryption to ensure secure communication between trading partners. Public key encryption uses a pair of mathematically related keys. A document encrypted with the first key must be decrypted with the second, and a document encrypted with the second must be decrypted with the first. Each participant in a public key system has a pair of keys. One of these keys is kept secret; this is the private key. The other key is distributed to anyone who wants it; this is the public key. WebSphere Partner Gateway - Express uses a partner's public key to encrypt a document; the private key is used for decryption.
This section describes how to configure encryption with WebSphere Partner Gateway - Express, and includes the following topics:
To configure encryption for outbound documents, you must first upload the trading partner's public certificate, which contains the public key, then enable encryption for outbound documents to that partner. These configuration steps will automatically encrypt any outbound documents sent to that partner using the partner's public key. Upon receiving the encrypted document, the trading partner must then use their private key to decrypt the document. The following sections describe how to configure encryption for outbound documents.
Uploading the trading partner's public certificate
Enabling encryption for outbound documents
To upload the trading partner's public certificate, which contains the public key, use the following procedure.
To enable encryption for documents being sent to a particular trading partner, use the following procedure.
In order to receive encrypted documents from a partner, you must first create a public certificate, or public key, then send that public certificate to the partner. To create a public certificate, you must first generate or upload a self-signed document decryption keypair, then download and save the public certificate portion of that keypair and send it to the partner. The following sections describe how to create a public certificate.
Generating a new self-signed document decryption keypair
Uploading an existing decryption keypair
Downloading a public certificate for decryption
The following procedure describes how to use WebSphere Partner Gateway - Express to generate a new self-signed decryption keypair for securing inbound documents.
When you generate a self-signed decryption keypair, it is uploaded into WebSphere Partner Gateway - Express automatically. The generated decryption certificate is also stored in the Express Certifying Authority (CA) directory.
Parameter | Description |
---|---|
Common Name |
Enter the server host name. |
Organization |
Enter the name of the participant's company. |
Organizational Unit |
Enter the name of the department where the participant works. |
Locality |
Enter the locale or city where the participant works. |
State |
Enter the state or province where the participant works. |
Country |
Enter the country where the participant works. |
E-mail Address |
Enter the participant's e-mail address. |
Certificate Validity |
Enter the number of days for which the certificate is valid. |
Private Key Password |
Enter the private key password. |
To upload an existing decryption keypair for securing inbound documents, use the following procedure.
Parameter | Description |
---|---|
Private Key File | The private key file must be in PKCS#8 format. If the private key file is not present in PKCS#8 format, the private key will be extracted from PKCS12 type of file if PKCS#12 file is uploaded in the PrivateKey file upload field. Enter the full path and name of the private key file to be uploaded. Alternatively, click Browse to navigate to the file, then select the file and click Open to load the full-path name into the field. |
Private Key Password | Enter the private key password for the decryption file. |
Public Certificate | The public certificate must be in the DER format. Enter the full path and name of the public certificate file to be uploaded. Alternatively, click Browse to navigate to the file, then select the file and click Open to load the full-path name into the field. |
After you generate or upload a keypair into WebSphere Partner Gateway - Express, you must download the public certificate before you can send it to the trading partner. This is the certificate that the partner will use to encrypt documents that you will decrypt with the private key upon receipt.