3Com WX1200 3CRWX120695A, WXR100 3CRWXR10095A manual Certificates, Automatically, Generated by MSS

418CHAPTER 20: MANAGING KEYS AND CERTIFICATES

Table 36 PKCS Object Files Supported by 3Com (continued)

File Type	Standard	Purpose
PKCS #12	Personal Information	Contains a certificate signed by a CA and
	Exchange Syntax Standard	a public-private key pair provided by the
		CA to go with the certificate.
		Because the key pair comes from the CA,
		you do not need to generate a key pair or
		a certificate request on the switch.
		Instead, use the copy tftp command to
		copy the file onto the WX switch.
		Use the crypto otp command to enter
		the one-time password assigned to the
		file by the CA. (This password secures the
		file so that the keys and certificate cannot
		be installed by an unauthorized party.
		You must know the password in order to
		install them.)
		Use the crypto pkcs12 command to
		unpack the file.

Certificates	The first time you boot a switch with MSS Version 4.2 or later, MSS
Automatically	automatically generates keys and self-signed certificates, in cases where
Generated by MSS	certificates are not already configured or installed. MSS can automatically
	generate all the following types of certificates and their keys:

„Admin (required for administrative access to the switch by Web Manager or 3Com Wireless Switch Manager)

„EAP (required for 802.1X user access through the switch)

„Web (required for WebAAA user access through the switch)

The keys are 512 bytes long.

MSS automatically generates self-signed certificates only in cases where no certificate is already configured. MSS does not replace self-signed certificates or CA-signed certificates that are already configured on the switch. You can replace an automatically generated certificate by creating another self-signed one or by installing a CA-signed one. To use a longer key, configure the key before creating the new certificate (or certificate request, if you plan to install a CA-signed certificate).

If generated by MSS Version 4.2.3 or later, the automatically generated certificates are valid for three years, beginning one week before the time and date on the switch when the certificate is generated.