PGPENCRYPT Encrypt a file using PGP |
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. This script command encrypts a file using PGP encryption. Files may be decrypted using the Robo-FTP PGPDECRYPT script command or any other PGP or GPG encryption application.
To encrypt a file, you must first import the public key of the recipient into Robo-FTP. Keys are imported by way of the PGPIMPORT script command or by using the Import Key functionality in the Robo-FTP Configurator. Your private key is also required if you intend to add a digital signature to the encrypted file. Imported keys are displayed in the Configurator on the Configure PGP menu when you click the Manage Keys button. Here is an image showing the Manage Keys grid with one public key:
The /user and /signuser options are used to specify the keys used for encrypting and signing. The values passed to these options must be at least partial matches to the values appearing either in the Key Name or the Key ID column on the Manage Keys grid. A partial match of the Key ID column must be exactly 8 sequential characters.
Use the /armor option if you wish the resulting file to be in ASCII armored format.
Use the /sign option if you wish the resulting file to be digitally signed.
Use the /textmode option if you wish the resulting file to be a text mode format.
When signing an encrypted file, you must specify your passphrase either within the command itself using the /pw option or by previously specifying it in the Robo-FTP Configurator.
Important When you use the Configurator to create new PGP keys you may optionally choose to save the passphrase. If you choose this option, the password is saved in an encrypted format in the Windows registry along with Robo-FTP's other settings. Later, when you use these keys for encryption or decryption, the passphrase will not appear in the console window nor will it be written to any log file. If you choose not to save the passphrase (or if you use externally generated PGP keys) then you will probably need to specify the passphrase in clear-text in a script file. Therefore, saving the passphrase when you create the key is the most secure option.
It is typical for encrypted files to have an extension of .pgp, .gpg, or .asc (if ascii armored). In most of the examples below, we add one of these extensions at the end of the original file to create the name of the encrypted version of the file. We recommend that you adopt these conventions as well.
Original File Name: "datafile.txt" Encrypted File Name: "datafile.txt.pgp"
For ASCII armored files (see below):
Original File Name: "datafile.txt" Encrypted File Name: "datafile.txt.asc"
In the example below, a file is encrypted using a public key identified by a partial match on the Key Name column.
PGPENCRYPT "datafile.txt" "datafile.txt.pgp" /user="Richard Tracy"
In the following example, a file is encrypted using a public key identified by an exact match on the Key ID column.
PGPENCRYPT "datafile.txt" "datafile.txt.pgp" /user="A7743F3F33AC30A7"
Two public keys are used for encryption when the /user option is specified twice or when the pipe character is used to separate the key identification string. Both lines below produce the same result.
PGPENCRYPT "datafile.txt" "datafile.txt.pgp" /user="Richard Tracy" /user="Mike Hammer" PGPENCRYPT "datafile.txt" "datafile.txt.pgp" /user="Richard Tracy|Mike Hammer"
The following example encrypts a file and specifies the output format to be ASCII armored. (The .asc extension is typically used for these types of files.)
PGPENCRYPT "datafile.txt" "datafile.txt.asc /user="Richard Tracy" /armor
The following example encrypts a file for Richard Tracy and digitally signs it using a specified private key (John Doe).
PGPENCRYPT "datafile.txt" "datafile.txt.pgp" /user="Richard" /signuser="John Doe" /pw="John Doe's passphrase"
Hint: If the recipient is unable to decrypt the file ask them for the Key ID of the public key that they expected you to use for encryption. The Key ID must match the value shown on the Manage Keys window in the Configurator. Some PGP software only displays an 8 character Key ID so in those cases you'll compare with the last 8 digits of the value shown in the Configurator. For a more precise comparison you can right-click the grid row and choose "Show Key Fingerprint" from the pop-up context menu.
Note: When the TMPFILE command is active, the output [ target file ] created by this command will have a different name until the encryption process is successfully completed.
Related command(s): PGPDECRYPT, PGPIMPORT, ZIP, TMPNAME See also: Robo-FTP and PGP Cryptography, Configure PGP Menu |