A digital certificate is a file that contains a cryptographic public/private key pair, along with metadata describing the publisher to whom the certificate was issued and the agency that issued the certificate.
Digital certificates are a core component of the Microsoft Authenticode authentication and security system. Authenticode is a standard part of the Windows operating system. To be compatible with the .NET Framework security model, all PowerBuilder .NET applications must be signed with a digital certificate, regardless of whether they participate in Trusted Application Deployment. For more information about Trusted Application Deployment, see the Microsoft Web site.
You can select a digital certificate from a certificate store or from a file browser. to sign your smart client application manifests. You make the selection on the Sign page of the Project painter by selecting the Sign the manifests check box in the Certificate group box.
This table describes the fields in the Intelligent Updater group box on the Sign page of the Windows Forms Project painter. These fields are grayed out when the Publish as Smart Client Application check box on the General tab of the Project painter has not been selected.
Intelligent Updater field |
Description |
|---|---|
Sign the manifests |
Select this check box to enable the Select from Store and Select from File buttons. Use the buttons to select a certificate from a certificate store or from your file system. If you select a valid certificate, its details display in the multiline edit box under the check box. If you do not specify a certificate, PowerBuilder attaches a test certificate automatically. Use test certificates for development only. |
Select from Store |
Click this button to view the certificates available in the local certificate store. Select a certificate from the Select a Certificate dialog box, then click View Certificate if you want to view its details, and click OK to select it. |
Select from File |
Click this button to view the certificates available in the local file system. Select a certificate with the .snk extension from the Select File dialog box and click Open. |
Use the Select from Store or Select from File buttons to select a certificate from a certificate store or from your file system. If the certificate requires a password, a dialog box displays so that you can enter it. When you select a valid certificate, detailed information displays in the Project painter.
If you do not specify a certificate, PowerBuilder signs the published manifest file with the default test certificate, mycert.fx. This test certificate is installed by the PowerBuilder setup program in the PowerBuilder DotNet\pbiu\commands directory. However, when you are ready to publish a production application, you should not sign it with the test certificate.
For information about application manifests required on the Vista and later operating systems, see Security Requirements.