Users must ensure that the following software has been installed in order to create a self-signed certificate and private key file using the Microsoft Windows 7 SDK:

•Latest version of Microsoft .NET Framework 4

•Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4

•Latest version of OpenSSL for Windows

Creating the self-signed certificate using makecert.exe

1.Navigate to the folder containing makecert.exe; by default, it is located under: C:\Program Files\Microsoft SDKs\Windows\v7.1\Bin

2.Enter the following command:

a.makecert -r -pe -n "CN=<certificate name>" -b <begin date mm/dd/yyyy> -e <end date mm/dd/yyyy> -ss my -len 4096

Loading the certificate using Microsoft Management Console

1.Hit WIN+R, type "mmc" in the field (no quotes), then press enter; this should bring up the Microsoft Management Console

2.Click the "File" dropdown, then click "Add/Remove Snap-in"

3.Click "Certificates" on the left table, then click the "Add" button

4.Click the "My user account" radio button, then click "Next"

5.Under "Console Root", expand the "Certificates - Current User" list

6.Expand the "Personal" folder, then click "Certificates"

7.Right-click the certificate with the name you just created, hover over "All Tasks", then click "Export"

Exporting the .CER certificate

1.In the Certificate Export Wizard, click "Next"

2.Click "No, do not export the private key", then click "Next"

3.Click "Base-64 encoded X.509 (.CER)", then click "Next"

4.Choose a name for the file, then click "Browse" to save the file in a location of your choosing

5.Click "Next", then click "Finish"; a popup should display that the certificate was successfully exported

Exporting the .PFX password-protected private key certificate

1.Still in the Microsoft Management Console, right-click the certificate with the name you just created earlier, hover over "All Tasks", then click "Export"

2.In the Certificate Export Wizard, click "Next"

3.Click "Yes, export the private key", then click "Next"

4.Click "Personal Information Exchange - PKCS #12 (.PFX)", then click "Next"

5.Enter a password of your choosing, confirm it, then click "Next"

6.Choose a name for the file, then click "Browse" to save the file in a location of your choosing

7.Click "Next", then click "Finish"; a popup should display that the certificate was successfully exported

Converting the .PFX file to a .PK8 file

1.Navigate to the folder containing OpenSSL

2.Enter the following command to convert from .PFX to .PEM:

a.openssl pkcs12 -in <your .PFX file> -nocerts -nodes -out <file name>.pem

3.When prompted, enter the password used when you exported the PFX file

4.Enter the following command to convert from .PEM to .PK8:

a.openssl pkcs8 -in <your .PEM file> -topk8 -nocrypt -out <file name>.pk8