Sidebar 1 : Useful Commands

PGP Message Processing Commands

Command Use

pgp -e textfile her_userid To encrypt a plaintext file with recipient's public key.

pgp -e user_id1 user_id2 user_id3 . . . To encrypt a plaintext file for

multiple recipients.

pgp -s textfile [-u your_userid] To sign a plaintext file with

your secret key.

pgp -esta textfile her_userid [-u your_userid] To sign a plaintext file with

your secret key, and then encrypt it with recipient's public key, and produce ASCII output.

pgp -c textfile To encrypt a file with conventional encryption only.

PGP Key Management Commands

Command Use

pgp -kg To generate your own public/secret key pair.

pgp -ka keyfile [keyring] To add a key file's contents to your public or secret key ring.

pgp -kr userid [keyring] To remove a key or a user ID from your public or secret key ring.

pgp -ke your_userid [keyring] To edit your user ID or pass phrase.

pgp -kx userid keyfile [keyring] To extract (copy) a key from your public or secret key ring.

pgp -kx your_userid [keyring] To extract an ASCII output of your public key.

pgp -kv [userid] [keyring] To view the contents of your public key ring.

pgp -kvv [userid] [keyring] To view the contents and signatures of your public key ring.

pgp -kc [userid] [keyring] To view the contents, signatures, and trust levels on your public key ring.

pgp -kvc [userid] [keyring] To view the fingerprint of a public key.

pgp -ke [userid] [keyring] To add a new userid to your public key, change your passphrase, or to edit the trust parameters for another public key.

pgp -d their_user_id To reenable or disable a public key on your public key ring.

pgp -d your_id To permanently revoke your own key creating a key compromise certificate.

pgp -ks her_userid [-u your_userid] [keyring] To sign someone else's public

key on your public key ring.

pgp -krs userid [keyring] To remove selected signatures from a userid on a keyring.

pgp -km To display the "web of trust" of your public key ring.