Different Platforms & Devices requires SSL certificates in different [gs format]s:
NOTE: Only way to tell the difference between PEM .cer and DER .cer is to open the file in a text [gs editor] and look for the BEGIN/END statements.
[tab:PEM]
PEM Format
It is the most common format that Certificate Authorities issue certificates in. It contains the "—–BEGIN CERTIFICATE—–" and "—–END CERTIFICATE—–" statements.
Several PEM [gs certificate]s and even the Private key can be included in one file, one below the other. But most platforms (example: Apache) expects the certificates and Private key to be in separate files.
[tab:DER]
DER Format
It is a Binary form of ASCII PEM format certificate. All types of Certificates & Private Keys can be encoded in DER format.
[tab:P7B - PKCS#7]
P7B/PKCS#7
They contain “—–BEGIN PKCS—–” & “—–END PKCS7—–” statements. It can contain only Certificates & Chain certificates but not the Private key.
[tab:PFX - PKCS#12]
PFX/PKCS#12
They are used for storing the Server certificate, any Intermediate certificates & Private key in one encryptable file.
[tab:END]
SOURCE | LINK | LANGUAGE | ENGLISH |
Hey dude, did you know? Differences between PEM, DER, P7B/PKCS#7, PFX/PKCS#12 (PKI Certification Infrastructure) – http://heelpbook.altervista.org/?p=35154 (Visit us on http://www.heelpbook.net) – Enjoy!
Differences between PEM, DER, P7B/PKCS#7, PFX/PKCS#12 (PKI) » HeelpBook http://heelpbook.altervista.org/2012/differences-between-pem-der-p7bpkcs7-pfxpkcs12-pki-certification-infrastructure/ #heelpbook via @HeelpBook