How to extract private key from pfx file using openssl?

Question

I was looking for this private key to add ssl certificate in Softlayer's "Add Certificate" wizard and to use it further with Local Load Balancer.

I googled and tried following openssl command:

openssl pkcs12 -in filename.pfx -nocerts -out key.pem

But I ended up with invalid "RSA PRIVATE KEY". Please help.

Answer 1

Your command is correct, and gives you the encrypted private key in PKCS#8 format. If you need the unencrypted private key, just add the -nodes option:

openssl pkcs12 -in filename.pfx -nocerts -nodes -out key.pem

If you need the private key in old RSA format, you should convert the given key with the openssl pkcs8 command:

openssl pkcs8 -in key.pem -out rsakey.pem

See the documentation for details:

• https://www.openssl.org/docs/man1.1.0/apps/pkcs12.html
• https://www.openssl.org/docs/man1.1.0/apps/pkcs8.html