Visual Basic 2008 Recipes: A Problem-Solution Approach

1.11. Create and Manage Strong-Named Key Pairs

Problem

You need to create public and private keys (a key pair) so that you can assign strong names to your assemblies.

Solution

Use the Strong Name tool (sn.exe) to generate a key pair and store the keys in a file or cryptographic service provider (CSP) key container.

NOTE

A CSP is an element of the Win32 CryptoAPI that provides services such as encryption, decryption, and digital signature generation. CSPs also provide key container facilities, which use strong encryption and operating system security to protect any cryptographic keys stored in the container. A detailed discussion of CSPs and CryptoAPI is beyond the scope of this book. All you need to know for this recipe is that you can store ...