java security/crypto - generating certificates

[Jon Dornback]

There are methods in the JDK 1.4 to generate public/private key pairs, and to handle certificates in various ways, but I couldn't find any classes that would allow the creation of a certificate from a key pair. does any one know if this is possible within the JDK, or if there are 3rd party apps or APIs that will allow this?
thanks,
Jon

[Peter den Haan]

Yes, odd, isn't it? I like the Legion of the Bouncy Castle boys. Their cryptography package comprises a cleanroom JCE 1.2.1, providers for JCE and JCA, and an underlying lightweight API that you can use in addition to (or instead of) the standard Java stuff. As far as I can see, the API allows you to create certificates of all kinds. It's not really an idiot-proof interface -- you really need to know how a certificate is structured -- but it's lots better than nothing.
- Peter

[Jon Dornback]

Thanks for the link. What I'm really trying to accomplish is this:
I've generated a KeyPair, and now want to store the PublicKey and PrivateKey in a KeyStore. however, the KeyStore requires a Certificate[] chain for the private key. Can I get around this somehow?
I need to store multiple keys, so will be much easier than trying to create my own key management system. Any ideas?
thanks,
Jon