1 \input texinfo @c -*- mode: texinfo -*-
3 @setfilename ../../info/epa
4 @settitle EasyPG Assistant User's Manual
10 This file describes EasyPG Assistant @value{VERSION}.
12 Copyright @copyright{} 2007--2013 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
15 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
16 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or
17 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
18 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU Manual,''
19 and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the license
20 is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License''.
22 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have the freedom to copy and
23 modify this GNU manual.''
27 @dircategory Emacs misc features
29 * EasyPG Assistant: (epa). An Emacs user interface to GNU Privacy Guard.
33 @title EasyPG Assistant
38 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
45 @top EasyPG Assistant user's manual
47 EasyPG Assistant is an Emacs user interface to GNU Privacy Guard
48 (GnuPG, @pxref{Top, , Top, gnupg, Using the GNU Privacy Guard}).
50 EasyPG Assistant is a part of the package called EasyPG, an all-in-one
51 GnuPG interface for Emacs. EasyPG also contains the library interface
52 called EasyPG Library.
62 * Caching Passphrases::
64 * GNU Free Documentation License:: The license for this documentation.
70 EasyPG Assistant provides the following features.
74 @item Cryptographic operations on regions.
75 @item Cryptographic operations on files.
76 @item Dired integration.
77 @item Mail-mode integration.
78 @item Automatic encryption/decryption of *.gpg files.
84 EasyPG Assistant commands are prefixed by @samp{epa-}. For example,
87 @item To browse your keyring, type @kbd{M-x epa-list-keys}
89 @item To create a cleartext signature of the region, type @kbd{M-x epa-sign-region}
91 @item To encrypt a file, type @kbd{M-x epa-encrypt-file}
94 EasyPG Assistant provides several cryptographic features which can be
95 integrated into other Emacs functionalities. For example, automatic
96 encryption/decryption of @samp{*.gpg} files.
101 This chapter introduces various commands for typical use cases.
105 * Cryptographic operations on regions::
106 * Cryptographic operations on files::
107 * Dired integration::
108 * Mail-mode integration::
109 * Encrypting/decrypting *.gpg files::
113 @section Key management
114 Probably the first step of using EasyPG Assistant is to browse your
115 keyring. @kbd{M-x epa-list-keys} is corresponding to @samp{gpg
116 --list-keys} from the command line.
118 @deffn Command epa-list-keys name mode
119 Show all keys matched with @var{name} from the public keyring.
123 The output looks as follows.
126 u A5B6B2D4B15813FE Daiki Ueno <ueno@@unixuser.org>
130 A character on the leftmost column indicates the trust level of the
131 key. If it is @samp{u}, the key is marked as ultimately trusted. The
132 second column is the key ID, and the rest is the user ID.
134 You can move over entries by @key{TAB}. If you type @key{RET} or
135 click button1 on an entry, you will see more detailed information
136 about the key you selected.
139 u Daiki Ueno <ueno@@unixuser.org>
140 u A5B6B2D4B15813FE 1024bits DSA
143 Capabilities: sign certify
144 Fingerprint: 8003 7CD0 0F1A 9400 03CA 50AA A5B6 B2D4 B158 13FE
145 u 4447461B2A9BEA2D 2048bits ELGAMAL_E
148 Capabilities: encrypt
149 Fingerprint: 9003 D76B 73B7 4A8A E588 10AF 4447 461B 2A9B EA2D
153 To browse your private keyring, use @kbd{M-x epa-list-secret-keys}.
155 @deffn Command epa-list-secret-keys name
156 Show all keys matched with @var{name} from the private keyring.
160 In @samp{*Keys*} buffer, several commands are available. The common
161 use case is to export some keys to a file. To do that, type @kbd{m}
162 to select keys, type @kbd{o}, and then supply the filename.
164 Below are other commands related to key management. Some of them take
165 a file as input/output, and others take the current region.
167 @deffn Command epa-insert-keys keys
168 Insert selected @var{keys} after the point. It will let you select
169 keys before insertion. By default, it will encode keys in the OpenPGP
173 @deffn Command epa-import-keys file
174 Import keys from @var{file} to your keyring.
177 @deffn Command epa-import-keys-region start end
178 Import keys from the current region between @var{start} and @var{end}
182 @deffn Command epa-import-armor-in-region start end
183 Import keys in the OpenPGP armor format in the current region between
184 @var{start} and @var{end}. The difference from
185 @code{epa-import-keys-region} is that
186 @code{epa-import-armor-in-region} searches armors in the region and
187 applies @code{epa-import-keys-region} to each of them.
190 @deffn Command epa-delete-keys allow-secret
191 Delete selected keys. If @var{allow-secret} is non-@code{nil}, it
192 also delete the secret keys.
195 @node Cryptographic operations on regions
196 @section Cryptographic operations on regions
198 @deffn Command epa-decrypt-region start end
199 Decrypt the current region between @var{start} and @var{end}. It
200 replaces the region with the decrypted text.
203 @deffn Command epa-decrypt-armor-in-region start end
204 Decrypt OpenPGP armors in the current region between @var{start} and
205 @var{end}. The difference from @code{epa-decrypt-region} is that
206 @code{epa-decrypt-armor-in-region} searches armors in the region
207 and applies @code{epa-decrypt-region} to each of them. That is, this
208 command does not alter the original text around armors.
211 @deffn Command epa-verify-region start end
212 Verify the current region between @var{start} and @var{end}. It sends
213 the verification result to the minibuffer or a popup window. It
214 replaces the region with the signed text.
217 @deffn Command epa-verify-cleartext-in-region
218 Verify OpenPGP cleartext blocks in the current region between
219 @var{start} and @var{end}. The difference from
220 @code{epa-verify-region} is that @code{epa-verify-cleartext-in-region}
221 searches OpenPGP cleartext blocks in the region and applies
222 @code{epa-verify-region} to each of them. That is, this command does
223 not alter the original text around OpenPGP cleartext blocks.
226 @deffn Command epa-sign-region start end signers type
227 Sign the current region between @var{start} and @var{end}. By
228 default, it creates a cleartext signature. If a prefix argument is
229 given, it will let you select signing keys, and then a signature
233 @deffn Command epa-encrypt-region start end recipients sign signers
234 Encrypt the current region between @var{start} and @var{end}. It will
235 let you select recipients. If a prefix argument is given, it will
236 also ask you whether or not to sign the text before encryption and if
237 you answered yes, it will let you select the signing keys.
240 @node Cryptographic operations on files
241 @section Cryptographic operations on files
243 @deffn Command epa-decrypt-file file
247 @deffn Command epa-verify-file file
251 @deffn Command epa-sign-file file signers type
252 Sign @var{file}. If a prefix argument is given, it will let you
253 select signing keys, and then a signature type.
256 @deffn Command epa-encrypt-file file recipients
257 Encrypt @var{file}. It will let you select recipients.
260 @node Dired integration
261 @section Dired integration
263 EasyPG Assistant extends Dired Mode for GNU Emacs to allow users to
264 easily do cryptographic operations on files. For example,
269 : e (or M-x epa-dired-do-encrypt)
270 (select recipients by 'm' and click [OK])
274 The following keys are assigned.
279 @findex epa-dired-do-decrypt
280 Decrypt marked files.
284 @findex epa-dired-do-verify
289 @findex epa-dired-do-sign
294 @findex epa-dired-do-encrypt
295 Encrypt marked files.
299 @node Mail-mode integration
300 @section Mail-mode integration
302 EasyPG Assistant provides a minor mode @code{epa-mail-mode} to help
303 user compose inline OpenPGP messages. Inline OpenPGP is a traditional
304 style of sending signed/encrypted emails by embedding raw OpenPGP
305 blobs inside a message body, not using modern MIME format.
307 NOTE: Inline OpenPGP is not recommended and you should consider to use
309 @uref{http://josefsson.org/inline-openpgp-considered-harmful.html,
310 Inline OpenPGP in E-mail is bad@comma{} Mm'kay?}.
313 Once @code{epa-mail-mode} is enabled, the following keys are assigned.
314 You can do it by @kbd{C-u 1 M-x epa-mail-mode} or through the Customize
315 interface. Try @kbd{M-x customize-variable epa-global-mail-mode}.
318 @item C-c C-e C-d and C-c C-e d
319 @kindex @kbd{C-c C-e C-d}
320 @kindex @kbd{C-c C-e d}
321 @findex epa-mail-decrypt
322 Decrypt OpenPGP armors in the current buffer.
324 @item C-c C-e C-v and C-c C-e v
325 @kindex @kbd{C-c C-e C-v}
326 @kindex @kbd{C-c C-e v}
327 @findex epa-mail-verify
328 Verify OpenPGP cleartext signed messages in the current buffer.
330 @item C-c C-e C-s and C-c C-e s
331 @kindex @kbd{C-c C-e C-s}
332 @kindex @kbd{C-c C-e s}
333 @findex epa-mail-sign
334 Compose a signed message from the current buffer.
336 @item C-c C-e C-e and C-c C-e e
337 @kindex @kbd{C-c C-e C-e}
338 @kindex @kbd{C-c C-e e}
339 @findex epa-mail-encrypt
340 Compose an encrypted message from the current buffer.
341 By default it tries to build the recipient list from @samp{to},
342 @samp{cc}, and @samp{bcc} fields of the mail header. To include your
343 key in the recipient list, use @samp{encrypt-to} option in
344 @file{~/.gnupg/gpg.conf}.
348 @node Encrypting/decrypting *.gpg files
349 @section Encrypting/decrypting *.gpg files
350 By default, every file whose name ends with @samp{.gpg} will be
351 treated as encrypted. That is, when you open such a file, the
352 decrypted text is inserted in the buffer rather than encrypted one.
353 Similarly, when you save the buffer to a @samp{foo.gpg} file,
354 encrypted data is written.
356 The file name pattern for encrypted files can be controlled by
357 @var{epa-file-name-regexp}.
359 @defvar epa-file-name-regexp
360 Regexp which matches filenames treated as encrypted.
363 You can disable this behavior with @kbd{M-x epa-file-disable}, and
364 then get it back with @kbd{M-x epa-file-enable}.
366 @deffn Command epa-file-disable
367 Disable automatic encryption/decryption of *.gpg files.
370 @deffn Command epa-file-enable
371 Enable automatic encryption/decryption of *.gpg files.
375 By default, @code{epa-file} will try to use symmetric encryption, aka
376 password-based encryption. If you want to use public key encryption
377 instead, do @kbd{M-x epa-file-select-keys}, which will pops up the key
380 @deffn Command epa-file-select-keys
381 Select recipient keys to encrypt the currently visiting file with
382 public key encryption.
385 You can also change the default behavior with the variable
386 @var{epa-file-select-keys}.
388 @defvar epa-file-select-keys
389 Control whether or not to pop up the key selection dialog.
392 For frequently visited files, it might be a good idea to tell Emacs
393 which encryption method should be used through @xref{File Variables, ,
394 , emacs, the Emacs Manual}. Use the @code{epa-file-encrypt-to} local
396 @vindex epa-file-encrypt-to
398 For example, if you want an Elisp file should be encrypted with a
399 public key associated with an email address @samp{ueno@@unixuser.org},
400 add the following line to the beginning of the file.
404 ;; -*- epa-file-encrypt-to: ("ueno@@unixuser.org") -*-
408 Instead, if you want the file always (regardless of the value of the
409 @code{epa-file-select-keys} variable) encrypted with symmetric
410 encryption, change the line as follows.
414 ;; -*- epa-file-encrypt-to: nil -*-
418 Other variables which control the automatic encryption/decryption
421 @defvar epa-file-cache-passphrase-for-symmetric-encryption
422 If non-@code{nil}, cache passphrase for symmetric encryption. The
423 default value is @code{nil}.
426 @defvar epa-file-inhibit-auto-save
427 If non-@code{nil}, disable auto-saving when opening an encrypted file.
428 The default value is @code{t}.
431 @node Caching Passphrases
432 @chapter Caching Passphrases
434 Typing passphrases is an irritating task if you frequently open and
435 close the same file. GnuPG and EasyPG Assistant provide mechanisms to
436 remember your passphrases. However, the configuration is a bit
437 confusing since it depends on your GnuPG installation (GnuPG version 1 or
438 GnuPG version 2), encryption method (symmetric or public key), and whether or
439 not you want to use gpg-agent. Here are some questions:
442 @item Do you use GnuPG version 2 instead of GnuPG version 1?
443 @item Do you use symmetric encryption rather than public key encryption?
444 @item Do you want to use gpg-agent?
447 Here are configurations depending on your answers:
449 @multitable {111} {222} {333} {configuration configuration configuration}
450 @item @b{1} @tab @b{2} @tab @b{3} @tab Configuration
451 @item Yes @tab Yes @tab Yes @tab Set up gpg-agent.
452 @item Yes @tab Yes @tab No @tab You can't, without gpg-agent.
453 @item Yes @tab No @tab Yes @tab Set up gpg-agent.
454 @item Yes @tab No @tab No @tab You can't, without gpg-agent.
455 @item No @tab Yes @tab Yes @tab Set up elisp passphrase cache.
456 @item No @tab Yes @tab No @tab Set up elisp passphrase cache.
457 @item No @tab No @tab Yes @tab Set up gpg-agent.
458 @item No @tab No @tab No @tab You can't, without gpg-agent.
461 To set up gpg-agent, follow the instruction in GnuPG manual.
462 @pxref{Invoking GPG-AGENT, , Invoking GPG-AGENT, gnupg}.
464 To set up elisp passphrase cache, set
465 @code{epa-file-cache-passphrase-for-symmetric-encryption}.
466 @xref{Encrypting/decrypting *.gpg files}.
471 Bugs and problems with EasyPG Assistant are actively worked on by the
472 Emacs development team. Feature requests and suggestions are also
473 more than welcome. Use @kbd{M-x report-emacs-bug}, @pxref{Bugs, ,
474 Bugs, emacs, Reporting Bugs}.
476 When submitting a bug report, please try to describe in excruciating
477 detail the steps required to reproduce the problem. Also try to
478 collect necessary information to fix the bug, such as:
481 @item the GnuPG version. Send the output of @samp{gpg --version}.
482 @item the GnuPG configuration. Send the contents of @file{~/.gnupg/gpg.conf}.
485 Before reporting the bug, you should set @code{epg-debug} in the
486 @file{~/.emacs} file and repeat the bug. Then, include the contents
487 of the @samp{ *epg-debug*} buffer. Note that the first letter of the
488 buffer name is a whitespace.
490 @node GNU Free Documentation License
491 @appendix GNU Free Documentation License
492 @include doclicense.texi