Web Based Digital Certificate Management

Domain/Category:

Web Application

Introduction

This document defines the software requirements for a web-based digital certificate management portal that integrates with Step-ca. The system will allow users to manage, issue, revoke, and renew digital certificates via a user-friendly web interface.

This portal will provide functionalities for Managing certificate requests, automating certificate issuance, renewal, and revocation, User authentication and access control, Logging and monitoring certificate-related activities, and Providing an API for integration with other systems.

This project requires you to set up a private CA server in a preferably Linux environment using a virtual machine or docker container.

Functional Requirements

User Roles & Access Control

Admin: Can manage all certificates, users, and system settings

Certificate Manager: Can issue, revoke, and renew certificates, can also deploy certificates of server machines using ssh.

Regular User: Can request and view their certificates

Certificate Management

Users can generate Certificate Signing Requests (CSR) The system can issue new certificates based on CSRs Users can revoke certificates before expiration

Users can renew expiring certificates

Support for self-signed and CA-signed certificates

Authentication & Security

Support for OAuth 2.0 / OpenID Connect for Authentication Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for secure access

Role-based access control (RBAC) Integration with LDAP / Active Directory

Logging & Monitoring

Maintain an audit log of certificate actions

Provide alerts and notifications for certificate expiry and revocation Export logs for compliance audits

API & Integration

REST API for external systems to manage certificates

Support for ACME (Automatic Certificate Management Environment) Webhooks for notification of certificate events

User Interface

Dashboard displaying certificate status, expiry dates, and key metrics Search and filter functionality for managing certificates

Graphical representation of certificate usage and status

Non-Functional Requirements

Performance

System should handle at least 100 certificates without performance degradation API response time should be under 500ms

Security

Usability

All communications must be encrypted using TLS 1.3

Secure storage of private keys using HSM (Hardware Security Module) or Vault solutions

Web UI should be mobile-responsive

Intuitive user experience with minimal training required

Availability

System should have 99.9% uptime

Automated backup and disaster recovery support

Compliance

Must comply with PKI industry standards (e.g., X.509, RFC 5280) Support for GDPR and ISO 27001 security requirements

Technical Requirements

Technical Requirements for Web-Based Digital Certificate Management Portal System Architecture

The system will follow a microservices-based architecture with a RESTful API to ensure scalability, security, and maintainability. The architecture will consist of:

Frontend (Web UI): For user interaction

Backend API: Business logic and integration with step-ca Database: Stores user and certificate metadata

Logging & Monitoring: Tracks all certificate activities Authentication & Authorization: Secure user access Storage: Secure storage for certificates and private keys

Technology Stack

Frontend

·      Framework: Any , Examples React.js / Vue.js (for modern, interactive UI)

·      Styling: Tailwind CSS / Bootstrap

·      State Management: Redux / Vuex

·      Communication with Backend: REST API / GraphQL

·      Security Measures:

o   Secure cookies for session management

o   CSRF protection

o   Role-based UI rendering

Backend API

·      Programming Language: Golang (Go) / Node.js (Fast, secure, and scalable), Python, PhP, ASP

·                                                      Framework:

o   Go: Any , Examples Gin / Echo

o   Node.js: Express.js / NestJS

o   Python Flask/Django

Database

·      API Standards:

o   RESTful API for certificate management

o   ACME protocol support for automation

o   JSON Web Tokens (JWT) for authentication

·      Security:

o   OAuth 2.0 / OpenID Connect

o   HTTPS enforced for all API endpoints

o   Input validation to prevent injection attacks

·      Database Type:

MYSQL (Relational) / MongoDB (NoSQL) / MSSQL

·      Schema Design:

o   User table (ID, name, email, role, authentication details)

o   Certificate table (certificate ID, CSR details, issued date, expiry date, revocation status)

o   Audit logs table (user actions, timestamps, IP address)

·      Performance Considerations:

o   Indexing for fast certificate lookups

o   Caching using Redis for frequently accessed data

·      Security:

o   Encrypted storage of sensitive certificate metadata

o   Role-based access for database queries

Certificate Management (step-ca Integration)

·      Certificate Generation:

o   Uses step-ca for issuing X.509 certificates

o   Supports RSA and ECDSA key pairs

·      Automated Renewal & Revocation:

o   CRON jobs to track expiration and auto-renew

o   Admins can manually revoke certificates

·      Integration with ACME Clients:

o   Certbot, step CLI, and other ACME-compatible clients

·      Secure Key Storage:

o   Hardware Security Module (HSM) support

o   HashiCorp Vault for key management Authentication & Authorization

·      Identity Provider:

o   keystone / Auth0 / LDAP

·      Authorization:

o   Role-based access control (RBAC)

o   Multi-factor authentication (MFA)

·                                                      Session Management:

o   JWT for stateless authentication

o   Secure, short-lived session tokens