Create a root certificate authority

This page describes how to create a root certificate authority (CA) in a CA pool.

A root CA is at the top of a public key infrastructure (PKI) hierarchy and is responsible for forming the trust anchor of the PKI. To properly participate and use certificates in a PKI, a device, software, or component needs to trust the PKI. This is accomplished by configuring the device, software, or component to trust the root CA. As a result, all the certificates issued by the root CA are trusted.

Before you begin

• Make sure you have the CA Service Operation Manager (roles/privateca.caManager) or the CA Service Admin (roles/privateca.admin) IAM role. For information, see Configure IAM policies.
• Create a CA pool.
• Determine your CA settings.

Create a root CA

A root CA has a self-signed certificate that you must distribute to the trust stores of your clients. The root CA's certificate is at the top of the certificate chain. No other CA can revoke the CA certificate. The CRL of the root CA applies only to the other certificates the root CA issued, but not to itself.

Console

To create a root CA, do the following.

1. Go to the Certificate Authority Service page in the Google Cloud console.

   Go to Certificate Authority Service

2. Click the CA manager tab.

   Note: You can't create more than one CA inside a CA pool using the CA manager tab.

3. Click Create CA.

Select CA type

To configure the permanent settings of the CA, such as tier, location, lifetime, and the operational state at creation, do the following:

1. Select Root CA.
2. In the Valid for field, enter the duration for which you want the certificates issued by the CA certificate to be valid.
3. Optional: select a tier for the CA.
4. Click Region and in the list, select the location where you want to create the CA. We recommend creating the CA geographically near your application's clients. For more information, see Choosing the best location.

5. Optional: Select the operational state of the CA to be created in.

   

6. Optional: Click Certificate profile. In the list, select the certificate profile that matches the type of certificates you want the CA to issue.

7. Click Next.

Configure CA subject name

1. In the Organization (O) field, enter the name of your company.
2. Optional: In the Organization unit (OU) field, enter the company subdivision or business unit.
3. Optional: In the Country name field, enter a two letter country code.
4. Optional: In the State or province name field, enter the name of your state.
5. Optional: In the Locality name field, enter the name of your city.
6. In the CA common name (CN) field, enter the CA name.
7. In the Pool ID field, enter the CA pool name. You cannot change the CA pool after creating the CA.
8. Click Next.

Configure CA key size and algorithm

1. Choose the key algorithm that best meets your needs. For information about deciding the suitable key algorithm, see Choose a key algorithm.
2. Click Next.

Configure CA artifacts

The following steps are optional. If you skip these steps, the default settings apply.

1. Choose whether you want to use a Google-managed or a self-managed Cloud Storage bucket.

If you don't select a self-managed Cloud Storage bucket, CA Service creates a Google-managed bucket in the same location as the CA.

2. Choose whether you want to disable the publication of certificate revocation lists (CRLs) and CA certificates to the Cloud Storage bucket.

The publication of CRL and CA certificate on a Cloud Storage bucket is enabled by default. To disable these settings, click the toggles.

3. Click Next.

Add labels

The following steps are optional.

If you want to add labels to the CA, do the following:

1. Click Add item.
2. In the Key 1 field, enter the label key.
3. In the Value 1 field, enter the label value.
4. If you want to add another label, click Add item. Then, add the label key and value as mentioned in steps 2 and 3.
5. Click Next.

Review the settings

Carefully review all the settings, then click Create to create the CA.

gcloud

1. To create a CA pool, run the following command:

   gcloud privateca pools create POOL_ID
   

   Replace POOL_ID with the name of the CA pool.

   For more information, see Create a CA pool.

   For more information about this gcloud command, see gcloud privateca pools create.

2. Create a new root CA in the CA pool you created.

   gcloud privateca roots create ROOT_CA_ID --pool=POOL_ID \
     --key-algorithm=KEY_ALGORITHM \
     --subject="CN=my-ca, O=Test LLC"
   

   Replace the following:

   • ROOT_CA_ID: The name of the CA.
   • POOL_ID: The name of the CA pool.
   • KEY_ALGORITHM: The algorithm to use for creating a Cloud KMS key. This flag is optional. If you don't include this flag, the key algorithm defaults to rsa-pkcs1-4096-sha256. For more information, see --key-algorithm flag.

   By default, the CA is created in the STAGED state. To enable a CA by default, include the --auto-enable flag.

   If you want to use a customer-managed Cloud Storage bucket for publishing CA certificates and CRLs, add --bucket bucket-name to the command. Replace bucket-name with the name of the Cloud Storage bucket.

   To see the exhaustive list of settings, run the following command:

   gcloud privateca roots create --help
   

Terraform

To create a root CA using a Google-owned and Google-managed encryption key, use the following sample configuration:

resource "google_privateca_certificate_authority" "root_ca" {
  // This example assumes this pool already exists.
  // Pools cannot be deleted in normal test circumstances, so we depend on static pools
  pool                                   = "my-pool"
  certificate_authority_id               = "my-certificate-authority-root"
  location                               = "us-central1"
  deletion_protection                    = false # set to true to prevent destruction of the resource
  ignore_active_certificates_on_deletion = true
  config {
    subject_config {
      subject {
        organization = "ACME"
        common_name  = "my-certificate-authority"
      }
    }
    x509_config {
      ca_options {
        # is_ca *MUST* be true for certificate authorities
        is_ca = true
      }
      key_usage {
        base_key_usage {
          # cert_sign and crl_sign *MUST* be true for certificate authorities
          cert_sign = true
          crl_sign  = true
        }
        extended_key_usage {
        }
      }
    }
  }
  key_spec {
    algorithm = "RSA_PKCS1_4096_SHA256"
  }
  // valid for 10 years
  lifetime = "${10 * 365 * 24 * 3600}s"
}

To create a root CA using a self-managed key, use the following sample configuration:

resource "google_project_service_identity" "privateca_sa" {
  provider = google-beta
  service  = "privateca.googleapis.com"
}

resource "google_kms_crypto_key_iam_binding" "privateca_sa_keyuser_signerverifier" {
  crypto_key_id = "projects/keys-project/locations/us-central1/keyRings/key-ring/cryptoKeys/crypto-key"
  role          = "roles/cloudkms.signerVerifier"

  members = [
    "serviceAccount:${google_project_service_identity.privateca_sa.email}",
  ]
}

resource "google_kms_crypto_key_iam_binding" "privateca_sa_keyuser_viewer" {
  crypto_key_id = "projects/keys-project/locations/us-central1/keyRings/key-ring/cryptoKeys/crypto-key"
  role          = "roles/viewer"
  members = [
    "serviceAccount:${google_project_service_identity.privateca_sa.email}",
  ]
}

resource "google_privateca_certificate_authority" "default" {
  // This example assumes this pool already exists.
  // Pools cannot be deleted in normal test circumstances, so we depend on static pools
  pool                     = "ca-pool"
  certificate_authority_id = "my-certificate-authority"
  location                 = "us-central1"
  deletion_protection      = false # set to true to prevent destruction of the resource
  key_spec {
    cloud_kms_key_version = "projects/keys-project/locations/us-central1/keyRings/key-ring/cryptoKeys/crypto-key/cryptoKeyVersions/1"
  }

  config {
    subject_config {
      subject {
        organization = "Example, Org."
        common_name  = "Example Authority"
      }
    }
    x509_config {
      ca_options {
        # is_ca *MUST* be true for certificate authorities
        is_ca                  = true
        max_issuer_path_length = 10
      }
      key_usage {
        base_key_usage {
          # cert_sign and crl_sign *MUST* be true for certificate authorities
          cert_sign = true
          crl_sign  = true
        }
        extended_key_usage {
          server_auth = false
        }
      }
    }
  }

  depends_on = [
    google_kms_crypto_key_iam_binding.privateca_sa_keyuser_signerverifier,
    google_kms_crypto_key_iam_binding.privateca_sa_keyuser_viewer,
  ]
}

Go

To authenticate to CA Service, set up Application Default Credentials. For more information, see Set up authentication for a local development environment.

import (
	"context"
	"fmt"
	"io"

	privateca "cloud.google.com/go/security/privateca/apiv1"
	"cloud.google.com/go/security/privateca/apiv1/privatecapb"
	"google.golang.org/protobuf/types/known/durationpb"
)

// Create Certificate Authority which is the root CA in the given CA Pool. This CA will be
// responsible for signing certificates within this pool.
func createCa(
	w io.Writer,
	projectId string,
	location string,
	caPoolId string,
	caId string,
	caCommonName string,
	org string,
	caDuration int64) error {
	// projectId := "your_project_id"
	// location := "us-central1"		// For a list of locations, see: https://cloud.google.com/certificate-authority-service/docs/locations.
	// caPoolId := "ca-pool-id"			// The CA Pool id under which the CA should be created.
	// caId := "ca-id"					// A unique id/name for the ca.
	// caCommonName := "ca-name"		// A common name for your certificate authority.
	// org := "ca-org"					// The name of your company for your certificate authority.
	// ca_duration := int64(31536000)	// The validity of the certificate authority in seconds.

	ctx := context.Background()
	caClient, err := privateca.NewCertificateAuthorityClient(ctx)
	if err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("NewCertificateAuthorityClient creation failed: %w", err)
	}
	defer caClient.Close()

	// Set the types of Algorithm used to create a cloud KMS key.
	keySpec := &privatecapb.CertificateAuthority_KeyVersionSpec{
		KeyVersion: &privatecapb.CertificateAuthority_KeyVersionSpec_Algorithm{
			Algorithm: privatecapb.CertificateAuthority_RSA_PKCS1_2048_SHA256,
		},
	}

	// Set CA subject config.
	subjectConfig := &privatecapb.CertificateConfig_SubjectConfig{
		Subject: &privatecapb.Subject{
			CommonName:   caCommonName,
			Organization: org,
		},
	}

	// Set the key usage options for X.509 fields.
	isCa := true
	x509Parameters := &privatecapb.X509Parameters{
		KeyUsage: &privatecapb.KeyUsage{
			BaseKeyUsage: &privatecapb.KeyUsage_KeyUsageOptions{
				CrlSign:  true,
				CertSign: true,
			},
		},
		CaOptions: &privatecapb.X509Parameters_CaOptions{
			IsCa: &isCa,
		},
	}

	// Set certificate authority settings.
	// Type: SELF_SIGNED denotes that this CA is a root CA.
	ca := &privatecapb.CertificateAuthority{
		Type:    privatecapb.CertificateAuthority_SELF_SIGNED,
		KeySpec: keySpec,
		Config: &privatecapb.CertificateConfig{
			SubjectConfig: subjectConfig,
			X509Config:    x509Parameters,
		},
		Lifetime: &durationpb.Duration{
			Seconds: caDuration,
		},
	}

	fullCaPoolName := fmt.Sprintf("projects/%s/locations/%s/caPools/%s", projectId, location, caPoolId)

	// Create the CreateCertificateAuthorityRequest.
	// See https://pkg.go.dev/cloud.google.com/go/security/privateca/apiv1/privatecapb#CreateCertificateAuthorityRequest.
	req := &privatecapb.CreateCertificateAuthorityRequest{
		Parent:                 fullCaPoolName,
		CertificateAuthorityId: caId,
		CertificateAuthority:   ca,
	}

	op, err := caClient.CreateCertificateAuthority(ctx, req)
	if err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("CreateCertificateAuthority failed: %w", err)
	}

	if _, err = op.Wait(ctx); err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("CreateCertificateAuthority failed during wait: %w", err)
	}

	fmt.Fprintf(w, "CA %s created", caId)

	return nil
}

Java

To authenticate to CA Service, set up Application Default Credentials. For more information, see Set up authentication for a local development environment.

import com.google.api.core.ApiFuture;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CaPoolName;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateAuthority;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateAuthority.KeyVersionSpec;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateAuthority.SignHashAlgorithm;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateAuthorityServiceClient;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateConfig;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateConfig.SubjectConfig;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CreateCertificateAuthorityRequest;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.KeyUsage;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.KeyUsage.KeyUsageOptions;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.Subject;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.X509Parameters;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.X509Parameters.CaOptions;
import com.google.longrunning.Operation;
import com.google.protobuf.Duration;
import java.io.IOException;
import java.util.concurrent.ExecutionException;

public class CreateCertificateAuthority {

  public static void main(String[] args)
      throws InterruptedException, ExecutionException, IOException {
    // TODO(developer): Replace these variables before running the sample.
    // location: For a list of locations, see:
    // https://cloud.google.com/certificate-authority-service/docs/locations
    // poolId: Set it to the CA Pool under which the CA should be created.
    // certificateAuthorityName: Unique name for the CA.
    String project = "your-project-id";
    String location = "ca-location";
    String poolId = "ca-pool-id";
    String certificateAuthorityName = "certificate-authority-name";
    createCertificateAuthority(project, location, poolId, certificateAuthorityName);
  }

  // Create Certificate Authority which is the root CA in the given CA Pool.
  public static void createCertificateAuthority(
      String project, String location, String poolId, String certificateAuthorityName)
      throws InterruptedException, ExecutionException, IOException {
    // Initialize client that will be used to send requests. This client only needs to be created
    // once, and can be reused for multiple requests. After completing all of your requests, call
    // the `certificateAuthorityServiceClient.close()` method on the client to safely
    // clean up any remaining background resources.
    try (CertificateAuthorityServiceClient certificateAuthorityServiceClient =
        CertificateAuthorityServiceClient.create()) {

      String commonName = "common-name";
      String orgName = "org-name";
      int caDuration = 100000; // Validity of this CA in seconds.

      // Set the type of Algorithm.
      KeyVersionSpec keyVersionSpec =
          KeyVersionSpec.newBuilder().setAlgorithm(SignHashAlgorithm.RSA_PKCS1_4096_SHA256).build();

      // Set CA subject config.
      SubjectConfig subjectConfig =
          SubjectConfig.newBuilder()
              .setSubject(
                  Subject.newBuilder().setCommonName(commonName).setOrganization(orgName).build())
              .build();

      //  Set the key usage options for X.509 fields.
      X509Parameters x509Parameters =
          X509Parameters.newBuilder()
              .setKeyUsage(
                  KeyUsage.newBuilder()
                      .setBaseKeyUsage(
                          KeyUsageOptions.newBuilder().setCrlSign(true).setCertSign(true).build())
                      .build())
              .setCaOptions(CaOptions.newBuilder().setIsCa(true).build())
              .build();

      // Set certificate authority settings.
      CertificateAuthority certificateAuthority =
          CertificateAuthority.newBuilder()
              // CertificateAuthority.Type.SELF_SIGNED denotes that this CA is a root CA.
              .setType(CertificateAuthority.Type.SELF_SIGNED)
              .setKeySpec(keyVersionSpec)
              .setConfig(
                  CertificateConfig.newBuilder()
                      .setSubjectConfig(subjectConfig)
                      .setX509Config(x509Parameters)
                      .build())
              // Set the CA validity duration.
              .setLifetime(Duration.newBuilder().setSeconds(caDuration).build())
              .build();

      // Create the CertificateAuthorityRequest.
      CreateCertificateAuthorityRequest certificateAuthorityRequest =
          CreateCertificateAuthorityRequest.newBuilder()
              .setParent(CaPoolName.of(project, location, poolId).toString())
              .setCertificateAuthorityId(certificateAuthorityName)
              .setCertificateAuthority(certificateAuthority)
              .build();

      // Create Certificate Authority.
      ApiFuture<Operation> futureCall =
          certificateAuthorityServiceClient
              .createCertificateAuthorityCallable()
              .futureCall(certificateAuthorityRequest);
      Operation response = futureCall.get();

      if (response.hasError()) {
        System.out.println("Error while creating CA !" + response.getError());
        return;
      }

      System.out.println(
          "Certificate Authority created successfully : " + certificateAuthorityName);
    }
  }
}

Python

To authenticate to CA Service, set up Application Default Credentials. For more information, see Set up authentication for a local development environment.

import google.cloud.security.privateca_v1 as privateca_v1
from google.protobuf import duration_pb2


def create_certificate_authority(
    project_id: str,
    location: str,
    ca_pool_name: str,
    ca_name: str,
    common_name: str,
    organization: str,
    ca_duration: int,
) -> None:
    """
    Create Certificate Authority which is the root CA in the given CA Pool. This CA will be
    responsible for signing certificates within this pool.

    Args:
        project_id: project ID or project number of the Cloud project you want to use.
        location: location you want to use. For a list of locations, see: https://cloud.google.com/certificate-authority-service/docs/locations.
        ca_pool_name: set it to the CA Pool under which the CA should be created.
        ca_name: unique name for the CA.
        common_name: a title for your certificate authority.
        organization: the name of your company for your certificate authority.
        ca_duration: the validity of the certificate authority in seconds.
    """

    caServiceClient = privateca_v1.CertificateAuthorityServiceClient()

    # Set the types of Algorithm used to create a cloud KMS key.
    key_version_spec = privateca_v1.CertificateAuthority.KeyVersionSpec(
        algorithm=privateca_v1.CertificateAuthority.SignHashAlgorithm.RSA_PKCS1_4096_SHA256
    )

    # Set CA subject config.
    subject_config = privateca_v1.CertificateConfig.SubjectConfig(
        subject=privateca_v1.Subject(common_name=common_name, organization=organization)
    )

    # Set the key usage options for X.509 fields.
    x509_parameters = privateca_v1.X509Parameters(
        key_usage=privateca_v1.KeyUsage(
            base_key_usage=privateca_v1.KeyUsage.KeyUsageOptions(
                crl_sign=True,
                cert_sign=True,
            )
        ),
        ca_options=privateca_v1.X509Parameters.CaOptions(
            is_ca=True,
        ),
    )

    # Set certificate authority settings.
    certificate_authority = privateca_v1.CertificateAuthority(
        # CertificateAuthority.Type.SELF_SIGNED denotes that this CA is a root CA.
        type_=privateca_v1.CertificateAuthority.Type.SELF_SIGNED,
        key_spec=key_version_spec,
        config=privateca_v1.CertificateConfig(
            subject_config=subject_config,
            x509_config=x509_parameters,
        ),
        lifetime=duration_pb2.Duration(seconds=ca_duration),
    )

    ca_pool_path = caServiceClient.ca_pool_path(project_id, location, ca_pool_name)

    # Create the CertificateAuthorityRequest.
    request = privateca_v1.CreateCertificateAuthorityRequest(
        parent=ca_pool_path,
        certificate_authority_id=ca_name,
        certificate_authority=certificate_authority,
    )

    operation = caServiceClient.create_certificate_authority(request=request)
    result = operation.result()

    print("Operation result:", result)

REST API

1. Create a root CA.

   HTTP method and URL:

   POST https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/caPools/POOL_ID/certificateAuthorities?certificate_authority_id=ROOT_CA_ID

   Request JSON body:

   {
   "type": "SELF_SIGNED",
   "lifetime": {
    "seconds": 315576000,
    "nanos": 0
   },
   "config": {
    "subject_config": {
      "subject": {
        "organization": "ORGANIZATION_NAME",
        "common_name": "COMMON_NAME"
      }
    },
    "x509_config":{
      "ca_options":{
        "is_ca":true
      },
      "key_usage":{
        "base_key_usage":{
          "cert_sign":true,
          "crl_sign":true
        }
      }
    }
   },
   "key_spec":{
    "algorithm":"RSA_PKCS1_4096_SHA256"
   }
   }
   

   To send your request, expand one of these options:

   curl (Linux, macOS, or Cloud Shell)

   Note: The following command assumes that you have logged in to the gcloud CLI with your user account by running gcloud init or gcloud auth login , or by using Cloud Shell, which automatically logs you into the gcloud CLI . You can check the currently active account by running gcloud auth list.

   Save the request body in a file named request.json, and execute the following command:

   curl -X POST \
        -H "Authorization: Bearer $(gcloud auth print-access-token)" \
        -H "Content-Type: application/json; charset=utf-8" \
        -d @request.json \
        "https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/caPools/POOL_ID/certificateAuthorities?certificate_authority_id=ROOT_CA_ID"

   PowerShell (Windows)

   Note: The following command assumes that you have logged in to the gcloud CLI with your user account by running gcloud init or gcloud auth login . You can check the currently active account by running gcloud auth list.

   Save the request body in a file named request.json, and execute the following command:

   $cred = gcloud auth print-access-token
   $headers = @{ "Authorization" = "Bearer $cred" }
   
   Invoke-WebRequest `
       -Method POST `
       -Headers $headers `
       -ContentType: "application/json; charset=utf-8" `
       -InFile request.json `
       -Uri "https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/caPools/POOL_ID/certificateAuthorities?certificate_authority_id=ROOT_CA_ID" | Select-Object -Expand Content

   You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

   {
    "name": "projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/operations/operation-UUID",
    "metadata": {...},
    "done": false
   }
   

2. Poll the operation until it has completed.

   HTTP method and URL:

   GET https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/operations/operation-UUID

   To send your request, expand one of these options:

   curl (Linux, macOS, or Cloud Shell)

   Note: The following command assumes that you have logged in to the gcloud CLI with your user account by running gcloud init or gcloud auth login , or by using Cloud Shell, which automatically logs you into the gcloud CLI . You can check the currently active account by running gcloud auth list.

   Execute the following command:

   curl -X GET \
        -H "Authorization: Bearer $(gcloud auth print-access-token)" \
        "https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/operations/operation-UUID"

   PowerShell (Windows)

   Note: The following command assumes that you have logged in to the gcloud CLI with your user account by running gcloud init or gcloud auth login . You can check the currently active account by running gcloud auth list.

   Execute the following command:

   $cred = gcloud auth print-access-token
   $headers = @{ "Authorization" = "Bearer $cred" }
   
   Invoke-WebRequest `
       -Method GET `
       -Headers $headers `
       -Uri "https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/operations/operation-UUID" | Select-Object -Expand Content

   You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

   {
    "name": "projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/operations/operation-UUID",
    "metadata": {...},
    "done": true,
    "response": {
      "@type": "type.googleapis.com/google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateAuthority",
      "name": "...",
    }
   }
   

Note: Root CAs are created in the STAGED state by default. We recommend that you test your CA while it is still in the STAGED state. You must directly request certificates from the CA STAGED state because these CAs cannot issue certificates through CA pool load-balancing. For more information, see Testing a CA.

For more information about CA states, see CA states.

After you have verified that the CA works as expected, you can enable it to start issuing load-balanced certificates for the CA pool.

Note: If you delete resources such as CA pools, certificate authorities, and certificate templates, you will not be able to create a new resource of that type with the same name in the same project and location.

Enable a root CA

gcloud

To enable a root CA, run the following gcloud command:

gcloud privateca roots enable ROOT_CA_ID --pool=POOL_ID

Replace the following:

• ROOT_CA_ID: The name of the CA.
• POOL_ID: The name of the CA pool.

Terraform

If you use Terraform to create a root CA, the root CA is enabled on creation. To create a root CA in the STAGED state, set the desired_state field to STAGED when creating the CA.

You can set the desired_state field to ENABLED or DISABLED after CA creation.

Go

To authenticate to CA Service, set up Application Default Credentials. For more information, see Set up authentication for a local development environment.

import (
	"context"
	"fmt"
	"io"

	privateca "cloud.google.com/go/security/privateca/apiv1"
	"cloud.google.com/go/security/privateca/apiv1/privatecapb"
)

// Enable the Certificate Authority present in the given ca pool.
// CA cannot be enabled if it has been already deleted.
func enableCa(w io.Writer, projectId string, location string, caPoolId string, caId string) error {
	// projectId := "your_project_id"
	// location := "us-central1"	// For a list of locations, see: https://cloud.google.com/certificate-authority-service/docs/locations.
	// caPoolId := "ca-pool-id"		// The id of the CA pool under which the CA is present.
	// caId := "ca-id"				// The id of the CA to be enabled.

	ctx := context.Background()
	caClient, err := privateca.NewCertificateAuthorityClient(ctx)
	if err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("NewCertificateAuthorityClient creation failed: %w", err)
	}
	defer caClient.Close()

	fullCaName := fmt.Sprintf("projects/%s/locations/%s/caPools/%s/certificateAuthorities/%s",
		projectId, location, caPoolId, caId)

	// Create the EnableCertificateAuthorityRequest.
	// See https://pkg.go.dev/cloud.google.com/go/security/privateca/apiv1/privatecapb#EnableCertificateAuthorityRequest.
	req := &privatecapb.EnableCertificateAuthorityRequest{Name: fullCaName}

	op, err := caClient.EnableCertificateAuthority(ctx, req)
	if err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("EnableCertificateAuthority failed: %w", err)
	}

	var caResp *privatecapb.CertificateAuthority
	if caResp, err = op.Wait(ctx); err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("EnableCertificateAuthority failed during wait: %w", err)
	}

	if caResp.State != privatecapb.CertificateAuthority_ENABLED {
		return fmt.Errorf("unable to enable Certificate Authority. Current state: %s", caResp.State.String())
	}

	fmt.Fprintf(w, "Successfully enabled Certificate Authority: %s.", caId)
	return nil
}

Java

To authenticate to CA Service, set up Application Default Credentials. For more information, see Set up authentication for a local development environment.

import com.google.api.core.ApiFuture;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateAuthority.State;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateAuthorityName;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateAuthorityServiceClient;
import com.google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.EnableCertificateAuthorityRequest;
import com.google.longrunning.Operation;
import java.io.IOException;
import java.util.concurrent.ExecutionException;

public class EnableCertificateAuthority {

  public static void main(String[] args)
      throws InterruptedException, ExecutionException, IOException {
    // TODO(developer): Replace these variables before running the sample.
    // location: For a list of locations, see:
    // https://cloud.google.com/certificate-authority-service/docs/locations
    // poolId: The id of the CA pool under which the CA is present.
    // certificateAuthorityName: The name of the CA to be enabled.
    String project = "your-project-id";
    String location = "ca-location";
    String poolId = "ca-pool-id";
    String certificateAuthorityName = "certificate-authority-name";
    enableCertificateAuthority(project, location, poolId, certificateAuthorityName);
  }

  // Enable the Certificate Authority present in the given ca pool.
  // CA cannot be enabled if it has been already deleted.
  public static void enableCertificateAuthority(
      String project, String location, String poolId, String certificateAuthorityName)
      throws IOException, ExecutionException, InterruptedException {
    try (CertificateAuthorityServiceClient certificateAuthorityServiceClient =
        CertificateAuthorityServiceClient.create()) {
      // Create the Certificate Authority Name.
      CertificateAuthorityName certificateAuthorityParent =
          CertificateAuthorityName.newBuilder()
              .setProject(project)
              .setLocation(location)
              .setCaPool(poolId)
              .setCertificateAuthority(certificateAuthorityName)
              .build();

      // Create the Enable Certificate Authority Request.
      EnableCertificateAuthorityRequest enableCertificateAuthorityRequest =
          EnableCertificateAuthorityRequest.newBuilder()
              .setName(certificateAuthorityParent.toString())
              .build();

      // Enable the Certificate Authority.
      ApiFuture<Operation> futureCall =
          certificateAuthorityServiceClient
              .enableCertificateAuthorityCallable()
              .futureCall(enableCertificateAuthorityRequest);
      Operation response = futureCall.get();

      if (response.hasError()) {
        System.out.println("Error while enabling Certificate Authority !" + response.getError());
        return;
      }

      // Get the current CA state.
      State caState =
          certificateAuthorityServiceClient
              .getCertificateAuthority(certificateAuthorityParent)
              .getState();

      // Check if the CA is enabled.
      if (caState == State.ENABLED) {
        System.out.println("Enabled Certificate Authority : " + certificateAuthorityName);
      } else {
        System.out.println(
            "Cannot enable the Certificate Authority ! Current CA State: " + caState);
      }
    }
  }
}

Python

To authenticate to CA Service, set up Application Default Credentials. For more information, see Set up authentication for a local development environment.

import google.cloud.security.privateca_v1 as privateca_v1


def enable_certificate_authority(
    project_id: str, location: str, ca_pool_name: str, ca_name: str
) -> None:
    """
    Enable the Certificate Authority present in the given ca pool.
    CA cannot be enabled if it has been already deleted.

    Args:
        project_id: project ID or project number of the Cloud project you want to use.
        location: location you want to use. For a list of locations, see: https://cloud.google.com/certificate-authority-service/docs/locations.
        ca_pool_name: the name of the CA pool under which the CA is present.
        ca_name: the name of the CA to be enabled.
    """

    caServiceClient = privateca_v1.CertificateAuthorityServiceClient()
    ca_path = caServiceClient.certificate_authority_path(
        project_id, location, ca_pool_name, ca_name
    )

    # Create the Enable Certificate Authority Request.
    request = privateca_v1.EnableCertificateAuthorityRequest(
        name=ca_path,
    )

    # Enable the Certificate Authority.
    operation = caServiceClient.enable_certificate_authority(request=request)
    operation.result()

    # Get the current CA state.
    ca_state = caServiceClient.get_certificate_authority(name=ca_path).state

    # Check if the CA is enabled.
    if ca_state == privateca_v1.CertificateAuthority.State.ENABLED:
        print("Enabled Certificate Authority:", ca_name)
    else:
        print("Cannot enable the Certificate Authority ! Current CA State:", ca_state)

REST API

1. Enable the CA to issue certificates from the CA pool.

   HTTP method and URL:

   POST https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/caPools/POOL_ID/certificateAuthorities/ROOT_CA_ID:enable

   To send your request, expand one of these options:

   curl (Linux, macOS, or Cloud Shell)

   Note: The following command assumes that you have logged in to the gcloud CLI with your user account by running gcloud init or gcloud auth login , or by using Cloud Shell, which automatically logs you into the gcloud CLI . You can check the currently active account by running gcloud auth list.

   Execute the following command:

   curl -X POST \
        -H "Authorization: Bearer $(gcloud auth print-access-token)" \
        -H "Content-Type: application/json; charset=utf-8" \
        -d "" \
        "https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/caPools/POOL_ID/certificateAuthorities/ROOT_CA_ID:enable"

   PowerShell (Windows)

   Note: The following command assumes that you have logged in to the gcloud CLI with your user account by running gcloud init or gcloud auth login . You can check the currently active account by running gcloud auth list.

   Execute the following command:

   $cred = gcloud auth print-access-token
   $headers = @{ "Authorization" = "Bearer $cred" }
   
   Invoke-WebRequest `
       -Method POST `
       -Headers $headers `
       -Uri "https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/caPools/POOL_ID/certificateAuthorities/ROOT_CA_ID:enable" | Select-Object -Expand Content

   You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

   {
    "name": "projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/operations/operation-UUID",
    "metadata": {...},
    "done": false
   }
   

2. Poll the operation until it has completed.

   HTTP method and URL:

   GET https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/operations/operation-UUID

   To send your request, expand one of these options:

   curl (Linux, macOS, or Cloud Shell)

   Note: The following command assumes that you have logged in to the gcloud CLI with your user account by running gcloud init or gcloud auth login , or by using Cloud Shell, which automatically logs you into the gcloud CLI . You can check the currently active account by running gcloud auth list.

   Execute the following command:

   curl -X GET \
        -H "Authorization: Bearer $(gcloud auth print-access-token)" \
        "https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/operations/operation-UUID"

   PowerShell (Windows)

   Note: The following command assumes that you have logged in to the gcloud CLI with your user account by running gcloud init or gcloud auth login . You can check the currently active account by running gcloud auth list.

   Execute the following command:

   $cred = gcloud auth print-access-token
   $headers = @{ "Authorization" = "Bearer $cred" }
   
   Invoke-WebRequest `
       -Method GET `
       -Headers $headers `
       -Uri "https://privateca.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/operations/operation-UUID" | Select-Object -Expand Content

   You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

   {
    "name": "projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/operations/operation-UUID",
    "metadata": {...},
    "done": true,
    "response": {
      "@type": "type.googleapis.com/google.cloud.security.privateca.v1.CertificateAuthority",
      "name": "...",
    }
   }
   

Caution: Any certificate signed by the private key of the root CA is widely trusted by browsers. We recommend that you don't issue end-entity certificates from a root CA. Create subordinate CAs to issue end-entity certificates.

Test a CA

To verify that a CA is able to issue certificates, request a certificate from the associated CA pool and explicitly mention the name of the CA you want to test using the --ca flag.

You can use the following methods to request a certificate from a CA pool:

1. Have CA Service create a private or public key for you.
2. Generate your own private or public key and submit a Certificate Signing Request (CSR).

It is easier to use an auto-generated private key or public key to request a certificate from a CA in a CA pool. This section provides information on testing a CA using that method.

To use an auto-generated private key or public key to request a certificate from a CA in a CA pool, run the following gcloud command:

gcloud privateca certificates create \
  --issuer-pool=POOL_ID \
  --ca=ROOT_CA_ID \
  --generate-key \
  --key-output-file=KEY_FILENAME \
  --cert-output-file=CERT_FILENAME \
  --dns-san=DNS_NAME

Replace the following:

• POOL_ID: The name of the CA pool.
• ROOT_CA_ID: The unique identifier of the CA that you want to test.
• KEY_FILENAME: The file where the generated key is written in PEM format.
• CERT_FILENAME: The file where the resulting PEM-encoded certificate chain file is written. The order of the certificate chain is from leaf to root.

• DNS_NAME: One or more comma-separated DNS Subject Alternative Names (SANs).

  The --generate-key flag generates a new RSA-2048 private key on your machine.

To use a Certificate Signing Request (CSR) to request a certificate from a CA in a CA pool, or for more information about requesting certificates, see Request a certificate and view issued certificates.

Clone certificate authorities

To clone an existing CA to renew that CA, or to create a new CA with the same configuration, run the following command:

gcloud privateca roots create NEW_CA_ID --pool=POOL_ID \
  --from-ca=EXISTING_CA_ID \
  --key-algorithm "ec-p384-sha384"

Replace the following:

• NEW_CA_ID: The unique identifier of the new CA.
• POOL_ID: The name of the CA pool in which you want to create the new CA.

The --from-ca flag is supported for root and subordinate CA creation. The existing CA must be in the same CA pool as the new CA.

The --key-algorithm flag copies all CA configuration from the existing CA (except for the Cloud KMS key version and Cloud Storage bucket). However, you can still override any of the configuration values in the new CA by explicitly providing the appropriate flag. For example, you can still specify `--subject SUBJECT to use a new subject.

If you omit the --key-algorithm flag, the algorithm defaults to:

• rsa-pkcs1-4096-sha256 for root CAs.
• rsa-pkcs1-2048-sha256 for subordinate CAs.

For more information about this gcloud command, see gcloud privateca roots create.

What's next

• Learn how to create a subordinate CA.
• Learn how to request certificates.
• Learn about templates and issuance policies.