Defining System Options in Parmlib › Sample Parmlib Members › Symmetric Key Options

Symmetric Key Options

Use the symmetric key options in the SymmetricKeys attributes section to specify the types of keys that CA Tape Encryption employs to encrypt tapes. Each key defined in the SymmetricKeys section must be further described under the key_section.

Note: For information about which cryptographic hardware supports the available encryption algorithms, see the sections Cryptographic Hardware Supported and Crytographic Algorithms Supported.

The following attribute is available for the SymmetricKeys section:

Key=keyattributes

Assigns a set of attributes defined by a customizable section name to a symmetric key. The assigned value must be a section name defined in the same parmlib member. For descriptions of the attributes for each key, see Key Section Options.

Each key section defines a key name and its characteristics. To specify that a key associated with a particular key section should be used for a specific encryption or decryption job, specify the key section name in the DFSMS data class description field after the keyword BES=.

Limits: 32 alphanumeric characters, no blanks.

Note: If a key section is missing, it generates a validation error at startup or when symmetric keys are refreshed.

Example: SymmetricKeys section

This example shows the SymmetricKeys section with four keys specified:

<SymmetricKeys>

Key=hrkey
Key=payrollkey
Key=vaultkey
Key=AES128_KEY

Example: Symmetric key specified in data class description field

This example shows a key section named AES128_KEY specified as part of the DFSMS data class description field:

BES=(AES128_KEY)

Note: For information about specifying BES key section names in the DFSMS data class description field, see the Administration Guide.