MLDSA Component

Properties Methods Events Config Settings Errors

The MLDSA component can be used to create and verify digital signatures using Module-Lattice-Based Digital Signature Algorithm (ML-DSA) cryptography.

Syntax

nsoftware.IPWorksEncrypt.MLDSA

Remarks

The MLDSA component can be used to create and verify digital signatures using Module-Lattice-Based Digital Signature Algorithm (ML-DSA) cryptography. Includes support for ML-DSA-44, ML-DSA-65, and ML-DSA-87 parameter sets.

Note that by default the component uses ML-DSA-44. You may specify the parameter set by setting ParamSet.

Property List

The following is the full list of the properties of the component with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.


Context	The ML-DSA context string.
HashAlgorithm	The hash algorithm used when PreHash is enabled.
InputFile	The file to process.
InputMessage	The message to process.
Key	The ML-DSA key.
PreHash	Whether to use HashML-DSA when signing and verifying.
Signature	The signature.
UseHex	Whether the signature is hex encoded.

Method List

The following is the full list of the methods of the component with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.


Config	Sets or retrieves a configuration setting.
CreateKey	Creates a new key.
Reset	Resets the component.
SetInputStream	Sets the stream from which the component will read data to encrypt or decrypt.
Sign	Creates a signature.
Verify	Verifies a signature.

Event List

The following is the full list of the events fired by the component with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.


Error	Fired when information is available about errors during data delivery.
Progress	Fired as progress is made.

Config Settings

The following is a list of config settings for the component with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.


CloseInputStreamAfterProcessing	Determines whether or not the input stream is closed after processing.
ParamSet	The ML-DSA parameter set.
BuildInfo	Information about the product's build.
GUIAvailable	Whether or not a message loop is available for processing events.
LicenseInfo	Information about the current license.
MaskSensitiveData	Whether sensitive data is masked in log messages.
UseFIPSCompliantAPI	Tells the component whether or not to use FIPS certified APIs.
UseInternalSecurityAPI	Whether or not to use the system security libraries or an internal implementation.

Context Property (MLDSA Component)

The ML-DSA context string.

public string Context { get; set; }
public byte[] ContextB { get; set; }

Public Property Context As String
Public Property ContextB As Byte()

Default Value

Remarks

This property specifies the optional ML-DSA context used when signing and verifying. This property may be empty. The default value is empty.

The same value must be specified when calling Sign and Verify.

The maximum length is 255 bytes.

HashAlgorithm Property (MLDSA Component)

The hash algorithm used when PreHash is enabled.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public MLDSAHashAlgorithms HashAlgorithm { get; set; }

enum MLDSAHashAlgorithms {
  mhaSHA256,
  mhaSHA384,
  mhaSHA512
}

Public Property HashAlgorithm As MldsaHashAlgorithms

Enum MLDSAHashAlgorithms
  mhaSHA256
  mhaSHA384
  mhaSHA512
End Enum

Default Value

Remarks

This property specifies the hash algorithm used to pre-hash input data when PreHash is set to True.

Possible values are:

0 (mhaSHA256 - default): SHA-256
1 (mhaSHA384): SHA-384
2 (mhaSHA512): SHA-512

InputFile Property (MLDSA Component)

The file to process.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public string InputFile { get; set; }

Public Property InputFile As String

Default Value

Remarks

This property specifies the file to be processed. Set this property to the full or relative path to the file which will be processed.

Input and Output Properties

The component will determine the source and destination of the input and output based on which properties are set.

The order in which the input properties are checked is as follows:

SetInputStream
InputFile
InputMessage

When a valid source is found, the search stops. The order in which the output properties are checked is as follows:

SetOutputStream
OutputFile
OutputMessage: The output data is written to this property if no other destination is specified.

When using streams, you may need to additionally set CloseInputStreamAfterProcessing or CloseOutputStreamAfterProcessing.

InputMessage Property (MLDSA Component)

The message to process.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public string InputMessage { get; set; }
public byte[] InputMessageB { get; set; }

Public Property InputMessage As String
Public Property InputMessageB As Byte()

Default Value

Remarks

This property specifies the message to be processed.

Input and Output Properties

The component will determine the source and destination of the input and output based on which properties are set.

The order in which the input properties are checked is as follows:

SetInputStream
InputFile
InputMessage

When a valid source is found, the search stops. The order in which the output properties are checked is as follows:

SetOutputStream
OutputFile
OutputMessage: The output data is written to this property if no other destination is specified.

When using streams, you may need to additionally set CloseInputStreamAfterProcessing or CloseOutputStreamAfterProcessing.

Key Property (MLDSA Component)

The ML-DSA key.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public MLDSAKey Key { get; set; }

Public Property Key As MLDSAKey

Remarks

This property specifies the ML-DSA public or private key.

The private key is required before calling Sign, and the public key is required before calling Verify.

ML-DSA keys are made up of raw private key and public key fields.

Please refer to the MLDSAKey type for a complete list of fields.

PreHash Property (MLDSA Component)

Whether to use HashML-DSA when signing and verifying.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public bool PreHash { get; set; }

Public Property PreHash As Boolean

Default Value

False

Remarks

This property specifies whether the component uses HashML-DSA when signing and verifying.

If set to True, the input is pre-hashed using HashAlgorithm before signing or verifying. This supports a single pass over input data from InputFile or SetInputStream.

If set to False (default), pure ML-DSA is used.

Signature Property (MLDSA Component)

The signature.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public string Signature { get; set; }
public byte[] SignatureB { get; set; }

Public Property Signature As String
Public Property SignatureB As Byte()

Default Value

Remarks

This property holds the ML-DSA signature.

It is populated by Sign and must be set before calling Verify.

UseHex Property (MLDSA Component)

Whether the signature is hex encoded.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public bool UseHex { get; set; }

Public Property UseHex As Boolean

Default Value

False

Remarks

This property specifies whether Signature is hex encoded.

If set to False (default), the signature is provided as-is with no encoding.

When Sign is called and this property is set to True, Signature is hex encoded when populated.

When Verify is called and this property is set to True, Signature is treated as hex encoded.

Input data from InputMessage, InputFile, or SetInputStream is always processed as provided.

Config Method (MLDSA Component)

Sets or retrieves a configuration setting.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public string Config(string configurationString);

Async Version
public async Task<string> Config(string configurationString);
public async Task<string> Config(string configurationString, CancellationToken cancellationToken);

Public Function Config(ByVal ConfigurationString As String) As String

Async Version
Public Function Config(ByVal ConfigurationString As String) As Task(Of String)
Public Function Config(ByVal ConfigurationString As String, cancellationToken As CancellationToken) As Task(Of String)

Remarks

Config is a generic method available in every component. It is used to set and retrieve configuration settings for the component.

These settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the component, access to these internal properties is provided through the Config method.

To set a configuration setting named PROPERTY, you must call Config("PROPERTY=VALUE"), where VALUE is the value of the setting expressed as a string. For boolean values, use the strings "True", "False", "0", "1", "Yes", or "No" (case does not matter).

To read (query) the value of a configuration setting, you must call Config("PROPERTY"). The value will be returned as a string.

CreateKey Method (MLDSA Component)

Creates a new key.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public void CreateKey();

Async Version
public async Task CreateKey();
public async Task CreateKey(CancellationToken cancellationToken);

Public Sub CreateKey()

Async Version
Public Sub CreateKey() As Task
Public Sub CreateKey(cancellationToken As CancellationToken) As Task

Remarks

CreateKey creates a new ML-DSA public and private key pair.

Reset Method (MLDSA Component)

Resets the component.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public void Reset();

Async Version
public async Task Reset();
public async Task Reset(CancellationToken cancellationToken);

Public Sub Reset()

Async Version
Public Sub Reset() As Task
Public Sub Reset(cancellationToken As CancellationToken) As Task

Remarks

When called, the component will reset all of its properties to their default values.

SetInputStream Method (MLDSA Component)

Sets the stream from which the component will read data to encrypt or decrypt.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public void SetInputStream(System.IO.Stream inputStream);

Async Version
public async Task SetInputStream(System.IO.Stream inputStream);
public async Task SetInputStream(System.IO.Stream inputStream, CancellationToken cancellationToken);

Public Sub SetInputStream(ByVal InputStream As System.IO.Stream)

Async Version
Public Sub SetInputStream(ByVal InputStream As System.IO.Stream) As Task
Public Sub SetInputStream(ByVal InputStream As System.IO.Stream, cancellationToken As CancellationToken) As Task

Remarks

This method sets the stream from which the component will read data to encrypt or decrypt.

Input and Output Properties

The component will determine the source and destination of the input and output based on which properties are set.

The order in which the input properties are checked is as follows:

SetInputStream
InputFile
InputMessage

When a valid source is found, the search stops. The order in which the output properties are checked is as follows:

SetOutputStream
OutputFile
OutputMessage: The output data is written to this property if no other destination is specified.

When using streams, you may need to additionally set CloseInputStreamAfterProcessing or CloseOutputStreamAfterProcessing.

Sign Method (MLDSA Component)

Creates a signature.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public void Sign();

Async Version
public async Task Sign();
public async Task Sign(CancellationToken cancellationToken);

Public Sub Sign()

Async Version
Public Sub Sign() As Task
Public Sub Sign(cancellationToken As CancellationToken) As Task

Remarks

This method signs the data specified by SetInputStream, InputFile, or InputMessage using the private key in Key and populates Signature.

Verify Method (MLDSA Component)

Verifies a signature.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public bool Verify();

Async Version
public async Task<bool> Verify();
public async Task<bool> Verify(CancellationToken cancellationToken);

Public Function Verify() As Boolean

Async Version
Public Function Verify() As Task(Of Boolean)
Public Function Verify(cancellationToken As CancellationToken) As Task(Of Boolean)

Remarks

This method verifies Signature for the data specified by SetInputStream, InputFile, or InputMessage using the public key in Key. The result is returned.

Error Event (MLDSA Component)

Fired when information is available about errors during data delivery.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public event OnErrorHandler OnError;

public delegate void OnErrorHandler(object sender, MLDSAErrorEventArgs e);

public class MLDSAErrorEventArgs : EventArgs {
  public int ErrorCode { get; }
  public string Description { get; }
}

Public Event OnError As OnErrorHandler

Public Delegate Sub OnErrorHandler(sender As Object, e As MLDSAErrorEventArgs)

Public Class MLDSAErrorEventArgs Inherits EventArgs
  Public ReadOnly Property ErrorCode As Integer
  Public ReadOnly Property Description As String
End Class

Remarks

The Error event is fired in case of exceptional conditions during message processing. Normally the component throws an exception.

The ErrorCode parameter contains an error code, and the Description parameter contains a textual description of the error. For a list of valid error codes and their descriptions, please refer to the Error Codes section.

Progress Event (MLDSA Component)

Fired as progress is made.

Syntax

C#
VB.NET

public event OnProgressHandler OnProgress;

public delegate void OnProgressHandler(object sender, MLDSAProgressEventArgs e);

public class MLDSAProgressEventArgs : EventArgs {
  public long BytesProcessed { get; }
  public int PercentProcessed { get; }
}

Public Event OnProgress As OnProgressHandler

Public Delegate Sub OnProgressHandler(sender As Object, e As MLDSAProgressEventArgs)

Public Class MLDSAProgressEventArgs Inherits EventArgs
  Public ReadOnly Property BytesProcessed As Long
  Public ReadOnly Property PercentProcessed As Integer
End Class

Remarks

This event is fired automatically as data is processed by the component.

The PercentProcessed parameter indicates the current status of the operation.

The BytesProcessed parameter holds the total number of bytes processed so far.

MLDSAKey Type

Contains a raw ML-DSA key.

Remarks

This type contains the raw public and private key values used by the MLDSA component.

The following fields are available:

PrivateKey
PublicKey

Fields

PrivateKey
string
Default: ""

The raw ML-DSA private key.

PrivateKeyB
byte []
Default: ""

The raw ML-DSA private key.

PublicKey
string
Default: ""

The raw ML-DSA public key.

PublicKeyB
byte []
Default: ""

The raw ML-DSA public key.

Constructors

C#
VB.NET

public MLDSAKey();

Public MLDSAKey()

The default constructor creates a new MLDSAKey instance but does not assign a public or private key.

C#
VB.NET

public MLDSAKey(byte[] publicKey);

Public MLDSAKey(ByVal PublicKey As Byte())

The public key constructor assigns an existing public key.

C#
VB.NET

public MLDSAKey(byte[] publicKey, byte[] privateKey);

Public MLDSAKey(ByVal PublicKey As Byte(), ByVal PrivateKey As Byte())

The private key constructor assigns an existing private key.

Config Settings (MLDSA Component)

The component accepts one or more of the following configuration settings. Configuration settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the component, access to these internal properties is provided through the Config method.

MLDSA Config Settings

CloseInputStreamAfterProcessing: Determines whether or not the input stream is closed after processing.

Determines whether or not the input stream set by SetInputStream is closed after processing is complete. The default value is True.

ParamSet: The ML-DSA parameter set.

This setting specifies the ML-DSA parameter set to use when creating keys. Possible values are:

44 (default)
65
87

Base Config Settings

BuildInfo: Information about the product's build.

When queried, this setting will return a string containing information about the product's build.

GUIAvailable: Whether or not a message loop is available for processing events.

In a GUI-based application, long-running blocking operations may cause the application to stop responding to input until the operation returns. The component will attempt to discover whether or not the application has a message loop and, if one is discovered, it will process events in that message loop during any such blocking operation.

In some non-GUI applications, an invalid message loop may be discovered that will result in errant behavior. In these cases, setting GUIAvailable to false will ensure that the component does not attempt to process external events.

LicenseInfo: Information about the current license.

When queried, this setting will return a string containing information about the license this instance of a component is using. It will return the following information:

Product: The product the license is for.
Product Key: The key the license was generated from.
License Source: Where the license was found (e.g., RuntimeLicense, License File).
License Type: The type of license installed (e.g., Royalty Free, Single Server).
Last Valid Build: The last valid build number for which the license will work.

MaskSensitiveData: Whether sensitive data is masked in log messages.

In certain circumstances it may be beneficial to mask sensitive data, like passwords, in log messages. Set this to true to mask sensitive data. The default is true.

UseFIPSCompliantAPI: Tells the component whether or not to use FIPS certified APIs.

When set to true, the component will utilize the underlying operating system's certified APIs. Java editions, regardless of OS, utilize Bouncy Castle Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS), while all other Windows editions make use of Microsoft security libraries.

FIPS mode can be enabled by setting the UseFIPSCompliantAPI configuration setting to true. This is a static setting that applies to all instances of all components of the toolkit within the process. It is recommended to enable or disable this setting once before the component has been used to establish a connection. Enabling FIPS while an instance of the component is active and connected may result in unexpected behavior.

For more details, please see the FIPS 140-2 Compliance article.

NOTE: This setting is applicable only on Windows.

NOTE: Enabling FIPS compliance requires a special license; please contact sales@nsoftware.com for details.

UseInternalSecurityAPI: Whether or not to use the system security libraries or an internal implementation.

When set to false, the component will use the system security libraries by default to perform cryptographic functions where applicable. In this case, calls to unmanaged code will be made. In certain environments, this is not desirable. To use a completely managed security implementation, set this setting to true.

Setting this configuration setting to true tells the component to use the internal implementation instead of using the system security libraries.

On Windows, this setting is set to false by default. On Linux/macOS, this setting is set to true by default.

NOTE: This setting is static. The value set is applicable to all components used in the application.

When this value is set, the product's system dynamic link library (DLL) is no longer required as a reference, as all unmanaged code is stored in that file.

Trappable Errors (MLDSA Component)

MLDSA Errors

102	No Key specified.
120	Invalid parameter set.