XMLSigner Component

Properties   Methods   Events   Config Settings   Errors  

The XMLSigner component provides a simple interface for digitally signing XML data according to the XML-Signature Syntax and Processing specification.

Syntax

TsbxXMLSigner

Remarks

To sign the data, you need to specify the data to be signed using the References property, then select the signature type and signature method type (signature or MAC).

Set the path to the file to be signed via the InputFile. Signed data will be saved in the OutputFile. Finally, call the Sign method to generate a signature and save signed data. It is possible to generate a signature remotely: use SignExternal method to do this.

Asynchronous signing is also supported. Call SignAsyncBegin to generate a signature and save the generated XML-DSIG without signature value into the document. To complete the signing, call SignAsyncEnd.

XMLSigner only performs basic signing of XML documents. For richer features, such as XAdES and/or chain validation, please see the XAdESSigner component

Property List

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

Method List

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

Event List

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

Config Settings

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

CanonicalizationMethod Property (XMLSigner Component)

Specifies XML canonicalization method to use.

Syntax

property CanonicalizationMethod: TsbxXMLCanonicalizationMethods read get_CanonicalizationMethod write set_CanonicalizationMethod;

TsbxXMLCanonicalizationMethods = (
  cxcmNone,
  cxcmCanon,
  cxcmCanonComment,
  cxcmExclCanon,
  cxcmExclCanonComment,
  cxcmMinCanon,
  cxcmCanon_v1_1,
  cxcmCanonComment_v1_1
);

Default Value

cxcmCanon

Remarks

Use this property to specify the method for XML canonicalization of SignedInfo element. See XML-Signature Syntax and Processing specification for details.

Supported canonicalization methods:

DataBytes Property (XMLSigner Component)

Use this property to pass the external data to component in the byte array form.

Syntax

property DataBytes: TBytes read get_DataBytes write set_DataBytes;

Remarks

Assign a byte array containing the external data to be processed to this property.

This property is not available at design time.

DataFile Property (XMLSigner Component)

A file containing the external data covered by a detached signature.

Syntax

property DataFile: String read get_DataFile write set_DataFile;

Default Value

''

Remarks

In the case of a detached signature, use this property to provide the external data to the component from a file. Alternatively, provide the data via DataStream.

DataType Property (XMLSigner Component)

Specifies the external data type.

Syntax

property DataType: TsbxXMLDataTypes read get_DataType write set_DataType;

TsbxXMLDataTypes = (
  cxdtXML,
  cxdtBinary,
  cxdtBase64
);

Default Value

cxdtXML

Remarks

Use this property to specify the type of the external data (either DataFile, DataStream or DataBytes properties) for component.

DataURI Property (XMLSigner Component)

Specifies a detached data resource URI.

Syntax

property DataURI: String read get_DataURI write set_DataURI;

Default Value

''

Remarks

Specifies a URI used for data being signed, usually the data filename if stored along with a detached signature.

Encoding Property (XMLSigner Component)

Specifies XML encoding.

Syntax

property Encoding: String read get_Encoding write set_Encoding;

Default Value

''

Remarks

Use this property to specify the encoding to apply to the XML documents.

ExternalCrypto Property (XMLSigner Component)

Provides access to external signing and DC parameters.

Syntax

property ExternalCrypto: TsbxExternalCrypto read get_ExternalCrypto;

Remarks

Use this property to tune-up remote cryptography settings. SecureBlackbox supports two independent types of external cryptography: synchronous (based on the ExternalSign event) and asynchronous (based on the DC protocol and the DCAuth signing component).

This property is read-only.

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

FIPSMode Property (XMLSigner Component)

Reserved.

Syntax

property FIPSMode: Boolean read get_FIPSMode write set_FIPSMode;

Default Value

false

Remarks

This property is reserved for future use.

HashAlgorithm Property (XMLSigner Component)

Specifies the hash algorithm to be used.

Syntax

property HashAlgorithm: String read get_HashAlgorithm write set_HashAlgorithm;

Default Value

'SHA256'

Remarks

Use this property to set the hash algorithm for signature calculation.

Supported values:

InputBytes Property (XMLSigner Component)

Use this property to pass the input to component in byte array form.

Syntax

property InputBytes: TBytes read get_InputBytes write set_InputBytes;

Remarks

Assign a byte array containing the data to be processed to this property.

This property is not available at design time.

InputFile Property (XMLSigner Component)

Specifies the XML document to be signed.

Syntax

property InputFile: String read get_InputFile write set_InputFile;

Default Value

''

Remarks

Provide a path to the XML file to be signed.

OutputBytes Property (XMLSigner Component)

Use this property to read the output the component object has produced.

Syntax

property OutputBytes: TBytes read get_OutputBytes;

Remarks

Read the contents of this property after the operation has completed to read the produced output. This property will only be set if the OutputFile and OutputStream properties had not been assigned.

This property is read-only and not available at design time.

OutputFile Property (XMLSigner Component)

A file where the signed document is to be saved.

Syntax

property OutputFile: String read get_OutputFile write set_OutputFile;

Default Value

''

Remarks

Provide a path to the file where the signed document is to be saved.

References Property (XMLSigner Component)

A list of references to the data to be signed.

Syntax

property References: TsbxXMLReferenceList read get_References write set_References;

Remarks

Electronic signature is computed over a set of data pieces. Each piece of data to be signed is specified by a reference.

This property is not available at design time.

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

SignatureType Property (XMLSigner Component)

The signature type to employ when signing the document.

Syntax

property SignatureType: TsbxXMLSignatureTypes read get_SignatureType write set_SignatureType;

TsbxXMLSignatureTypes = (
  cxstDetached,
  cxstEnveloping,
  cxstEnveloped
);

Default Value

cxstEnveloped

Remarks

This property specifies the signature type to be used when signing the document.

Supported values:

SigningCertificate Property (XMLSigner Component)

The certificate to be used for signing.

Syntax

property SigningCertificate: TsbxCertificate read get_SigningCertificate write set_SigningCertificate;

Remarks

Use this property to specify the certificate that shall be used for signing the data. Note that this certificate should have a private key associated with it. Use SigningChain to supply the rest of the certificate chain for inclusion into the signature.

This property is not available at design time.

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

SigningChain Property (XMLSigner Component)

The signing certificate chain.

Syntax

property SigningChain: TsbxCertificateList read get_SigningChain write set_SigningChain;

Remarks

Use this property to provide the chain for the signing certificate. Use the SigningCertificate property, if it is available, to provide the signing certificate itself.

This property is not available at design time.

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

XMLElement Property (XMLSigner Component)

Specifies the XML element where to save the signature data.

Syntax

property XMLElement: String read get_XMLElement write set_XMLElement;

Default Value

''

Remarks

This property specifies the XML element where to save the electronic signature.

Supported values are:

XPathNamespaces Property (XMLSigner Component)

Specifies namespaces for the XPath expression.

Syntax

property XPathNamespaces: TsbxXMLNamespaceList read get_XPathNamespaces write set_XPathNamespaces;

Remarks

This property contains a list of prefixes and namespaceURIs that are used in XPath expression with XMLElement property, and with TargetXMLElement and XPathPrefixList properties of the references.

This property is not available at design time.

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

AddDataReference Method (XMLSigner Component)

Creates a new XML reference to the specified data.

Syntax

function AddDataReference(DataURI: String; Data: TBytes): Integer;

Remarks

Use this method to add a reference to the custom data. Pass the reference's URI via DataURI parameter.

This method uses HashAlgorithm property to specify the hash algorithm of the reference.

The method returns the index of the new reference entry in the References collection.

AddReference Method (XMLSigner Component)

Creates a new XML reference to the specified XML element.

Syntax

function AddReference(TargetXmlElement: String; CustomId: String; AutoGenerateId: Boolean): Integer;

Remarks

Use this method to add a reference to a particular XML element.

The reference's URI is set basing on the ID of the XML element. If the XML element doesn't have an ID then a CustomId value will be used. If CustomId is empty and AutoGenerateId is set, the ID will be generated automatically. An exception will be thrown otherwise.

This method uses CanonicalizationMethod and HashAlgorithm properties to specify the canonicalization method and hash algorithm of the reference.

The method returns the index of the new reference entry in the References collection.

Config Method (XMLSigner Component)

Sets or retrieves a configuration setting.

Syntax

function Config(ConfigurationString: String): 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.

DoAction Method (XMLSigner Component)

Performs an additional action.

Syntax

function DoAction(ActionID: String; ActionParams: String): String;

Remarks

DoAction is a generic method available in every component. It is used to perform an additional action introduced after the product major release. The list of actions is not fixed, and may be flexibly extended over time.

The unique identifier (case insensitive) of the action is provided in the ActionID parameter.

ActionParams contains the value of a single parameter, or a list of multiple parameters for the action in the form of PARAM1=VALUE1;PARAM2=VALUE2;....

ExtractAsyncData Method (XMLSigner Component)

Extracts user data from the DC signing service response.

Syntax

function ExtractAsyncData(AsyncReply: String): String;

Remarks

Call this method before finalizing the asynchronous signing process to extract the data passed to the ExternalCrypto.Data property on the pre-signing stage.

The Data parameter can be used to pass some state or document identifier along with the signing request from the pre-signing to the completion async stage.

GetInnerXML Method (XMLSigner Component)

Get the inner XML content of the selected XML element.

Syntax

function GetInnerXML(XPath: String): String;

Remarks

Call this method to get the inner XML content of the selected XML element.

GetOuterXML Method (XMLSigner Component)

Get the outer XML content of the selected XML element.

Syntax

function GetOuterXML(XPath: String): String;

Remarks

Call this method to get the outer XML content of the selected XML element.

GetTextContent Method (XMLSigner Component)

Get the text content of the selected XML element.

Syntax

function GetTextContent(XPath: String): String;

Remarks

Call this method to get the text content of the selected XML element.

SetInnerXML Method (XMLSigner Component)

Set the inner XML content of the selected XML element.

Syntax

procedure SetInnerXML(XPath: String; Value: String);

Remarks

Call this method to set the inner XML content of the selected XML element.

SetTextContent Method (XMLSigner Component)

Set the text content of the selected XML element.

Syntax

procedure SetTextContent(XPath: String; Value: String);

Remarks

Call this method to set the text content of the selected XML element.

Sign Method (XMLSigner Component)

Signs an XML document.

Syntax

procedure Sign();

Remarks

Call this method to generate a signature over an XML document.

SignAsyncBegin Method (XMLSigner Component)

Initiates the asynchronous signing operation.

Syntax

function SignAsyncBegin(): String;

Remarks

When using the DC framework, call this method to initiate the asynchronous signing process. Upon completion, a pre-signed copy of the document will be saved in OutputFile (or OutputStream). Keep the pre-signed copy somewhere local, and pass the returned string ('the request state') to the DC processor for handling.

Upon receiving the response state from the DC processor, assign the path to the pre-signed copy to InputFile (or InputStream), and call SignAsyncEnd to finalize the signing.

Note that depending on the signing method and DC configuration used, you may still need to provide the public part of the signing certificate via the SigningCertificate property.

Use the ExternalCrypto.AsyncDocumentID property to supply a unique document ID to include in the request. This is helpful when creating batches of multiple async requests, as it allows you to pass the whole response batch to SignAsyncEnd and expect it to recover the correct response from the batch automatically.

AsyncState is a message of the distributed cryptography (DC) protocol. The DC protocol is based on the exchange of async states between a DC client (an application that wants to sign a PDF, XML, or Office document) and a DC server (an application that controls access to the private key). An async state can carry one or more signing requests, comprised of document hashes, or one or more signatures produced over those hashes.

In a typical scenario you get a client-side async state from the SignAsyncBegin method. This state contains document hashes to be signed on the DC server side. You then send the async state to the DC server (often represented by the DCAuth component), which processes it and produces a matching signature state. The async state produced by the server is then passed to the SignAsyncEnd method.

SignAsyncEnd Method (XMLSigner Component)

Completes the asynchronous signing operation.

Syntax

procedure SignAsyncEnd(AsyncReply: String);

Remarks

When using the DC framework, call this method upon receiving the response state from the DC processor to complete the asynchronous signing process.

Before calling this method, assign the path to the pre-signed copy of the document obtained from the prior SignAsyncBegin call to InputFile (or InputStream). The method will embed the signature into the pre-signed document, and save the complete signed document to OutputFile (or OutputStream).

Note that depending on the signing method and DC configuration used, you may still need to provide the public part of the signing certificate via the SigningCertificate property.

Use the ExternalCrypto.AsyncDocumentID parameter to pass a specific document ID if using batched AsyncReply. If used, it should match the value provided on the pre-signing (SignAsyncBegin) stage.

AsyncState is a message of the distributed cryptography (DC) protocol. The DC protocol is based on the exchange of async states between a DC client (an application that wants to sign a PDF, XML, or Office document) and a DC server (an application that controls access to the private key). An async state can carry one or more signing requests, comprised of document hashes, or one or more signatures produced over those hashes.

In a typical scenario you get a client-side async state from the SignAsyncBegin method. This state contains document hashes to be signed on the DC server side. You then send the async state to the DC server (often represented by the DCAuth component), which processes it and produces a matching signature state. The async state produced by the server is then passed to the SignAsyncEnd method.

SignExternal Method (XMLSigner Component)

Signs the document using an external signing facility.

Syntax

procedure SignExternal();

Remarks

Call this method to delegate the low-level signing operation to an external, remote, or custom signing engine. This method is useful if the signature has to be made by a device accessible through a custom or non-standard signing interface.

When all preparations are done and hash is computed, the component fires ExternalSign event which allows to pass the hash value for signing.

Error Event (XMLSigner Component)

Reports the details of signing errors.

Syntax

type TErrorEvent = procedure (
  Sender: TObject;
  ErrorCode: Integer;
  const Description: String
) of Object;

property OnError: TErrorEvent read FOnError write FOnError;

Remarks

The event is fired in case of exceptional conditions during signing.

ErrorCode contains an error code and Description contains a textual description of the error. For a list of valid error codes and their descriptions, please refer to XML.

ExternalSign Event (XMLSigner Component)

Handles remote or external signing initiated by the SignExternal method or other source.

Syntax

type TExternalSignEvent = procedure (
  Sender: TObject;
  const OperationId: String;
  const HashAlgorithm: String;
  const Pars: String;
  const Data: String;
  var SignedData: String
) of Object;

property OnExternalSign: TExternalSignEvent read FOnExternalSign write FOnExternalSign;

Remarks

Assign a handler to this event if you need to delegate a low-level signing operation to an external, remote, or custom signing engine. Depending on the settings, the handler will receive a hashed or unhashed value to be signed.

The event handler must pass the value of Data to the signer, obtain the signature, and pass it back to the component via the SignedData parameter.

OperationId provides a comment about the operation and its origin. It depends on the exact component being used, and may be empty. HashAlgorithm specifies the hash algorithm being used for the operation, and Pars contains algorithm-dependent parameters.

The component uses base16 (hex) encoding for the Data, SignedData, and Pars parameters. If your signing engine uses a different input and output encoding, you may need to decode and/or encode the data before and/or after the signing.

A sample MD5 hash encoded in base16: a0dee2a0382afbb09120ffa7ccd8a152 - lower case base16 A0DEE2A0382AFBB09120FFA7CCD8A152 - upper case base16

A sample event handler that uses the .NET RSACryptoServiceProvider class may look like the following: signer.OnExternalSign += (s, e) => { var cert = new X509Certificate2("cert.pfx", "", X509KeyStorageFlags.Exportable); var key = (RSACryptoServiceProvider)cert.PrivateKey; var dataToSign = e.Data.FromBase16String(); var signedData = key.SignHash(dataToSign, "2.16.840.1.101.3.4.2.1"); e.SignedData = signedData.ToBase16String(); };

FormatElement Event (XMLSigner Component)

Reports the XML element that is currently being processed.

Syntax

type TFormatElementEvent = procedure (
  Sender: TObject;
  var StartTagWhitespace: String;
  var EndTagWhitespace: String;
  Level: Integer;
  const Path: String;
  HasChildElements: Boolean
) of Object;

property OnFormatElement: TFormatElementEvent read FOnFormatElement write FOnFormatElement;

Remarks

Path and Level specify the path to the XML element being processed and its nesting level, respectively.

HasChildElements specify if processed XML element has child elements.

Among other purposes, this event may be used to add whitespace formatting before or after a particular element in the signature.

FormatText Event (XMLSigner Component)

Reports XML text that is currently being processed.

Syntax

type TFormatTextEvent = procedure (
  Sender: TObject;
  var Text: String;
  TextType: Integer;
  Level: Integer;
  const Path: String
) of Object;

property OnFormatText: TFormatTextEvent read FOnFormatText write FOnFormatText;

Remarks

TextType parameter specifies the type of the XML text (normal or Base64-encoded) that is stored in the element; Path and Level specify the path to the XML element and its nesting level.

Among other purposes, this event may be used to add whitespace formatting before or after a particular element in the signature.

Notification Event (XMLSigner Component)

This event notifies the application about an underlying control flow event.

Syntax

type TNotificationEvent = procedure (
  Sender: TObject;
  const EventID: String;
  const EventParam: String
) of Object;

property OnNotification: TNotificationEvent read FOnNotification write FOnNotification;

Remarks

The component fires this event to let the application know about some event, occurrence, or milestone in the component. For example, it may fire to report completion of the document processing. The list of events being reported is not fixed, and may be flexibly extended over time.

The unique identifier of the event is provided in the EventID parameter. EventParam contains any parameters accompanying the occurrence. Depending on the type of the component, the exact action it is performing, or the document being processed, one or both may be omitted.

ResolveReference Event (XMLSigner Component)

Asks the application to resolve a reference.

Syntax

type TResolveReferenceEvent = procedure (
  Sender: TObject;
  ReferenceIndex: Integer;
  const URI: String
) of Object;

property OnResolveReference: TResolveReferenceEvent read FOnResolveReference write FOnResolveReference;

Remarks

This event is fired when the control could not automatically resolve a reference and requires custom treatment.

URI contains a reference to the data.

ReferenceIndex specifies the index of the reference to process.

Based on the reference's URI the event handler should set either TargetXMLElement or TargetData property of the reference.

Certificate Type

Provides details of an individual X.509 certificate.

Remarks

This type provides access to X.509 certificate details.

Fields

Constructors

>

constructor Create();

Creates a new object with default field values.

ExternalCrypto Type

Specifies the parameters of external cryptographic calls.

Remarks

External cryptocalls are used in a Distributed Cryptography (DC) subsystem, which allows the delegation of security operations to the remote agent. For instance, it can be used to compute the signature value on the server, while retaining the client's private key locally.

Fields

Constructors

>

constructor Create();

Creates a new ExternalCrypto object with default field values.

XMLNamespace Type

Represents an XML namespace map for XPath expressions.

Remarks

This class defines the correspondence between Prefixes and namespace URIs.

Fields

Constructors

>

constructor Create();

Creates a new XML namespace object.

XMLReference Type

Represents an XML reference element.

Remarks

XMLReference specifies the digest algorithm and digest value, and, optionally: an identifier of the object being signed, the type of the object, and/or a list of transforms to be applied prior to digesting.

Fields

Constructors

>

constructor Create();

Creates a new XML reference element.

>

constructor Create(valID: String);

Creates a new XML reference element from its ID .

>

constructor Create(valID: String; valURI: String);

Creates a new XML reference element from its ID and URI reference to the external data.

Config Settings (XMLSigner 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.

XMLSigner Config Settings

Base Config Settings

Trappable Errors (XMLSigner Component)

XMLSigner Errors

	1048577   Invalid parameter value (SB_ERROR_INVALID_PARAMETER)
	1048578   Component is configured incorrectly (SB_ERROR_INVALID_SETUP)
	1048579   Operation cannot be executed in the current state (SB_ERROR_INVALID_STATE)
	1048580   Attempt to set an invalid value to a property (SB_ERROR_INVALID_VALUE)
	1048581   Certificate does not have its private key loaded (SB_ERROR_NO_PRIVATE_KEY)
	1048581   Cancelled by the user (SB_ERROR_CANCELLED_BY_USER) 
	39845889   Input file does not exist (SB_ERROR_XML_INPUTFILE_NOT_EXISTS)
	39845890   Data file does not exist (SB_ERROR_XML_DATAFILE_NOT_EXISTS)
	39845891   Unsupported signature method type (SB_ERROR_XML_UNSUPPORTED_SIGNATURE_METHOD_TYPE)
	39845892   Unsupported has algorithm (SB_ERROR_XML_UNSUPPORTED_HASH_ALGORITHM)
	39845893   Unsupported key type (SB_ERROR_XML_UNSUPPORTED_KEY_TYPE)
	39845894   Invalid key type (SB_ERROR_XML_INVALID_KEY_TYPE)
	39845895   Invalid encryption method (SB_ERROR_XML_INVALID_ENCRYPTION_METHOD)
	39845896   Not found (SB_ERROR_XML_NOT_FOUND)
	39845897   No element ID (SB_ERROR_XML_NO_ELEMENT_ID)