Scroll to navigation

CST(1) i.MX CST Documentation CST(1)

NAME

cst - Code Signing Tool for generating binary CSF files for NXP secure boot

SYNOPSIS

cst --output file --input file [--cert cert.pem] [--backend ssl|pkcs11] [--verbose]

cst --license|--version|--help

NOTE

This manpage is a short description of NXP cst. For a detailed discussion refer to the Code Signing Tool User Guide UG10106, section 5. The user guide can be obtained from www.nxp.com and is excluded from Debian for copyright reasons.

DESCRIPTION

cst (Code Signing Tool) is used to generate a binary Command Sequence File (CSF) required by the HAB or AHAB secure boot mechanisms on NXP i.MX processors. The CSF contains the authentication commands and signature data used to verify signed boot images during the secure boot process.

The tool processes a plain-text CSF description file and produces a binary CSF that can be appended to or embedded in a boot image. Optionally, a certificate can be provided to encrypt the Data Encryption Key (DEK).

The tool will load general settings and those related to discover PKCS#11 module from the system wide OpenSSL configuration file.

OPTIONS

The output binary CSF file to generate.
The input CSF description text file.
Public key certificate to encrypt the DEK (optional).
Optional. Backend for key handling. Default is ssl (local filesystem). pkcs11 uses a PKCS#11-compatible keystore.
Enable verbose output.
Print license information and exit.
Print the tool version and exit.
Display a brief help message.

EXAMPLES

  cst -o out_csf.bin -i hab4.csf
    
  cst -o out_csf.bin -c cert.pem -i hab4.csf
    

SEE ALSO

srktool(1), hab_csf_parser(1), config(5ssl)

2026-01-30