Chapter 3
Getting Started


Running LexiGuard

To run LexiGuard on a Windows machine, pop up the Start menu.  Choose Programs -> LexiGuard 1.1 -> LexiGuard.

To launch  LexiGuard from a command prompt (e.g. DOS window), type the following command:

     javaw LG

Logging-in for the First Time

When you start LexiGuard for the first time, the program prompts you for some configuration information and then asks for name information to create the initial LexiGuard user and accompanying digital certificates.
 
1. First you will see a dialog box prompting for the locations of the public key and private key keystores.  You can use the default values (public key keystore in the LexiGuard installation directory and private key keystore in the user home directory) or browse to specify a directory for each.

To use LexiGuard in Multi-Machine Multi-User Mode (see explanation of Modes of Using LexiGuard), specify the public key keystore location to be a directory on a shared drive.  LexiGuard users on other machines must specify the same public keystore location.

Click OK.

2. Next, LexiGuard promps for data used in generating the LexiGuard self-signed certificates (Issuer and Subject DN).  You must enter names for your organization and organizational unit.  These values can be edited using the Preferences menu choice on the Edit menu as explained in Chapter 5.
Click OK.

3. In the Login dialog box, enter the following information for the initial user:

  • user's first name
  • user's last name
  • LexiGuard login name
  • password (and confirmation of password)
  • e-mail address
  • 4. Click OK to continue.

    The password you enter is used to validate the user each time the user logs into LexiGuard. It is also used to protect the keystore containing the certificate and private key for this user. To export the user's private key to a file, the password is required. A user preference may be set so that it will be necessary to re-enter the user password before performing encryption or decryption of any file.

    5.  If a Key Management method has been selected during LexiGuard installation, then a filechooser dialog box will pop up.  Choose the desired directory and enter the name of the file to contain the key management data for that initial user.  This file is to be uploaded to the Key Management server.
    Click Save to continue.

    6. After initial login is completed, the main LexiGuard panel displays.

    The LexiGuard GUI

    The GUI (graphical user interface) of LexiGuard consists of a main panel with several subframes plus several subsidiary panels (including the Preferences Panel and the Users Panel) and a variety of dialog boxes.  Follow those links for more detail.
     

    How to Encrypt and Decrypt Files and Directories

    Files and directories displayed in the file table can be encrypted or decrypted in the same operation, provided that they lie in the same parent directory. The operation on a directory is performed recursively on all the files in the directory, subject to the constraints explained below.

    Public key based encryption is decribed here.  Password based encryption is described elswhere.

    There are two different commands for key encryption:

    Here is how to do encryption or decryption:

    1) Select one or more files and/or directories on the main LexiGuard window's file table.  Use shift-click to select a range of items and control-click to toggle an item.

    2) To Encrypt, use either of the following methods:


    3) To Decrypt, use either of the following methods:

    How to Open a File by Double-Clicking

    When you double-click on a file in the LexiGuard window's file table, LexiGuard attempts to open the file with the appropriate application that created the file, based upon the file extension.

    During installation of LexiGuard, a table is built from values in the registry of recognized file extensions and associated application.  This table is stored in the file lexiguard.content-type.properties in the LexiGuard installation directory.

    If the double-clicked file has an extension without an associated application listed in this table, then LexiGuard pops up a dialog box asking you to supply the location of the application to be used to open the file.  You can click the browse button and locate the application and then click OK.
     

    How to Send a File to Email Recipients

    One way to send a file to email recipients is by creating a new email message in a mail tool (such as Netscape Messenger or Outlook) and attaching the file.

    Within LexiGuard you can send a file to email recipients by selecting the file in the main LexiGuard window and clicking on it with the right mouse button.  On the popup menu, select Send To and choose Email to Recipients.

    If the selected file is key-encrypted (with extension .lgp), then a dialog box will pop up that displays the encryption recipients.  You can choose to send this encypted file to all or any of these recipients (they are the only people who can decrypt this file).  When you click OK,the email will be sent with a fixed subject and message.

    If the selected file is not key-encrypted, then a dialog box will pop up that permits you to specify the recipients and the subject and message.  When you click OK,the email will be sent.
     

    How to Export or Import a Public Key

    You must send your public key to someone else before they can encrypt information to you.  Your public key is contained inside your certificate.  Here is how to send your public key.

    1)  From the Tools menu, select Users
    2) On the Internal Users tab, click to highlight your user name on the list of users
    3) Click the button labeled Export Certificate....
    4) Enter your password
    5) Browse to select where to write the file containing your public key certificate.  The default directory is your home directory.  The file extension is ".cer".  Give the file a name you can remember like yourname.cer

    Now you can send that exported file as an email attachment to someone else.

    When someone sends you their public key certificate, here is how you import it into LexiGuard so that you can encrypt information to that person.  You will create a new LexiGuard "External User" for which there is only a public key but no private key.

    1)  From the Tools menu, select Users
    2) Click on the External Users tab.
    3) Click the button labeled Import User...
    4) Browse to find the public key certificate file that was sent to you.  It should have an extension of ".cer".  Click Open
    5) Enter a name by which this public key certificate (External User) will be known.  The default is the name found inside the certificate.  Click  OK

    How to Import Another Vendor's Private Key

    You can create a LexiGuard user that employes another vendor's public and private key rather than having LexiGuard generate a keypair.  To do this, you must have the vendor's key material in the key-transport .p12 format.  Follow these steps to import the file a create a new LexiGuard Internal User.

    1) From the Tools menu, select Users
    2) On the Internal Users tab, click the button labeled Import User...
    3) Browse to find the".p12" file that contains the vendor's public and private key.  Click Open
    4) Enter the file  password that protects the .p12 file
    4) Enter a name by which the new LexiGuard Internal User will be known.  The default is the name found inside the certificate.  Enter a password for the new user and type it again to confirm. Click  OK

    Note that when you start LexiGuard for the first time, you must generate a new user with LexiGuard-generated keys.  Once you have brought up the main LexiGuard window, then you are able to create new users with imported keys from other vendors.  It is possible to logout and then login as a user created from an imported key and then delete the initial user, if you plan to use only imported keys.

    How to Backup Your Keystore

    It is a good idea to backup the password-protected keystores that contain your private key and public key certificate to a separate drive or to a floppy disk.

    1) Select Backup Keystores from the File menu
    2) Select either All users or Mine only
    3) Select a directory into which the backups will be placed and click OK

    Use the command Restore Keystores to restore the keystores from the backup-up remote versions.

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