API for Certificate checking without date checks

Hal Murray halmurray+openssl at sonic.net
Tue Mar 5 06:22:36 UTC 2024


Context is the chicken and egg problem of using TLS before a system knows the 
time.

I work on NTP software.  NTP uses NTS (Network Time Security) which uses TLS 
to make sure it is talking to the right servers.

I'm trying to figure out how to get started on a system that doesn't know the 
time yet.  (Many low cost systems like the Raspberry Pi don't have a battery 
backed clock.)

I think I want to try something like:
  Do everything except check the time on certificates
  Get the time, assuming those certificates are valid.
  Now check to see if those certificates were valid.

The command line tools have -no_check_time

Is there something similar in the API?  I've looked, but maybe not in the 
right place.

If not, any suggestions for good code to copy?






-- 
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