Module java.base
Package java.security.cert

Class CertPathValidator

java.lang.Object
java.security.cert.CertPathValidator
public class CertPathValidator extends Object
A class for validating certification paths (also known as certificate chains).

This class uses a provider-based architecture. To create a CertPathValidator, call one of the static getInstance methods, passing in the algorithm name of the CertPathValidator desired and optionally the name of the provider desired.

Once a CertPathValidator object has been created, it can be used to validate certification paths by calling the validate method and passing it the CertPath to be validated and an algorithm-specific set of parameters. If successful, the result is returned in an object that implements the CertPathValidatorResult interface.

The getRevocationChecker() method allows an application to specify additional algorithm-specific parameters and options used by the CertPathValidator when checking the revocation status of certificates. Here is an example demonstrating how it is used with the PKIX algorithm: 

 CertPathValidator cpv = CertPathValidator.getInstance("PKIX");
 PKIXRevocationChecker rc = (PKIXRevocationChecker)cpv.getRevocationChecker();
 rc.setOptions(EnumSet.of(Option.SOFT_FAIL));
 params.addCertPathChecker(rc);
 CertPathValidatorResult cpvr = cpv.validate(path, params);

Every implementation of the Java platform is required to support the following standard CertPathValidator algorithm:

  • PKIX
This algorithm is described in the CertPathValidator section of the Java Security Standard Algorithm Names Specification. Consult the release documentation for your implementation to see if any other algorithms are supported.

Concurrent Access

The static methods of this class are guaranteed to be thread-safe. Multiple threads may concurrently invoke the static methods defined in this class with no ill effects.

However, this is not true for the non-static methods defined by this class. Unless otherwise documented by a specific provider, threads that need to access a single CertPathValidator instance concurrently should synchronize amongst themselves and provide the necessary locking. Multiple threads each manipulating a different CertPathValidator instance need not synchronize.

Since:
1.4
See Also:

  • Constructor Details

    • CertPathValidator

      protected CertPathValidator(CertPathValidatorSpi validatorSpi, Provider provider, String algorithm)
      Creates a CertPathValidator object of the given algorithm, and encapsulates the given provider implementation (SPI object) in it.
      Parameters:
      validatorSpi - the provider implementation
      provider - the provider
      algorithm - the algorithm name

  • Method Details

    • getInstance

      public static CertPathValidator getInstance(String algorithm) throws NoSuchAlgorithmException
      Returns a CertPathValidator object that implements the specified algorithm.

      This method traverses the list of registered security Providers, starting with the most preferred Provider. A new CertPathValidator object encapsulating the CertPathValidatorSpi implementation from the first Provider that supports the specified algorithm is returned.

      Note that the list of registered providers may be retrieved via the Security.getProviders() method.

      Implementation Note:
      The JDK Reference Implementation additionally uses the jdk.security.provider.preferred Security property to determine the preferred provider order for the specified algorithm. This may be different from the order of providers returned by Security.getProviders().
      Parameters:
      algorithm - the name of the requested CertPathValidator algorithm. See the CertPathValidator section in the Java Security Standard Algorithm Names Specification for information about standard algorithm names.
      Returns:
      a CertPathValidator object that implements the specified algorithm
      Throws:
      NoSuchAlgorithmException - if no Provider supports a CertPathValidatorSpi implementation for the specified algorithm
      NullPointerException - if algorithm is null
      See Also:

    • getInstance

      public static CertPathValidator getInstance(String algorithm, String provider) throws NoSuchAlgorithmException, NoSuchProviderException
      Returns a CertPathValidator object that implements the specified algorithm.

      A new CertPathValidator object encapsulating the CertPathValidatorSpi implementation from the specified provider is returned. The specified provider must be registered in the security provider list.

      Note that the list of registered providers may be retrieved via the Security.getProviders() method.

      Parameters:
      algorithm - the name of the requested CertPathValidator algorithm. See the CertPathValidator section in the Java Security Standard Algorithm Names Specification for information about standard algorithm names.
      provider - the name of the provider.
      Returns:
      a CertPathValidator object that implements the specified algorithm
      Throws:
      IllegalArgumentException - if the provider is null or empty
      NoSuchAlgorithmException - if a CertPathValidatorSpi implementation for the specified algorithm is not available from the specified provider
      NoSuchProviderException - if the specified provider is not registered in the security provider list
      NullPointerException - if algorithm is null
      See Also:

    • getInstance

      public static CertPathValidator getInstance(String algorithm, Provider provider) throws NoSuchAlgorithmException
      Returns a CertPathValidator object that implements the specified algorithm.

      A new CertPathValidator object encapsulating the CertPathValidatorSpi implementation from the specified Provider object is returned. Note that the specified Provider object does not have to be registered in the provider list.

      Parameters:
      algorithm - the name of the requested CertPathValidator algorithm. See the CertPathValidator section in the Java Security Standard Algorithm Names Specification for information about standard algorithm names.
      provider - the provider.
      Returns:
      a CertPathValidator object that implements the specified algorithm
      Throws:
      IllegalArgumentException - if the provider is null
      NoSuchAlgorithmException - if a CertPathValidatorSpi implementation for the specified algorithm is not available from the specified Provider object
      NullPointerException - if algorithm is null
      See Also:

    • getProvider

      public final Provider getProvider()
      Returns the Provider of this CertPathValidator.
      Returns:
      the Provider of this CertPathValidator

    • getAlgorithm

      public final String getAlgorithm()
      Returns the algorithm name of this CertPathValidator.
      Returns:
      the algorithm name of this CertPathValidator

    • validate

      public final CertPathValidatorResult validate(CertPath certPath, CertPathParameters params) throws CertPathValidatorException, InvalidAlgorithmParameterException
      Validates the specified certification path using the specified algorithm parameter set.

      The CertPath specified must be of a type that is supported by the validation algorithm, otherwise an InvalidAlgorithmParameterException will be thrown. For example, a CertPathValidator that implements the PKIX algorithm validates CertPath objects of type X.509.

      Parameters:
      certPath - the CertPath to be validated
      params - the algorithm parameters
      Returns:
      the result of the validation algorithm
      Throws:
      CertPathValidatorException - if the CertPath does not validate
      InvalidAlgorithmParameterException - if the specified parameters or the type of the specified CertPath are inappropriate for this CertPathValidator

    • getDefaultType

      public static final String getDefaultType()
      Returns the default CertPathValidator type as specified by the certpathvalidator.type security property, or the string "PKIX" if no such property exists.

      The default CertPathValidator type can be used by applications that do not want to use a hard-coded type when calling one of the getInstance methods, and want to provide a default type in case a user does not specify its own.

      The default CertPathValidator type can be changed by setting the value of the certpathvalidator.type security property to the desired type.

      Returns:
      the default CertPathValidator type as specified by the certpathvalidator.type security property, or the string "PKIX" if no such property exists.
      See Also:

    • getRevocationChecker

      public final CertPathChecker getRevocationChecker()
      Returns a CertPathChecker that the encapsulated CertPathValidatorSpi implementation uses to check the revocation status of certificates. A PKIX implementation returns objects of type PKIXRevocationChecker. Each invocation of this method returns a new instance of CertPathChecker.

      The primary purpose of this method is to allow callers to specify additional input parameters and options specific to revocation checking. See the class description for an example.

      Returns:
      a CertPathChecker
      Throws:
      UnsupportedOperationException - if the service provider does not support this method
      Since:
      1.8