X500DistinguishedName Class

Definition

Namespace:

System.Security.Cryptography.X509Certificates

Assembly:

System.Security.Cryptography.dll

Source:

X500DistinguishedName.cs

Represents the distinguished name of an X509 certificate. This class cannot be inherited.

public ref class X500DistinguishedName sealed : System::Security::Cryptography::AsnEncodedData

public sealed class X500DistinguishedName : System.Security.Cryptography.AsnEncodedData

type X500DistinguishedName = class
    inherit AsnEncodedData

Public NotInheritable Class X500DistinguishedName
Inherits AsnEncodedData

Inheritance

Object

AsnEncodedData

X500DistinguishedName

Examples

The following code example shows how to use the X500DistinguishedName class.

using System;
using System.Security.Cryptography;
using System.Security.Cryptography.X509Certificates;

class X500Sample
{
    static void Main()
    {
        try
        {
            X509Store store = new("MY", StoreLocation.CurrentUser);
            store.Open(OpenFlags.ReadOnly | OpenFlags.OpenExistingOnly);
            X509Certificate2Collection collection = store.Certificates;
            X509Certificate2Collection fcollection = collection.Find(
                X509FindType.FindByTimeValid,
                DateTime.Now, false
                );
            X509Certificate2Collection scollection = X509Certificate2UI.SelectFromCollection(
                fcollection,
                "Test Certificate Select",
                "Select a certificate from the following list to get information on that certificate",
                X509SelectionFlag.MultiSelection
                );
            Console.WriteLine($"Number of certificates: {scollection.Count}{Environment.NewLine}");
            foreach (X509Certificate2 x509 in scollection)
            {
                X500DistinguishedName dname = new(
                    x509.SubjectName.Name,
                    X500DistinguishedNameFlags.Reversed | X500DistinguishedNameFlags.UseSemicolons
                    );
                Console.WriteLine("X500DistinguishedName: {0}{1}", dname.Name, Environment.NewLine);
                x509.Reset();
            }
            store.Close();
        }
        catch (CryptographicException)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("Information could not be written out for this certificate.");
        }
    }
}

Imports System.Security.Cryptography.X509Certificates

Class X500Sample
    Shared s_msg As String
    Shared Sub Main()

        Try
            Dim store As New X509Store("MY", StoreLocation.CurrentUser)
            store.Open(OpenFlags.ReadOnly Or OpenFlags.OpenExistingOnly)
            Dim collection As X509Certificate2Collection = store.Certificates
            Dim fcollection As X509Certificate2Collection = collection.Find(X509FindType.FindByTimeValid, Date.Now, False)
            Dim scollection As X509Certificate2Collection = X509Certificate2UI.SelectFromCollection(
                fcollection,
                "Test Certificate Select",
                "Select a certificate from the following list to get information on that certificate",
                X509SelectionFlag.MultiSelection
                )
            s_msg = "Number of certificates: " & scollection.Count & Environment.NewLine
            Console.WriteLine(s_msg)
            Dim x509 As X509Certificate2
            For Each x509 In scollection
                Dim dname As New X500DistinguishedName(
                x509.SubjectName.Name,
                X500DistinguishedNameFlags.Reversed Or X500DistinguishedNameFlags.UseSemicolons
                )
                s_msg = "X500DistinguishedName: " & dname.Name & Environment.NewLine
                Console.WriteLine(s_msg)
                x509.Reset()
            Next x509
            store.Close()
        Catch e As Exception
            s_msg = "Error: Information could not be written out for this certificate."
            Console.WriteLine(s_msg)
        End Try
    End Sub
End Class

Remarks

This class is like an extension to the SubjectName or IssuerName property, which is the name of the person or entity that the certificate is being issued to. X.500 is an international standard for distributed directory services. The distinguished name uses the following format:

[X500:/C=CountryCode/O=Organization/OU=OrganizationUnit/CN=CommonName]

The following field length limits apply:

Field	Length Limit
CountryCode	2 characters
Organization	Up to 64 characters
OrganizationUnit	Up to 32 characters
CommonName	Up to 64 characters

The following guidelines apply:

• Field values can be uppercase or lowercase.

• Delimiters are slash marks (/) and must appear before the first value and between subsequent values.

• Delimiters can be followed by a space.

The following is an example of a correctly formatted name: [X500:/ C=US/ O=Microsoft/ OU=WGA/ CN=TedSt]

Constructors

X500DistinguishedName(AsnEncodedData)	Initializes a new instance of the X500DistinguishedName class using the specified AsnEncodedData object.
X500DistinguishedName(Byte[])	Initializes a new instance of the X500DistinguishedName class using information from the specified byte array.
X500DistinguishedName(ReadOnlySpan<Byte>)	Initializes a new instance of the X500DistinguishedName class using information from the provided data.
X500DistinguishedName(String)	Initializes a new instance of the X500DistinguishedName class using information from the specified string.
X500DistinguishedName(String, X500DistinguishedNameFlags)	Initializes a new instance of the X500DistinguishedName class using the specified string and X500DistinguishedNameFlags flag.
X500DistinguishedName(X500DistinguishedName)	Initializes a new instance of the X500DistinguishedName class using the specified X500DistinguishedName object.

Properties

Name	Gets the comma-delimited distinguished name from an X500 certificate.
Oid	Gets or sets the Oid value for an AsnEncodedData object. (Inherited from AsnEncodedData)
RawData	Gets or sets the Abstract Syntax Notation One (ASN.1)-encoded data represented in a byte array. (Inherited from AsnEncodedData)

Methods

CopyFrom(AsnEncodedData)	Copies information from an AsnEncodedData object. (Inherited from AsnEncodedData)
Decode(X500DistinguishedNameFlags)	Decodes a distinguished name using the characteristics specified by the flag parameter.
EnumerateRelativeDistinguishedNames(Boolean)	Iterates over the RelativeDistinguishedName values within this distinguished name value.
Equals(Object)	Determines whether the specified object is equal to the current object. (Inherited from Object)
Format(Boolean)	Returns a formatted version of an X500 distinguished name for printing or for output to a text window or to a console.
GetHashCode()	Serves as the default hash function. (Inherited from Object)
GetType()	Gets the Type of the current instance. (Inherited from Object)
MemberwiseClone()	Creates a shallow copy of the current Object. (Inherited from Object)
ToString()	Returns a string that represents the current object. (Inherited from Object)