--- name: openssl description: Generate secure random strings, passwords, and cryptographic tokens using OpenSSL. Use when creating passwords, API keys, secrets, or any secure random data. ---

OpenSSL Secure Generation

Generate cryptographically secure random data using openssl rand.

Password/Secret Generation

# 32 random bytes as base64 (43 chars, URL-safe with tr)
openssl rand -base64 32 | tr '+/' '-_' | tr -d '='

# 24 random bytes as hex (48 chars)
openssl rand -hex 24

# alphanumeric password (32 chars)
openssl rand -base64 48 | tr -dc 'a-zA-Z0-9' | head -c 32

Common Lengths

| Use Case | Command | |----------|---------| | Password (strong) | openssl rand -base64 24 | | API key | openssl rand -hex 32 | | Session token | openssl rand -base64 48 | | Short PIN (8 digits) | openssl rand -hex 4 | xxd -r -p | od -An -tu4 | tr -d ' ' | head -c 8 |

Notes

• -base64 outputs ~1.33x the byte count in characters
• -hex outputs 2x the byte count in characters
• Pipe through tr -dc to filter character sets
• Always use at least 16 bytes (128 bits) for secrets