NAME

Net::ACME - Client for the (old) ACME protocol (e.g., Let’s Encrypt)

SYNOPSIS

package MyACME::SomeService;

use constant _HOST => ...;   #the name of the ACME host

#See below for full examples.

END-OF-LIFE WARNING

WARNING: Let’s Encrypt has announced end-of-life for their API that uses this protocol. All applications that use this module should migrate to Net::ACME2. Further use of this module is discouraged.

DESCRIPTION

This module implements client logic (including SSL certificate issuance) for the “draft” version of the ACME protocol, the system for automated issuance of SSL certificates used by Let’s Encrypt.

For support of the IETF-standard version of this protocol, look at Net::ACME2.

The methods of this class return objects that correspond to the respective ACME resource:

  • register(): Net::ACME::Registration

  • start_domain_authz(): Net::ACME::Authorization::Pending

  • get_certificate(): Net::ACME::Certificate or Net::ACME::Certificate::Pending

WHY USE THIS MODULE?

  • Closely based on cPanel’s widely-used Let’s Encrypt plugin.

  • Support for both RSA and ECDSA encryption (via Crypt::Perl).

  • Thorough error-checking: any deviation from what the ACME protocol expects is reported immediately via an exception.

  • Well-defined object system, including typed, queryable exceptions.

  • Extensive test coverage.

  • Light memory footprint - no Moose/Moo/etc.

  • No careless overwriting of globals like $@, $!, and $?. (Hopefully your code isn’t susceptible to this anyway, but it’s just a good precaution.)

  • This is a pure-Perl solution. Most of its dependencies are either core modules or pure Perl themselves. XS is necessary to communicate with the ACME server via TLS; however, most Perl installations already include the necessary logic (i.e., Net::SSLeay) for TLS.

    In short, Net::ACME will run anywhere that Perl can speak TLS, which is almost everywhere that Perl runs.

STATUS

This module is now well-tested and should be safe for use in your application.

CUSTOMIZATION

HTTPS options: This module uses HTTP::Tiny for its network operations. In some instances it is desirable to specify custom SSL_options in that module’s constructor; to do this, populate @Net::ACME::HTTP_Tiny::SSL_OPTIONS.

URI vs. URL

This module uses “uri” for ACME-related objects and “url” for HTTP-related ones. This apparent conflict is a result of maintaining consistency with both the ACME specification (“uri”) and HTTP::Tiny (“url”).

EXAMPLES

See the examples directory in the distribution for complete, interactive example scripts that also illustrate a bit of how ACME works.

See below for cut-paste-y examples.

EXAMPLE: REGISTRATION

my $tos_url = Net::ACME::LetsEncrypt->get_terms_of_service();

my $acme = Net::ACME::LetsEncrypt->new( key => $reg_rsa_pem );

#Use this method any time you want to update contact information,
#not just when you set up a new account.
my $reg = $acme->register('mailto:me@example.com', 'mailto:who@example.com');

$acme->accept_tos( $reg->uri(), $tos_url );

EXAMPLE: DOMAIN AUTHORIZATION & CERTIFICATE PROCUREMENT

for my $domain (@domains) {
    my $authz_p = $acme->start_domain_authz($domain);

    for my $cmb_ar ( $authz_p->combinations() ) {

        #$cmb_ar is a set of challenges that the ACME server will
        #accept as proof of domain control. As of November 2016, these
        #sets all contain exactly one challenge each: “http-01”, etc.

        #Each member of @$cmb_ar is an instance of
        #Net::ACME::Challenge::Pending--maybe a subclass thereof such as
        #Net::ACME::Challenge::Pending::http_01.

        #At this point, you examine $cmb_ar and determine if this
        #combination is one that you’re interested in. You might try
        #something like:
        #
        #   next if @$cmb_ar > 1;
        #   next if $cmb_ar->[0]->type() ne 'http-01';

        #Once you’ve examined $cmb_ar and set up the appropriate response(s),
        #it’s time to tell the ACME server to send its challenge query.
        $acme->do_challenge($_) for @$cmb_ar;

        while (1) {
            if ( $authz_p->is_time_to_poll() ) {
                my $poll = $authz_p->poll();

                last if $poll->status() eq 'valid';

                if ( $poll->status() eq 'invalid' ) {
                    my @failed = map { $_->error() } $poll->challenges();

                    warn $_->to_string() . $/ for @failed;

                    die "Failed authorization for “$domain”!";
                }

            }

            sleep 1;
        }
    }
}

#Make a key and CSR.
#Creation of CSRs is well-documented so won’t be discussed here.

my $cert = $acme->get_certificate($csr_pem);

#This shouldn’t actually be necessary for Let’s Encrypt,
#but the ACME protocol describes it.
while ( !$cert->pem() ) {
    sleep 1;
    next if !$cert->is_time_to_poll();
    $cert = $cert->poll() || $cert;
}

TODO

  • Once the ACME specification is finalized, update this module to take advantage of the full specification. As Let’s Encrypt’s Boulder is currently the only widely-used ACME server, and that software is compatible with the first draft of the ACME spec, there’s little reason to update for the time being.

THANKS

  • cPanel, Inc. for permission to adapt their ACME framework for public consumption.

  • Stephen Ludin for developing and maintaining Protocol::ACME, from which this module took its inspiration.

SEE ALSO

For support of the version of this protocol codified in RFC 8555, look at Net::ACME2.

I am aware of the following additional CPAN modules that implement the draft ACME protocol:

REPOSITORY (FEEDBACK/BUGS)

https://github.com/FGasper/p5-Net-ACME

AUTHOR

Felipe Gasper (FELIPE)

LICENSE

This module is licensed under the same terms as Perl.