Code Signing Key Management Server (CSKMS) vs SignServer
Code Signing Key Management Server (CSKMS)
certicom.com
SignServer
signserver.orgSide by side
| Figure | Code Signing Key Management Server (CSKMS) | SignServer |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | — | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 0 | 2 |
| Spec score · Code Signing Software | 7.4 (#19) | 7.7 (#12) |
| Deployment | It can run offline in an isolated security bunker, where security officers present tokens to access restricted project keys, or connect through secure web services for automated signing. | Community can be downloaded as a Docker container, Helm chart, source code, or release from GitHub, and is also listed on SourceForge. |
| Founded | 1985 | 2005 |
| Integrations | It provides a RESTful API for code-signing clients and offers custom integration services. | The comparison lists integration and secure automatic certificate renewal with CA/EJBCA, and the maker describes integration with third-party applications through standard interfaces. |
| Key protection | The datasheet says keys are protected in a FIPS 140-2 Level 3 physical HSM. | The maker recommends storing signing keys in a Hardware Security Module; secure-file storage is described as suitable only for testing and prototyping. |
| Purpose | CSKMS manages access to code-signing and encryption keys, signs software images, and can optionally encrypt them for target projects. | SignServer is a server-side platform for digitally signing code, documents, and timestamps. |
Plans
Code Signing Key Management Server (CSKMS)
No plans published.
In their own words
Code Signing Key Management Server (CSKMS)
Code Signing Key Management Server (CSKMS) has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.
SignServer
SignServer is a server-side platform that centrally manages signing keys and digitally signs code, documents, and timestamps. One installation can serve several signing workflows, including containers, firmware, IoT, and DevOps use cases. It can connect to CI/CD pipelines, firmware build processes, document workflow engines, identity platforms, and other applications through standard interfaces. Community is available as a Docker container, Helm chart, source code, or GitHub release, and is also listed on SourceForge. Its interfaces include SOAP, HTTP, REST, and the SignClient command-line interface, though Community REST lacks some endpoints. Community is released under LGPL V2.1 or later and is intended for learning, testing, and prototyping rather than production. The maker says it lacks production capabilities such as audit, compliance, SLA, high availability, and security features. Enterprise adds professional support with an SLA, security updates, and maintenance. The Community plan is free; the Enterprise Cloud trial is free for 30 days through AWS or Azure marketplaces. The maker recommends Hardware Security Modules for signing-key storage.