CreateKey

To create a symmetric encryption KMS key, you aren't required to specify any parameters. The default value for KeySpec, SYMMETRIC_DEFAULT, and the default value for KeyUsage, ENCRYPT_DECRYPT, create a symmetric encryption KMS key. For technical details, see SYMMETRIC_DEFAULT key spec in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide.

If you need a key for basic encryption and decryption or you are creating a KMS key to protect your resources in an Amazon service, create a symmetric encryption KMS key. The key material in a symmetric encryption key never leaves Amazon KMS unencrypted. You can use a symmetric encryption KMS key to encrypt and decrypt data up to 4,096 bytes, but they are typically used to generate data keys and data keys pairs. For details, see GenerateDataKey and GenerateDataKeyPair.

To create an asymmetric KMS key, use the KeySpec parameter to specify the type of key material in the KMS key. Then, use the KeyUsage parameter to determine whether the KMS key will be used to encrypt and decrypt or sign and verify. You can't change these properties after the KMS key is created.

Asymmetric KMS keys contain an RSA key pair, Elliptic Curve (ECC) key pair, or an SM2 key pair (China Regions only). The private key in an asymmetric KMS key never leaves Amazon KMS unencrypted. However, you can use the GetPublicKey operation to download the public key so it can be used outside of Amazon KMS. KMS keys with RSA or SM2 key pairs can be used to encrypt or decrypt data or sign and verify messages (but not both). KMS keys with ECC key pairs can be used only to sign and verify messages. For information about asymmetric KMS keys, see Asymmetric KMS keys in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide.

To create an HMAC KMS key, set the KeySpec parameter to a key spec value for HMAC KMS keys. Then set the KeyUsage parameter to GENERATE_VERIFY_MAC. You must set the key usage even though GENERATE_VERIFY_MAC is the only valid key usage value for HMAC KMS keys. You can't change these properties after the KMS key is created.

HMAC KMS keys are symmetric keys that never leave Amazon KMS unencrypted. You can use HMAC keys to generate (GenerateMac) and verify (VerifyMac) HMAC codes for messages up to 4096 bytes.

HMAC KMS keys are not supported in all Amazon Web Services Regions. If you try to create an HMAC KMS key in an Amazon Web Services Region in which HMAC keys are not supported, the CreateKey operation returns an UnsupportedOperationException. For a list of Regions in which HMAC KMS keys are supported, see HMAC keys in Amazon KMS in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide.

To create a multi-Region primary key in the local Amazon Web Services Region, use the MultiRegion parameter with a value of True. To create a multi-Region replica key, that is, a KMS key with the same key ID and key material as a primary key, but in a different Amazon Web Services Region, use the ReplicateKey operation. To change a replica key to a primary key, and its primary key to a replica key, use the UpdatePrimaryRegion operation.

You can create multi-Region KMS keys for all supported KMS key types: symmetric encryption KMS keys, HMAC KMS keys, asymmetric encryption KMS keys, and asymmetric signing KMS keys. You can also create multi-Region keys with imported key material. However, you can't create multi-Region keys in a custom key store.

This operation supports multi-Region keys, an Amazon KMS feature that lets you create multiple interoperable KMS keys in different Amazon Web Services Regions. Because these KMS keys have the same key ID, key material, and other metadata, you can use them interchangeably to encrypt data in one Amazon Web Services Region and decrypt it in a different Amazon Web Services Region without re-encrypting the data or making a cross-Region call. For more information about multi-Region keys, see Multi-Region keys in Amazon KMS in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide.

To import your own key material, begin by creating a symmetric encryption KMS key with no key material. To do this, use the Origin parameter of CreateKey with a value of EXTERNAL. Next, use GetParametersForImport operation to get a public key and import token, and use the public key to encrypt your key material. Then, use ImportKeyMaterial with your import token to import the key material. For step-by-step instructions, see Importing Key Material in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide .

This feature supports only symmetric encryption KMS keys, including multi-Region symmetric encryption KMS keys. You cannot import key material into any other type of KMS key.

To create a multi-Region primary key with imported key material, use the Origin parameter of CreateKey with a value of EXTERNAL and the MultiRegion parameter with a value of True. To create replicas of the multi-Region primary key, use the ReplicateKey operation. For more information about multi-Region keys, see Multi-Region keys in Amazon KMS in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide.

To create a symmetric encryption KMS key in a custom key store, use the CustomKeyStoreId parameter to specify the custom key store. You must also use the Origin parameter with a value of AWS_CLOUDHSM. The Amazon CloudHSM cluster that is associated with the custom key store must have at least two active HSMs in different Availability Zones in the Amazon Region.

Custom key stores support only symmetric encryption KMS keys. You cannot create an HMAC KMS key or an asymmetric KMS key in a custom key store. For information about custom key stores in Amazon KMS see Custom key stores in Amazon KMS in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide .

A flag to indicate whether to bypass the key policy lockout safety check.

Use this parameter only when you include a policy in the request and you intend to prevent the principal that is making the request from making a subsequent PutKeyPolicy request on the KMS key.

The default value is false.

Type: Boolean

Required: No

This parameter has been deprecated.

Instead, use the KeySpec parameter.

The KeySpec and CustomerMasterKeySpec parameters work the same way. Only the names differ. We recommend that you use KeySpec parameter in your code. However, to avoid breaking changes, Amazon KMS will support both parameters.

Type: String

Valid Values: RSA_2048 | RSA_3072 | RSA_4096 | ECC_NIST_P256 | ECC_NIST_P384 | ECC_NIST_P521 | ECC_SECG_P256K1 | SYMMETRIC_DEFAULT | HMAC_224 | HMAC_256 | HMAC_384 | HMAC_512 | SM2

Required: No

Creates the KMS key in the specified custom key store and the key material in its associated Amazon CloudHSM cluster. To create a KMS key in a custom key store, you must also specify the Origin parameter with a value of AWS_CLOUDHSM. The Amazon CloudHSM cluster that is associated with the custom key store must have at least two active HSMs, each in a different Availability Zone in the Region.

This parameter is valid only for symmetric encryption KMS keys in a single Region. You cannot create any other type of KMS key in a custom key store.

To find the ID of a custom key store, use the DescribeCustomKeyStores operation.

The response includes the custom key store ID and the ID of the Amazon CloudHSM cluster.

This operation is part of the custom key store feature feature in Amazon KMS, which combines the convenience and extensive integration of Amazon KMS with the isolation and control of a single-tenant key store.

Type: String

Length Constraints: Minimum length of 1. Maximum length of 64.

Required: No

A description of the KMS key.

Use a description that helps you decide whether the KMS key is appropriate for a task. The default value is an empty string (no description).

To set or change the description after the key is created, use UpdateKeyDescription.

Type: String

Length Constraints: Minimum length of 0. Maximum length of 8192.

Required: No

Specifies the type of KMS key to create. The default value, SYMMETRIC_DEFAULT, creates a KMS key with a 256-bit AES-GCM key that is used for encryption and decryption, except in China Regions, where it creates a 128-bit symmetric key that uses SM4 encryption. For help choosing a key spec for your KMS key, see Choosing a KMS key type in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide .

The KeySpec determines whether the KMS key contains a symmetric key or an asymmetric key pair. It also determines the cryptographic algorithms that the KMS key supports. You can't change the KeySpec after the KMS key is created. To further restrict the algorithms that can be used with the KMS key, use a condition key in its key policy or IAM policy. For more information, see kms:EncryptionAlgorithm, kms:MacAlgorithm or kms:Signing Algorithm in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide .

Amazon KMS supports the following key specs for KMS keys:

Type: String

Valid Values: RSA_2048 | RSA_3072 | RSA_4096 | ECC_NIST_P256 | ECC_NIST_P384 | ECC_NIST_P521 | ECC_SECG_P256K1 | SYMMETRIC_DEFAULT | HMAC_224 | HMAC_256 | HMAC_384 | HMAC_512 | SM2

Required: No

Determines the cryptographic operations for which you can use the KMS key. The default value is ENCRYPT_DECRYPT. This parameter is optional when you are creating a symmetric encryption KMS key; otherwise, it is required. You can't change the KeyUsage value after the KMS key is created.

Select only one valid value.

Type: String

Valid Values: SIGN_VERIFY | ENCRYPT_DECRYPT | GENERATE_VERIFY_MAC

Required: No

Creates a multi-Region primary key that you can replicate into other Amazon Web Services Regions. You cannot change this value after you create the KMS key.

For a multi-Region key, set this parameter to True. For a single-Region KMS key, omit this parameter or set it to False. The default value is False.

This operation supports multi-Region keys, an Amazon KMS feature that lets you create multiple interoperable KMS keys in different Amazon Web Services Regions. Because these KMS keys have the same key ID, key material, and other metadata, you can use them interchangeably to encrypt data in one Amazon Web Services Region and decrypt it in a different Amazon Web Services Region without re-encrypting the data or making a cross-Region call. For more information about multi-Region keys, see Multi-Region keys in Amazon KMS in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide.

This value creates a primary key, not a replica. To create a replica key, use the ReplicateKey operation.

You can create a multi-Region version of a symmetric encryption KMS key, an HMAC KMS key, an asymmetric KMS key, or a KMS key with imported key material. However, you cannot create a multi-Region key in a custom key store.

Type: Boolean

Required: No

The source of the key material for the KMS key. You cannot change the origin after you create the KMS key. The default is AWS_KMS, which means that Amazon KMS creates the key material.

To create a KMS key with no key material (for imported key material), set the value to EXTERNAL. For more information about importing key material into Amazon KMS, see Importing Key Material in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide. This value is valid only for symmetric encryption KMS keys.

To create a KMS key in an Amazon KMS custom key store and create its key material in the associated Amazon CloudHSM cluster, set this value to AWS_CLOUDHSM. You must also use the CustomKeyStoreId parameter to identify the custom key store. This value is valid only for symmetric encryption KMS keys.

Type: String

Valid Values: AWS_KMS | EXTERNAL | AWS_CLOUDHSM

Required: No

The key policy to attach to the KMS key. If you do not specify a key policy, Amazon KMS attaches a default key policy to the KMS key. For more information, see Default key policy in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide.

If you provide a key policy, it must meet the following criteria:

A key policy document can include only the following characters:

For information about key policies, see Key policies in Amazon KMS in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide. For help writing and formatting a JSON policy document, see the IAM JSON Policy Reference in the Amazon Identity and Access Management User Guide .

Type: String

Length Constraints: Minimum length of 1. Maximum length of 32768.

Pattern: [\u0009\u000A\u000D\u0020-\u00FF]+

Required: No

Assigns one or more tags to the KMS key. Use this parameter to tag the KMS key when it is created. To tag an existing KMS key, use the TagResource operation.

To use this parameter, you must have kms:TagResource permission in an IAM policy.

Each tag consists of a tag key and a tag value. Both the tag key and the tag value are required, but the tag value can be an empty (null) string. You cannot have more than one tag on a KMS key with the same tag key. If you specify an existing tag key with a different tag value, Amazon KMS replaces the current tag value with the specified one.

When you add tags to an Amazon resource, Amazon generates a cost allocation report with usage and costs aggregated by tags. Tags can also be used to control access to a KMS key. For details, see Tagging Keys.

Type: Array of Tag objects

Required: No

Metadata associated with the KMS key.

Type: KeyMetadata object

The request was rejected because the associated Amazon CloudHSM cluster did not meet the configuration requirements for a custom key store.

For information about the requirements for an Amazon CloudHSM cluster that is associated with a custom key store, see Assemble the Prerequisites in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide. For information about creating a private subnet for an Amazon CloudHSM cluster, see Create a Private Subnet in the Amazon CloudHSM User Guide. For information about cluster security groups, see Configure a Default Security Group in the Amazon CloudHSM User Guide .

HTTP Status Code: 400

The request was rejected because of the ConnectionState of the custom key store. To get the ConnectionState of a custom key store, use the DescribeCustomKeyStores operation.

This exception is thrown under the following conditions:

HTTP Status Code: 400

The request was rejected because Amazon KMS cannot find a custom key store with the specified key store name or ID.

HTTP Status Code: 400

The system timed out while trying to fulfill the request. The request can be retried.

HTTP Status Code: 500

The request was rejected because a specified ARN, or an ARN in a key policy, is not valid.

HTTP Status Code: 400

The request was rejected because an internal exception occurred. The request can be retried.

HTTP Status Code: 500

The request was rejected because a quota was exceeded. For more information, see Quotas in the Amazon Key Management Service Developer Guide.

HTTP Status Code: 400

The request was rejected because the specified policy is not syntactically or semantically correct.

HTTP Status Code: 400

The request was rejected because one or more tags are not valid.

HTTP Status Code: 400

The request was rejected because a specified parameter is not supported or a specified resource is not valid for this operation.

HTTP Status Code: 400