Asymmetric Keys
An asymmetric key is a security object stored in a SQL Server database that uses public-key cryptography. It consists of:
- A public key, which can be shared with others to encrypt data or verify signatures.
- A private key, which is kept secret and used to decrypt data or create digital signatures.
In Database Explorer, you can perform operations on public and private keys by using the shortcut menu. Right-click a key in Database Explorer to access commands for specific tasks, such as generating scripts for asymmetric keys.
Create an asymmetric key
You can create an asymmetric key in SQL Editor in one of these ways:
- Code completion to write a script.
- SQL snippets to insert predefined or custom code.
Delete an asymmetric key
1. In Database Explorer, right-click the asymmetric key you want to delete and select Delete, or press Delete.
2. Click Yes to confirm the deletion.
Note
You cannot undo the drop operation, as this action permanently deletes the asymmetric key. To avoid data loss, back up the database before deleting the asymmetric key.
Generate a script for an asymmetric key
1. In Database Explorer, right-click a required asymmetric key and select Generate Script As, then select the statement type.
2. Select one of the following output options:
- To New SQL Window – Opens the script in a new SQL document.
- To File – Generates the script to a .sql file.
- To Clipboard – Copies the script to the clipboard.
For more information, see Generate the DDL and DML statements for database objects.
View asymmetric key properties
To view asymmetric key properties, in Database Explorer, right-click the asymmetric key or Asymmetric Keys node and select Show Details.
Object Viewer opens, displaying detailed information about the asymmetric key.
Refresh the asymmetric key
To update the asymmetric key to reflect the latest changes, in Database Explorer, right-click the asymmetric key or Asymmetric Keys node and select Refresh, or press F5.
Open the Properties window
To open the Properties window, in Database Explorer, right-click the asymmetric key and select Properties, or press F4.
Filter asymmetric keys
1. In Database Explorer, right-click the Asymmetric Keys node and select Filter.
2. In the Filter Settings dialog, configure the filter parameters.
3. Click OK to apply the filter.
Note
When you open the Asymmetric Keys node, the number of objects it contains appears in parentheses next to the node name. This number changes based on your filter settings.
Shortcut menu options for a specific asymmetric key
The following table describes the shortcut menu options, which appear when you right-click a specific asymmetric key in Database Explorer.
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Source Control > Source Control Manager | Opens Source Control Manager, where you can track and manage changes to database schema and static data. When Source Control Manager is already open, this option refreshes it. |
| Source Control > Commit | Opens Source Control Manager with all local changes (if any) selected and ready to commit. When Source Control Manager is already open, this option refreshes it and selects all local database changes. |
| Source Control > Get Latest | Opens Source Control Manager with all remote changes (if any) selected, ready to pull using Get Latest. When Source Control Manager is already open, this option refreshes it and selects all remote database changes. |
| Generate Script As | Generates a script of the selected object using the CREATE, DROP, and DROP and CREATE statements. The script can be saved to a new SQL document or to a file, or copied to the clipboard. |
| Show Details | Opens Object Viewer that displays object details. |
| Delete | Drops the selected object from the database. Shortcut: Delete |
| Refresh | Updates the object to reflect the latest changes. Shortcut: F5 |
| Properties | Opens the Properties pane to view the object information. Shortcut: F4 |
Shortcut menu options for the Asymmetric Keys node
The following table describes the shortcut menu options, which appear when you right-click the Asymmetric Keys node in Database Explorer.
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Source Control > Source Control Manager | Opens Source Control Manager, where you can track and manage changes to database schema and static data. When Source Control Manager is already open, this option refreshes it. |
| Source Control > Commit | Opens Source Control Manager with all local changes (if any) selected and ready to commit. When Source Control Manager is already open, this option refreshes it and selects all local database changes. |
| Source Control > Get Latest | Opens Source Control Manager with all remote changes (if any) selected, ready to pull using Get Latest. When Source Control Manager is already open, this option refreshes it and selects all remote database changes. |
| Filter | Opens the Filter Settings dialog to control which asymmetric keys should appear in Database Explorer. |
| Show Details | Opens Object Viewer that displays object details. |
| Refresh | Updates the object to reflect the latest changes. Shortcut: F5 |
Note
The Source Control shortcut menu is available only after you link the corresponding database to a source-control system.
Bulk operations
In Database Explorer, hold down Ctrl and select multiple asymmetric keys. Then right-click the selection and select the required option.
The following table describes the shortcut menu options available for multiple asymmetric keys.
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Source Control > Source Control Manager | Opens Source Control Manager, where you can track and manage changes to database schema and static data. When Source Control Manager is already open, this option refreshes it. |
| Source Control > Commit | Opens Source Control Manager with all local changes (if any) selected and ready to commit. When Source Control Manager is already open, this option refreshes it and selects all local database changes. |
| Source Control > Get Latest | Opens Source Control Manager with all remote changes (if any) selected, ready to pull using Get Latest. When Source Control Manager is already open, this option refreshes it and selects all remote database changes. |
| Source Control > Link/Unlink Static Data | Opens the Source Control Link Static Data dialog that displays the tables whose data you want to link. |
| Generate Script As | Generates scripts of the selected objects using the CREATE, DROP, and DROP and CREATE statements. The scripts can be generated to a new SQL document or to a file, or copied to the clipboard. |
| Delete | Drops the selected asymmetric keys from the database. Shortcut: Delete |
