How to Code Sign Your Applications for Adobe AIR?

Adobe Air is one the best runtime environments that can be used to build quality applications for web and mobile. It aids developers with several valuable features and components to make development easier and more effective.

However, running apps built in Adobe Air without security warnings is only possible through a legit Adobe code signing certificate. It ensures that your application code is safe and has not been tampered with and the app is safe to use.

Hence, purchasing an Adobe Code Signing Certificate to run apps on Adobe Air is necessary.

How to Code Sign Your Apps for Adobe Air?

Cutting down to the chase, let us simply start with understanding the process of code signing for Adobe Air:

Step 1: Researching the Right Adobe Code Signing Certificate

To start with the process, you first must do a little research and find a suitable code signing certificate that will help you sign Adobe Air apps. Remember, you need to buy a certificate that supports the Adobe Air platform. Hence, make your research Adobe specific and decide which certificate is suitable for your application. Here are three options to choose from:

• Individual Code Signing Certificate: Suitable for independent developers.

• OV Code Signing Certificate: Ideal for large software publishers.

• EV Code Signing Certificate: Suitable for both independent and organisations as it is an advanced certificate.

Step 2: Purchasing the Adobe Code Signing Certificate

After deciding which certificate is ideal for code signing for Adobe Air apps, you can make the actual purchase. Note that buying a code signing certificate for your Adobe Air apps will help you prevent the security warning messages that appear while installing or running the app on the web or mobile platforms.

Step 3: Learning the Process to Code Sign Adobe Air Apps

To sign your Adobe Air apps with an Adobe code signing certificate, you will first need to export your certificate as a .PFX file from the internet browser you are using. Once you have the .PFX file, you can use it to code sign Adobe Air apps.

Here is the process to export .PFX file from different internet browsers:

A. Microsoft Edge

The following is the process to export .PFX file from Microsoft Edge:

1. Open the Microsoft Edge browser.
2. Go to the upper right corner of the browser, click on the three dots, and select Settings.
3. Select the Privacy, Search, and Services tab, listed on the left pane.
4. Navigate down to the Security section and click Manage Certificates.
5. A certificate window will appear, showing you the name and expiration for your Adobe code signing certificate.
6. Select your code signing certificate and from the window below, press the Export button.
7. Save the .PFX file to a suitable destination.

B. Google Chrome

Here is the process to export .PFX file from Google Chrome:

1. Open the Google Chrome internet browser.
2. Go to Settings by clicking on the three dots placed in the upper right corner.
3. Navigate to the Security and Privacy section on the left tab.
4. Click on Security.
5. Scroll down to find Advanced and further click on Manage Certificates.
6. A certificate window will then appear, from which you can choose your Adobe code signing certificate.
7. Click on the Export option, which will open a Certificate Export Wizard screen.
8. Follow the instructions on the pop-up window, save a destination for your .PFX file and export the certificate.

C. Mozilla Firefox

The following is the process to export your .PFX file from Mozilla Firefox:

1. Open the Mozilla Firefox browser.
2. Click on the triple bar in the browser’s upper right corner and select Settings.
3. Go to the Privacy & Security tab on the left menu and scroll down to Certificates.
4. Click View Certificates to open the Certificate Manager.
5. Navigate to the Your Certificates tab, where it will display your Adobe code signing certificate.
6. Select the certificate and press the Backup button.
7. A Certificate Backup Password window will appear where you need to set your password and export the certificate to the final destination.

Code Signing for Adobe Air

Now that you have saved the .PFX file in your system, we can proceed further and use the Adobe code signing certificate to sign Adobe Air apps. There are two ways through which this process can be done:

1. Using AIR Developer Tool (ADT) or Command Line Interface

Here are the steps:

• Open the command prompt or your CLI as an administrator.

• Move to the source directory of your app. (This can not be the same as for your certificate)

• Now simply run the following command:

adt -package -storetype pkcs12 -keystore "c:\path\to\your\certificate.pfx" "c:\path\to\your\file.air" "application.xml".

The text in the orange needs to be changed with the path to your certificate file and the app directory file.

Once the command is run, it will ask for the password you created in the export process. Fill in the password, and your Adobe air app is signed with the Adobe code signing certificate.

2. Using Flash or Guided User Interface

This is an alternative way to code sign Adobe Air apps. Here is the process:

• Open the Adobe program you are using to code sign the application. You can use Adobe Flash CS 5.5 Professional, Adobe Flash Builder 4.5, or Flex SDK.

• Select Adobe AIR Settings from the top menu. It may be listed as ‘Air [Version Number] for Desktop Settings.’

• An Air Settings Window will appear in which you need to select the Signature tab.

• Check the option which says ‘Use a code signing certificate (.p12, .pfx)’.

• Click browse to select your exported .PFX file.

• Enter the password and finally press Publish to successfully sign your Adobe Air apps with an Adobe code signing certificate.

Benefits of Code Signing Certificate

Here are some of the benefits of the Adobe Code Signing Certificate:

1. Removal of security warnings from your app.
2. Higher software integrity.
3. Timestamping for software.
4. Better user authentication.
5. Signing an unlimited number of Adobe applications.
6. Integration with third-party apps.
7. Identity validation.
8. Enhanced user confidence. 

Wrapping Up

Code signing is essential to make your Adobe Air apps safe and secure for your users. And now that you know how to use your Adobe code signing certificate to sign apps, you should start looking to purchase an authentic code signing certificate.

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