Jws Delphi ActiveX Reference Documentation

TChilkatJws

Current Version: 10.1.2

An API for JSON Web Signature (JWS). Provides the ability to create and verify JWSs.

Importing the Chilkat ActiveX into Delphi

Important: When upgrading to a new version of Chilkat, make sure to re-imported ActiveX DLL into Delphi to regenerate the files described below.


Chilkat v9.5.*: If using Chilkat v9.5.*, then use "Chilkat_v9_5_0_TLB" instead of "Chilkat_TLB", and the DLLs are named ChilkatAx-9.5.0-win32.dll (or ChilkatAx-9.5.0-x64.dll).


Two things are required to use an ActiveX in Delphi:

  1. The ActiveX DLL needs to be registered via regsvr32 on the system where the Delphi application runs. See How To Register ActiveX DLLs for detailed information.
  2. See also: ActiveX Registration Tutorial
  3. The ActiveX component needs to be "imported". Use the Delphi Import Component Wizard to import the Chilkat type library. This creates the following files: Chilkat_TLB.pas and Chilkat_TLB.dcr. The Chilkat_TLB.pas should be added to your project.

To import the Chilkat type library, do the following:

  1. In the Delphi RAD Studio, select the menu item "Component" --> "Import a Type Library".
  2. Find "Chilkat ActiveX" in the list and select it. This will only appear in the list if the ChilkatAx-win32.dll (or ChilkatAx-x64.dll) has been registered w/ regsvr32.
  3. Check the "Generate Component Wrappers" checkbox.
  4. Select a directory where the unit files (.pas and .dcr) should be generated.
  5. Select "Create Unit" and then "Finish".
  6. Add the .pas to your Delphi project.

To use a Chilkat ActiveX object in your Delphi code, add "Chilkat_TLB" to the "uses" statement. For example:

uses
  Winapi.Windows, Winapi.Messages, System.SysUtils, System.Variants, System.Classes, Vcl.Graphics,
  Vcl.Controls, Vcl.Forms, Vcl.Dialogs, Vcl.StdCtrls, Chilkat_TLB;

Object Creation

var
obj: TChilkatJws;
...
begin
obj := TChilkatJws.Create(Self);
...
// When finished, free the object instance.
obj.Free();

Properties

DebugLogFilePath
property DebugLogFilePath: WideString

If set to a file path, this property logs the LastErrorText of each Chilkat method or property call to the specified file. This logging helps identify the context and history of Chilkat calls leading up to any crash or hang, aiding in debugging.

Enabling the VerboseLogging property provides more detailed information. This property is mainly used for debugging rare instances where a Chilkat method call causes a hang or crash, which should generally not happen.

Possible causes of hangs include:

  • A timeout property set to 0, indicating an infinite timeout.
  • A hang occurring within an event callback in the application code.
  • An internal bug in the Chilkat code causing the hang.

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LastBinaryResult
property LastBinaryResult: OleVariant readonly

This property is mainly used in SQL Server stored procedures to retrieve binary data from the last method call that returned binary data. It is only accessible if Chilkat.Global.KeepBinaryResult is set to 1. This feature allows for the retrieval of large varbinary results in an SQL Server environment, which has restrictions on returning large data via method calls, though temp tables can handle binary properties.

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LastErrorHtml
property LastErrorHtml: WideString readonly

Provides HTML-formatted information about the last called method or property. If a method call fails or behaves unexpectedly, check this property for details. Note that information is available regardless of the method call's success.

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LastErrorText
property LastErrorText: WideString readonly

Provides plain text information about the last called method or property. If a method call fails or behaves unexpectedly, check this property for details. Note that information is available regardless of the method call's success.

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LastErrorXml
property LastErrorXml: WideString readonly

Provides XML-formatted information about the last called method or property. If a method call fails or behaves unexpectedly, check this property for details. Note that information is available regardless of the method call's success.

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LastMethodSuccess
property LastMethodSuccess: Integer

Indicates the success or failure of the most recent method call: 1 means success, 0 means failure. This property remains unchanged by property setters or getters. This method is present to address challenges in checking for null or Nothing returns in certain programming languages.

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LastStringResult
property LastStringResult: WideString readonly

In SQL Server stored procedures, this property holds the string return value of the most recent method call that returns a string. It is accessible only when Chilkat.Global.KeepStringResult is set to TRUE. SQL Server has limitations on string lengths returned from methods and properties, but temp tables can be used to access large strings.

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LastStringResultLen
property LastStringResultLen: Integer readonly

The length, in characters, of the string contained in the LastStringResult property.

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NumSignatures
property NumSignatures: Integer readonly
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

The number of signatures contained in this JWS.

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PreferCompact
property PreferCompact: Integer
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Controls whether to use the JWS Compact Serialization or JWS JSON Serialization when creating JWSs. The default value is 1, which is to choose the compact serialization when possible. If multiple signatures exist, or if any unprotected headers exist, then JWS JSON Serialization is used regardless of this property setting.

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PreferFlattened
property PreferFlattened: Integer
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Controls whether to use the flattened or general JWE JSON Serialization when creating JWSs. The default value is 1, which is to choose the flattened serialization when possible. If multiple signatures exist, then the general (non-flattened) JWS JSON Serialization is used regardless of this property setting.

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UncommonOptions
property UncommonOptions: WideString
Introduced in version 10.1.0

This is a catch-all property to be used for uncommon needs. This property defaults to the empty string and should typically remain empty.

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VerboseLogging
property VerboseLogging: Integer

If set to 1, then the contents of LastErrorText (or LastErrorXml, or LastErrorHtml) may contain more verbose information. The default value is 0. Verbose logging should only be used for debugging. The potentially large quantity of logged information may adversely affect peformance.

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Version
property Version: WideString readonly

Version of the component/library, such as "10.1.0"

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Methods

CreateJws
function CreateJws(): WideString;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Creates and returns the JWS containing one or more signatures according to the previously set payload, headers, and keys.

Returns a zero-length WideString on failure

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CreateJwsSb
function CreateJwsSb(sbJws: TChilkatStringBuilder): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Creates and returns the JWS by appending it to the contents of sbJws.

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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GetPayload
function GetPayload(charset: WideString): WideString;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Returns the JWS payload. The charset specifies the byte representation to be used in interpreting the bytes of the payload. (For example, "utf-8", "windows-1252", "utf-16", etc.)

Returns a zero-length WideString on failure

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GetPayloadBd
function GetPayloadBd(binData: TChilkatBinData): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Returns the JWS payload by appending it to the binData.

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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GetPayloadSb
function GetPayloadSb(charset: WideString; sbPayload: TChilkatStringBuilder): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Returns the JWS payload by appending it to the sbPayload. The charset specifies the byte representation to be used in interpreting the bytes of the payload. (For example, "utf-8", "windows-1252", "utf-16", etc.)

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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GetProtectedHeader
function GetProtectedHeader(index: Integer): TChilkatJsonObject;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Returns the protected header for the Nth signature. The index is the index of the signature. The 1st signature is at index 0. In most cases, a JWS contains a single signature at index 0.

Returns nil on failure

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GetUnprotectedHeader
function GetUnprotectedHeader(index: Integer): TChilkatJsonObject;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Returns the optional unprotected header for the Nth signature. The index is the index of the signature. The 1st signature is at index 0. In most cases, a JWS contains a single signature at index 0.

Returns nil on failure

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LoadJws
function LoadJws(jwsStr: WideString): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Loads a JWS contained in jwsStr.

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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LoadJwsSb
function LoadJwsSb(sbJws: TChilkatStringBuilder): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Loads a JWS from the contents of sbJws.

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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SetMacKey
function SetMacKey(index: Integer; key: WideString; encoding: WideString): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Sets the MAC key to be used for creating or validating a signature for the algorithms "HS256", "HS384", or "HS512". The key is an encoded string representation of the MAC key bytes. The encoding is an encoding, such as "base64url", "base64", "hex", etc. The 1st signature is at index 0. (Most JWSs only contain a single signature.)

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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SetMacKeyBd
function SetMacKeyBd(index: Integer; key: TChilkatBinData): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Sets the MAC key to be used for creating or validating a signature for the algorithms "HS256", "HS384", or "HS512". The key contains the binary bytes of the MAC key for the Nth signature. The 1st signature is at index 0.

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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SetPayload
function SetPayload(payload: WideString; charset: WideString; includeBom: Integer): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Sets the JWS payload from the contents of payload. The charset specifies the byte representation to be used for the string that is to be the payload. (For example, "utf-8", "windows-1252", "utf-16", etc.). If includeBom is 1, then the byte-order-mark (BOM), also known as preamble, if one exists for the given charset, is included in the payload. Normally, includeBom should be set to 0.

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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SetPayloadBd
function SetPayloadBd(binData: TChilkatBinData): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Sets the JWS payload from the contents of binData.

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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SetPayloadSb
function SetPayloadSb(sbPayload: TChilkatStringBuilder; charset: WideString; includeBom: Integer): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Sets the JWS payload from the contents of sbPayload. The charset specifies the byte representation to be used for the string that is to be the payload. (For example, "utf-8", "windows-1252", "utf-16", etc.). If includeBom is 1, then the byte-order-mark (BOM), also known as preamble, if one exists for the given charset, is included in the payload. Normally, includeBom should be set to 0.

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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SetPrivateKey
function SetPrivateKey(index: Integer; privKey: TPrivateKey): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Sets the private key (ECC or RSA) to be used in creating a signature for the following algorithms:

RS256
RS384
RS512
ES256
ES384
ES512
PS256
PS384
PS512
The JWS algorithms are described in RFC 7518, section 3.1. Here is a summary:
   +--------------+-------------------------------+--------------------+
   | "alg" Param  | Digital Signature or MAC      | Implementation     |
   | Value        | Algorithm                     | Requirements       |
   +--------------+-------------------------------+--------------------+
   | HS256        | HMAC using SHA-256            | Required           |
   | HS384        | HMAC using SHA-384            | Optional           |
   | HS512        | HMAC using SHA-512            | Optional           |
   | RS256        | RSASSA-PKCS1-v1_5 using       | Recommended        |
   |              | SHA-256                       |                    |
   | RS384        | RSASSA-PKCS1-v1_5 using       | Optional           |
   |              | SHA-384                       |                    |
   | RS512        | RSASSA-PKCS1-v1_5 using       | Optional           |
   |              | SHA-512                       |                    |
   | ES256        | ECDSA using P-256 and SHA-256 | Recommended+       |
   | ES384        | ECDSA using P-384 and SHA-384 | Optional           |
   | ES512        | ECDSA using P-521 and SHA-512 | Optional           |
   | PS256        | RSASSA-PSS using SHA-256 and  | Optional           |
   |              | MGF1 with SHA-256             |                    |
   | PS384        | RSASSA-PSS using SHA-384 and  | Optional           |
   |              | MGF1 with SHA-384             |                    |
   | PS512        | RSASSA-PSS using SHA-512 and  | Optional           |
   |              | MGF1 with SHA-512             |                    |
   | none         | No digital signature or MAC   | Optional           |
   |              | performed                     |                    |
   +--------------+-------------------------------+--------------------+

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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SetProtectedHeader
function SetProtectedHeader(index: Integer; json: TChilkatJsonObject): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Sets a signature's protected header. The index is the index of the signature. The 1st signature is at index 0. In most cases, a JWS contains a single signature at index 0.

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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SetPublicKey
function SetPublicKey(index: Integer; pubKey: TPublicKey): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Sets the public key (ECC or RSA) to be used in validating a signature for the following algorithms:

RS256
RS384
RS512
ES256
ES384
ES512
PS256
PS384
PS512

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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SetUnprotectedHeader
function SetUnprotectedHeader(index: Integer; json: TChilkatJsonObject): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Sets a signature's optional unprotected header. The index is the index of the signature. The 1st signature is at index 0. In most cases, a JWS contains a single signature at index 0.

Returns 1 for success, 0 for failure.

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Validate
function Validate(index: Integer): Integer;
Introduced in version 9.5.0.66

Validates the Nth signature or MAC using the Nth public key or MAC key.

Returns 1 if the signature was validated, thus verifying that the signer used the same MAC key or the matching private key.
Returns 0 if the incorrect public key or MAC key was provided.
Returns -1 for any other error, such as if no public key or MAC key was previously set for the given index.

Prior to calling this method, a program should provide the public key or MAC key via the SetPublicKey, SetMacKey, or SetMacKeyBd methods.

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