CertUtil: Import a .cer certificate from the command line

I use the command-line tool certutil.exe when distributing software packages with Microsoft ConfigMgr 2007 (SCCM). Windows also provides graphical certificate-import options through Internet Explorer and the Certificates snap-in for MMC.

Certutil.exe lets me manage digital certificates from the command line when the graphical tools are not enough for the task.

The example below imports a certificate into the Current User store.

Import a certificate into the Current User store

This example imports a .CER certificate into the Personal folder under “Current User - My User account”:

1. Open Command Prompt (cmd.exe).
2. Go to the folder containing the .CER file.
3. Run the following command:

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certutil -addstore -user -f "My" "VeriSign Class 3 Code Signing 2010 CA - valid 01-2014.cer"

The certificate has now been imported. In this example, I imported a missing VeriSign code-signing certificate.

Certutil.exe can also import certificates into the Computer account portion and control the certificate’s folder placement.

Reference

• MSDN: Adding certificates to the local certificates store and setting local policy using a command line