Signing Git commits takes some time

Nitrokeys Misc
#1

Hello,
I’m using the Nitrokey Start to sign my Git commits. When I commit and sign with

git commit -S -m "my commit message"

the commit takes some time (about 8-10 seconds) in contrast to commits without signatures.

Im using a 4096 bit RSA key. I must admit that I never signed Git commits before. Is this time the normal time or is there happening something that slows down the signing process?

Thanks for any hints,
Marc

#2

Hello!

Yes, the RSA4k signing on the Nitrokey Start takes long time. This model is more capable for making the ECC signatures, with a subsecond time.
For the Nitrokey Pro2 the time for RSA4k Git signing is 3.2 seconds on my setup.

#3

Thanks, good to know! I currently have three keys for a) signing and certification b) encryption and c) for authorization. So I guess I can’t create a fourth subkey with ECC on the Nitrokey Start, can I?

#4

Only 3 keypairs can be stored at the Nitrokey in the OpenPGP format, so you would need to replace the signing key.
However you can make another set of keys on an alternative identity. Nitrokey Start (RTM.10) has this unique feature of having multiple completely separable data spaces, where key pairs can be stored.
See:

#5

Thanks for the advice. I’ve now created a new set of keys on one of the alternate identities and I can confirm that signing with the ECC key is done immediately :slight_smile:

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