The .asc file and what to do with it
 

I noticed, after I downloaded the Slackware 10 ISOs from BitTorrent, that it also downloaded an md5 file and a file ending in the .asc extension as well (eg. slackware-10.0-install-d2.iso.asc).

How do I use the .asc file? I think it has something to do with GPG and signing, but I am unsure of how to use it to verify the authenticity of the ISO file I downloaded. Can someone help?

It sounds like using the .asc file is just another way to verify an ISO. Me, I just use md5sum and compare it to the corresponding .md5 file. To use under Liinux, just type "md5sum filename.iso" (without the quotes).


pqbd

to use an .asc file to verify a package's integrity, you need to have gnupg installed...

also, remember that gnupg and md5sum don't perform the same function...

here's some links:

http://httpd.apache.org/dev/verification.html

http://www.kernel.org/signature.html

http://www.gnupg.org/documentation/faqs.html


and if you wanna have a gnupg party:

http://www.cryptnet.net/fdp/crypto/gpg-party.html


=)