cryptsetup(8) — Linux manual page

NAME | SYNOPSIS | DESCRIPTION | BASIC ACTIONS | PLAIN MODE | LUKS EXTENSION | LOOP-AES EXTENSION | TCRYPT (TRUECRYPT AND VERACRYPT COMPATIBLE) EXTENSION | BITLK (WINDOWS BITLOCKER COMPATIBLE) EXTENSION | FVAULT2 (APPLE MACOS FILEVAULT2 COMPATIBLE) EXTENSION | SED (SELF ENCRYPTING DRIVE) OPAL EXTENSION | MISCELLANEOUS ACTIONS | PLAIN MODE OR LUKS? | WARNINGS | EXAMPLES | RETURN CODES | NOTES | AUTHORS | REPORTING BUGS | SEE ALSO | CRYPTSETUP

CRYPTSETUP(8)              Maintenance Commands             CRYPTSETUP(8)

NAME         top

       cryptsetup - utility for configuring and managing encrypted
       storage devices

SYNOPSIS         top

       cryptsetup <action> [<options>] <action args>

DESCRIPTION         top

       Cryptsetup is a utility for configuring and managing full-disk
       encryption on storage devices. It can encrypt block devices (such
       as hard drives or partitions) and containers (disk images stored
       as files).

       When you unlock an encrypted volume, cryptsetup creates a new
       device mapping that applications can access like any regular
       storage device. The actual encryption and decryption work is
       performed transparently by the kernel’s device-mapper dm-crypt
       driver.

       Cryptsetup works with two main volume types: plain encrypted
       volumes and LUKS (Linux Unified Key Setup) volumes. Plain volumes
       provide basic encryption, while LUKS volumes include a metadata
       header that enables advanced features like multiple keyslots and
       key management. Additionally, LUKS can be used to manage
       hardware-based encryption on OPAL-capable storage drives.

       Cryptsetup also provides limited support for volumes created by
       other encryption systems, including loop-AES, TrueCrypt,
       VeraCrypt, BitLocker, and FileVault2.

       For more information about a specific cryptsetup action, see
       cryptsetup-<action>(8), where <action> is the name of the
       cryptsetup action.

       Cryptsetup devices can be activated during boot through
       crypttab(5), which is part of systemd(1) or other system init
       scripts.

BASIC ACTIONS         top

       The following are valid actions for all supported device types.

   OPEN
       open <device> <name> --type <device_type>

       Opens (creates a mapping with) <name> backed by device <device>.
       See cryptsetup-open(8).

   CLOSE
       close <name>

       Removes the existing mapping <name> and wipes the key from kernel
       memory. See cryptsetup-close(8).

   STATUS
       status <name>

       Reports the status for the mapping <name>. See
       cryptsetup-status(8).

   RESIZE
       resize <name>

       Resizes an active mapping <name>. See cryptsetup-resize(8).

   REFRESH
       refresh <name>

       Refreshes parameters of active mapping <name>. See
       cryptsetup-refresh(8).

   REENCRYPT
       reencrypt <device> or --active-name <name> [<new_name>]

       Run LUKS device reencryption. See cryptsetup-reencrypt(8).

PLAIN MODE         top

       Plain dm-crypt encrypts the device sector-by-sector with a single,
       non-salted hash of the passphrase. No checks are performed, and no
       metadata is used. There is no formatting operation. When the raw
       device is mapped (opened), the usual device operations can be used
       on the mapped device, including filesystem creation. Mapped
       devices usually reside in /dev/mapper/<name>.

       The following are valid plain device type actions:

   OPEN
       open --type plain <device> <name>
       create <name> <device> (OBSOLETE syntax)

       Opens (creates a mapping with) <name> backed by device <device>.
       See cryptsetup-open(8).

LUKS EXTENSION         top

       LUKS, the Linux Unified Key Setup, is a standard for disk
       encryption. It adds a standardized header at the start of the
       device, a keyslot area directly behind the header and the bulk
       data area behind that. The whole set is called a 'LUKS container'.
       The device that a LUKS container resides on is called a 'LUKS
       device'. For most purposes, both terms can be used
       interchangeably.

       LUKS can manage multiple passphrases that can be individually
       revoked or changed. Each passphrase uses an individual keyslot
       containing a volume key for data encryption. Keyslots can be
       securely scrubbed from persistent media due to the use of
       anti-forensic stripes. Passphrases are protected against
       brute-force attacks by the Password-Based Key Derivation Function
       (PBKDF). A passphrase stored in a file is called a key file. The
       only difference between a passphrase and a key file is that a key
       file can contain binary data. Both are processed the same.

       LUKS version 1 (or LUKS1) is the original metadata format, while
       LUKS2 is a new version that allows additional extensions like
       different PBKDF algorithms or authenticated encryption. You can
       format the device with a specific LUKS version with --type luks1
       or --type luks2 in the luksFormat command. Normally, you do not
       need to specify any version as it is recognized automatically. The
       default format is LUKS2.

       The <device> parameter can also be specified by a LUKS UUID in the
       format UUID=<uuid>.

       The LUKS header can be detached from data (stored separately). To
       specify a detached header, the --header parameter can be used in
       all LUKS commands and always takes precedence over the positional
       <device> parameter.

       The following are valid LUKS actions:

   FORMAT
       luksFormat <device> [<key file>]

       Initializes a LUKS partition and sets the initial passphrase (for
       keyslot 0). See cryptsetup-luksFormat(8).

   OPEN
       open --type luks <device> <name>
       luksOpen <device> <name> (old syntax)

       Opens the LUKS device <device> and sets up a mapping <name> after
       successful verification of the supplied passphrase. See
       cryptsetup-open(8).

   SUSPEND
       luksSuspend <name>

       Suspends an active device (all IO operations will block and
       accesses to the device will wait indefinitely) and wipes the
       encryption key from kernel memory. See cryptsetup-luksSuspend(8).

   RESUME
       luksResume <name>

       Resumes a suspended device and reinstates the encryption key. See
       cryptsetup-luksResume(8).

   ADD KEY
       luksAddKey <device> [<key file with new key>]

       Adds a new passphrase using an existing passphrase. See
       cryptsetup-luksAddKey(8).

   REMOVE KEY
       luksRemoveKey <device> [<key file with passphrase to be removed>]

       Removes the supplied passphrase from the LUKS device. See
       cryptsetup-luksRemoveKey(8).

   CHANGE KEY
       luksChangeKey <device> [<new key file>]

       Changes an existing passphrase. See cryptsetup-luksChangeKey(8).

   CONVERT KEY
       luksConvertKey <device>

       Converts an existing LUKS2 keyslot to new PBKDF parameters. See
       cryptsetup-luksConvertKey(8).

   KILL SLOT
       luksKillSlot <device> <number>

       Wipe the keyslot with the <number> from the LUKS device. See
       cryptsetup-luksKillSlot(8).

   ERASE
       erase <device>
       luksErase <device> (old syntax)

       Erase all keyslots and make the LUKS container permanently
       inaccessible. See cryptsetup-erase(8).

   UUID
       luksUUID <device>

       Print or set the UUID of a LUKS device. See
       cryptsetup-luksUUID(8).

   IS LUKS
       isLuks <device>

       Returns true, if <device> is a LUKS device, false otherwise. See
       cryptsetup-isLuks(8).

   DUMP
       luksDump <device>

       Dump the header information of a LUKS device. See
       cryptsetup-luksDump(8).

   HEADER BACKUP
       luksHeaderBackup <device> --header-backup-file <file>

       Stores a binary backup of the LUKS header and keyslot area. See
       cryptsetup-luksHeaderBackup(8).

   HEADER RESTORE
       luksHeaderRestore <device> --header-backup-file <file>

       Restores a binary backup of the LUKS header and keyslot area from
       the specified file. See cryptsetup-luksHeaderRestore(8).

   TOKEN
       token <add|remove|import|export> <device>

       Manipulate token objects used for obtaining passphrases. See
       cryptsetup-token(8).

   CONVERT
       convert <device> --type <format>

       Converts the device between LUKS1 and LUKS2 format (if possible).
       See cryptsetup-convert(8).

   CONFIG
       config <device>

       Set permanent configuration options (store to LUKS header). See
       cryptsetup-config(8).

LOOP-AES EXTENSION         top

       Cryptsetup supports mapping a loop-AES encrypted partition using a
       compatibility mode.

   OPEN
       open --type loopaes <device> <name> --key-file <keyfile>
       loopaesOpen <device> <name> --key-file <keyfile> (old syntax)

       Opens the loop-AES <device> and sets up a mapping <name>. See
       cryptsetup-open(8).

       See also section 7 of the FAQ and loop-AES
       <http://loop-aes.sourceforge.net> for more information regarding
       loop-AES.

TCRYPT (TRUECRYPT AND VERACRYPT COMPATIBLE) EXTENSION         top

       Cryptsetup supports mapping of TrueCrypt, tcplay, or VeraCrypt
       encrypted partitions using a native Linux kernel API. Header
       formatting and TCRYPT header change are not supported; cryptsetup
       never changes the TCRYPT header on-device.

       TCRYPT extension requires the kernel userspace crypto API to be
       available. If you are configuring the kernel yourself, enable
       "User-space interface for symmetric key cipher algorithms" in
       "Cryptographic API" section (CRYPTO_USER_API_SKCIPHER .config
       option).

       Because the TCRYPT header is encrypted, you must always provide a
       valid passphrase and keyfiles.

       Cryptsetup should recognize all header variants, except legacy
       cipher chains using LRW encryption mode with a 64-bit encryption
       block (namely, Blowfish in LRW mode is not recognized; this is a
       limitation of the kernel crypto API).

       VeraCrypt is an extension of TrueCrypt with an increased iteration
       count, so unlocking can take quite a lot of time.

       To open a VeraCrypt device with a custom Personal Iteration
       Multiplier (PIM) value, use either the --veracrypt-pim PIM option
       to directly specify the PIM on the command line or use
       --veracrypt-query-pim to be prompted for the PIM.

       The PIM value affects the number of iterations applied during key
       derivation. Please refer to PIM
       <https://veracrypt.io/en/Personal%20Iterations%20Multiplier%20(PIM).html>
       for more detailed information.

       If you need to disable VeraCrypt device support, use
       --disable-veracrypt option.

       Activation with tcryptOpen is supported only for cipher chains
       using LRW or XTS encryption modes.

       The tcryptDump command should work for all recognized TCRYPT
       devices and doesn’t require superuser privilege.

       To map the system device (device with boot loader where the whole
       encrypted system resides), use --tcrypt-system option. Please read
       specific info in cryptsetup-tcryptOpen(8) --tcrypt-system option
       section as mapping system-encrypted device is tricky.

       To use a hidden header (and map hidden device, if available), use
       --tcrypt-hidden option.

       To explicitly use the backup (secondary) header, use
       --tcrypt-backup option.

       There is no protection for a hidden volume if the outer volume is
       mounted. The reason is that if there were any protection, it would
       require some metadata describing what to protect in the outer
       volume, and the hidden volume would become detectable.

   OPEN
       open --type tcrypt <device> <name>
       tcryptOpen_ <device> <name> (old syntax)

       Opens the TCRYPT (a TrueCrypt-compatible) <device> and sets up a
       mapping <name>. See cryptsetup-open(8).

   DUMP
       tcryptDump <device>

       Dump the header information of a TCRYPT device. See
       cryptsetup-tcryptDump(8).

       See also TrueCrypt <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TrueCrypt> and
       VeraCrypt <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VeraCrypt> pages for more
       information.

       Please note that cryptsetup does not use TrueCrypt or VeraCrypt
       code; please report all problems related to this compatibility
       extension to the cryptsetup project.

BITLK (WINDOWS BITLOCKER COMPATIBLE) EXTENSION         top

       Cryptsetup supports mapping of BitLocker and BitLocker to Go
       encrypted partitions using a native Linux kernel API. Header
       formatting and BITLK header changes are not supported; cryptsetup
       never changes the BITLK header on-device.

       BITLK extension requires the kernel userspace crypto API to be
       available (for details, see the TCRYPT section).

       Cryptsetup should recognize all BITLK header variants, except the
       legacy header used in Windows Vista systems and partially
       decrypted BitLocker devices. Activation of legacy devices
       encrypted in CBC mode requires at least a Linux kernel version
       5.3, and for devices using the Elephant diffuser, kernel 5.6.

       The bitlkDump command should work for all recognized BITLK devices
       and doesn’t require superuser privilege.

       For unlocking with the open, a password, a recovery passphrase, or
       a startup key must be provided.

       Additionally, unlocking using the volume key is supported. You
       must provide BitLocker Full Volume Encryption Key (FVEK) using the
       --volume-key-file option. The key must be decrypted and without
       the header (only 128/256/512 bits of key data depending on the
       used cipher and mode).

       Other unlocking methods (TPM, SmartCard) are not supported.

   OPEN
       open --type bitlk <device> <name>
       bitlkOpen <device> <name> (old syntax)

       Opens the BITLK (a BitLocker-compatible) <device> and sets up a
       mapping <name>. See cryptsetup-open(8).

   DUMP
       bitlkDump <device>

       Dump the header information of a BITLK device. See
       cryptsetup-bitlkDump(8).

       Please note that cryptsetup does not use any Windows BitLocker
       code; please report all problems related to this compatibility
       extension to the cryptsetup project.

FVAULT2 (APPLE MACOS FILEVAULT2 COMPATIBLE) EXTENSION         top

       Cryptsetup supports the mapping of FileVault2 (FileVault2
       full-disk encryption) by Apple for the macOS operating system
       using a native Linux kernel API.

       Cryptsetup supports only FileVault2 based on Core Storage and HFS+
       filesystem (introduced in MacOS X 10.7 Lion). It does NOT support
       the new version of FileVault based on the APFS filesystem used in
       recent macOS versions.

       Header formatting and FVAULT2 header changes are not supported;
       cryptsetup never changes the FVAULT2 header on-device.

       FVAULT2 extension requires the kernel userspace crypto API to be
       available (for details, see the TCRYPT section) and a kernel
       driver for the HFS+ (hfsplus) filesystem.

       Cryptsetup should recognize the basic configuration for portable
       drives.

       The fvault2Dump command should work for all recognized FVAULT2
       devices and doesn’t require superuser privilege.

       For unlocking with the open, a password must be provided. Other
       unlocking methods are not supported.

   OPEN
       open --type fvault2 <device> <name>
       fvault2Open <device> <name> (old syntax)

       Opens the FVAULT2 (a FileVault2-compatible) <device> (usually the
       second partition on the device) and sets up a mapping <name>. See
       cryptsetup-open(8).

SED (SELF ENCRYPTING DRIVE) OPAL EXTENSION         top

       Cryptsetup supports using native hardware encryption on drives
       that provide an OPAL interface, both nested with dm-crypt and
       standalone. Passphrases, tokens and metadata are stored using the
       LUKS2 header format, and are thus compatible with any software or
       system that uses LUKS2 (e.g., tokens).

       OPAL support requires at least kernel v6.4. Resizing devices is
       not supported.

       The --hw-opal can be specified for OPAL + dm-crypt, and
       --hw-opal-only can be specified to use OPAL only, without a
       dm-crypt layer.

       Opening, closing and enrolling tokens work the same way as with
       LUKS2 and dm-crypt. The new parameters are only necessary when
       formatting; the LUKS2 metadata will ensure the right setup is
       performed when opening or closing.

       If no subsystem label is specified, it will be automatically set
       to HW-OPAL so that it is immediately apparent when a device uses
       OPAL.

   FORMAT
       luksFormat --type luks2 --hw-opal <device> [<key file>]

       Additionally specify --hw-opal-only instead of --hw-opal to avoid
       the dm-crypt layer. Other than the usual passphrase, an admin
       password will have to be specified when formatting the drive’s
       first partition, and will have to be re-supplied when formatting
       any other partition until a factory reset is performed.

   ERASE
       erase <device>

       Securely erase a partition or device. Requires admin password.
       Additionally specify --hw-opal-factory-reset for a FULL factory
       reset of the drive, using the drive’s PSID (typically printed on
       the label) instead of the admin password.

       PSID must be entered without dashes, spaces or underscores.

       WARNING: A factory reset will cause ALL data on the device to be
       lost, regardless of the partition it is run on, if any, and
       regardless of any LUKS2 header backup.

MISCELLANEOUS ACTIONS         top

   REPAIR
       repair <device>

       Tries to repair the device metadata if possible. Currently
       supported only for LUKS device type. See cryptsetup-repair(8).

   BENCHMARK
       benchmark <options>

       Benchmarks, ciphers and KDF (key derivation function). See
       cryptsetup-benchmark(8).

PLAIN MODE OR LUKS?         top

       Unless you understand the cryptographic background well, use LUKS.
       With plain mode, there are a number of possible user errors that
       massively decrease security. While LUKS cannot fix them all, it
       can lessen the impact for many of them.

WARNINGS         top

       A lot of good information on the risks of using encrypted storage,
       on handling problems and on security aspects can be found in the
       Cryptsetup FAQ. Read it. Nonetheless, some risks deserve to be
       mentioned here.

       Backup: Storage media die. Encryption has no influence on that.
       Backup is mandatory for encrypted data as well, if the data has
       any worth. See the Cryptsetup FAQ for advice on how to back up an
       encrypted volume.

       Character encoding: If you enter a passphrase with special
       symbols, the passphrase can change depending on character
       encoding. Keyboard settings can also be changed, which can make
       blind input hard or impossible. For example, switching from some
       ASCII 8-bit variant to UTF-8 can lead to a different binary
       encoding and hence a different passphrase seen by cryptsetup, even
       if what you see on the terminal is exactly the same. It is
       therefore highly recommended to select passphrase characters only
       from 7-bit ASCII, as the encoding for 7-bit ASCII stays the same
       for all ASCII variants and UTF-8.

       LUKS header: If the header of a LUKS volume gets damaged, all data
       is permanently lost unless you have a header backup. If a keyslot
       is damaged, it can only be restored from a header backup or if
       another active keyslot with a known passphrase is undamaged. This
       risk is the result of a trade-off between security and safety, as
       LUKS is designed for fast and secure wiping by just overwriting
       the header and keyslot area.

       Previously used partitions: If a partition was previously used, it
       is a very good idea to wipe filesystem signatures, data, etc.,
       before creating a LUKS or plain dm-crypt container. For a quick
       removal of filesystem signatures, use wipefs(8) with the --all
       option. Note that it does not remove data; it only invalidates
       known format signatures. For a full wipe, overwrite the whole
       partition before creating a container. If you do not know how to
       do that, the cryptsetup FAQ describes several options.

EXAMPLES         top

       Example 1: Create LUKS 2 container on block device /dev/sdX.
           sudo cryptsetup --type luks2 luksFormat /dev/sdX

       Example 2: Add an additional passphrase to keyslot 5.
           sudo cryptsetup luksAddKey --key-slot 5 /dev/sdX

       Example 3: Create LUKS header backup and save it to a file.
           sudo cryptsetup luksHeaderBackup /dev/sdX --header-backup-file
           /var/tmp/NameOfBackupFile

       Example 4: Open LUKS container on /dev/sdX and map it to
       sdX_crypt.
           sudo cryptsetup open /dev/sdX sdX_crypt

       WARNING: The command in example 5 will erase all keyslots.
           You cannot use your LUKS container afterward anymore unless
           you have a backup to restore.

       Example 5: Erase all keyslots on /dev/sdX.
           sudo cryptsetup erase /dev/sdX

       Example 6: Restore LUKS header from backup file.
           sudo cryptsetup luksHeaderRestore /dev/sdX
           --header-backup-file /var/tmp/NameOfBackupFile

RETURN CODES         top

       Cryptsetup returns 0 on success and a non-zero value on error.

       Error codes are: 1 wrong parameters, 2 no permission (bad
       passphrase), 3 out of memory, 4 wrong device specified, 5 device
       already exists or device is busy.

NOTES         top

   Passphrase processing for PLAIN mode
       Note that no iterated hashing or salting is done in plain mode. If
       hashing is done, it is a single direct hash. This means that
       low-entropy passphrases are easy to attack in plain mode.

       From a terminal: The passphrase is read until the first newline,
       i.e., '\n'. The input without the newline character is processed
       with the default hash or the hash specified with --hash. The hash
       result will be truncated to the key size of the used cipher, or
       the size specified with -s.

       From stdin: Reading will continue until a newline (or until the
       maximum input size is reached), with the trailing newline
       stripped. The maximum input size is defined by the same
       compiled-in default as the maximum key file size and can be
       overwritten using the --keyfile-size option.

       The data read will be hashed with the default hash or the hash
       specified with --hash. The hash result will be truncated to the
       key size of the used cipher, or the size specified with -s.

       Note that if --key-file=- is used for reading the key from stdin,
       trailing newlines are not stripped from the input.

       If "plain" is used as an argument to --hash, the input data will
       not be hashed. Instead, it will be zero-padded (if shorter than
       the key size) or truncated (if longer than the key size) and used
       directly as the binary key. This is useful for directly specifying
       a binary key. No warning will be given if the amount of data read
       from stdin is less than the key size.

       From a key file: It will be truncated to the key size of the used
       cipher or the size given by -s and directly used as a binary key.

       The --hash argument is being ignored. The --hash option is usable
       only for stdin input in plain mode.

       If the key file is shorter than the key, cryptsetup will quit with
       an error. The maximum input size is defined by the same
       compiled-in default as the maximum key file size and can be
       overwritten using the --keyfile-size option.

   Passphrase processing for LUKS
       From a terminal: The passphrase is read until the first newline
       and then processed by PBKDF2 without the newline character.

       From stdin: LUKS will read passphrases from stdin up to the first
       newline character or the compiled-in maximum key file length. If
       --keyfile-size is given, it is ignored.

       From key file: The complete keyfile is read up to the compiled-in
       maximum size. Newline characters do not terminate the input. The
       --keyfile-size option can be used to limit what is read.

       LUKS uses Password-Based Key Derivation Function (PBKDF) to
       protect against brute-force attacks and to give some protection to
       low-entropy passphrases (see cryptsetup FAQ). LUKS1 supports the
       PBKDF2 algorithm only, while LUKS2 also supports memory-hard
       Argon2. PBKDFs are configured with costs: how long the iteration
       should run (CPU cost or iteration count), how much memory is used
       (memory cost), and how many parallel processes are used (parallel
       cost). PBKDF2 supports only iteration count. Cryptsetup uses PBKDF
       benchmarking to calculate optimal costs based on the computer
       where the new passphrase is being initialized. If needed, these
       costs can also be overwritten. Note that there are some hardcoded
       limits, for details see MINIMAL AND MAXIMAL PBKDF COSTS section in
       --pbkdf option description.

       Whenever a passphrase is added to a LUKS header (luksAddKey,
       luksFormat), the user may specify how much time the passphrase
       processing should consume. The time is used to determine the
       iteration count for PBKDF2, and higher times will offer better
       protection for low-entropy passphrases, but the open command will
       take longer to complete. For passphrases that have entropy higher
       than the used key length, higher iteration times will not increase
       security.

       The default setting of one or two seconds is sufficient for most
       practical cases. The only exception is a low-entropy passphrase
       used on a device with a slow CPU, as this will result in a low
       iteration count. On a slow device, it may be advisable to increase
       the iteration time using the --iter-time option to obtain a higher
       iteration count. This does slow down all later luksOpen operations
       accordingly.

   Incoherent behavior for invalid passphrases/keys
       LUKS checks for a valid passphrase when a keyslot is decrypted.

       The behavior of plain dm-crypt is different. It will always unlock
       the device with the passphrase given. If the given passphrase is
       wrong, the device mapped by plain dm-crypt will use the wrong
       encryption key, and the data will be unreadable.

   Supported ciphers, modes, hashes and key sizes
       The available combinations of ciphers, modes, hashes and key sizes
       depend on kernel support. See /proc/crypto for a list of available
       options. You might need to load additional kernel crypto modules
       to get more options.

       Cryptsetup processes many operations outside of the kernel, so the
       configured cryptographic library must also support selected
       algorithms. Some algorithms may be missing as cryptsetup can be
       compiled with various cryptographic backends (libraries).

   Notes on passphrases
       Mathematics can’t be bribed. Make sure you keep your passphrases
       safe. There are a few nice tricks for constructing a fallback when
       suddenly, out of the blue, your brain refuses to cooperate. These
       fallbacks need LUKS, as it’s only possible with LUKS to have
       multiple passphrases. Still, if your attacker model does not
       prevent it, storing your passphrase in a sealed envelope somewhere
       may be a good idea as well.

   Notes on Random Number Generators
       Random Number Generators (RNGs) used in cryptsetup are always the
       kernel RNGs without any modifications or additions to the data
       stream produced.

       There are two types of randomness that cryptsetup/LUKS needs. One
       type is used for salts, the AF splitter and for wiping deleted
       keyslots. The second type is used for the volume key.

       With recent kernels (Linux kernel 5.6), you do not need to worry
       about selecting RNG (/dev/random or /dev/urandom). In a
       low-entropy situation (embedded system), initialization of the
       kernel RNG can take a very long time, but this happens before
       cryptsetup can even be started. Use cryptsetup --help to show the
       compiled-in default random number generator. See urandom(4) for
       more information.

   Authenticated disk encryption (EXPERIMENTAL)
       Normal disk encryption modes are length-preserving (the plaintext
       sector is the same size as a ciphertext sector) and can provide
       only confidentiality protection, not cryptographically sound data
       integrity protection.

       Authenticated modes require additional space per-sector for the
       authentication tag and use Authenticated Encryption with
       Additional Data (AEAD) algorithms.

       If you configure a LUKS2 device with data integrity protection,
       there will be an underlying dm-integrity device, which provides
       additional per-sector metadata space and data journal protection
       to ensure atomicity of data and metadata updates. Because there
       must be additional space for metadata and journal, the available
       space for the device will be smaller than for length-preserving
       modes.

       The dm-crypt device then resides on top of such a dm-integrity
       device. All activation and deactivation of this device stack is
       performed by cryptsetup; there is no difference in using luksOpen
       for integrity-protected devices. If you want to format a LUKS2
       device with data integrity protection, use --integrity option (see
       cryptsetup-luksFormat(8)).

       Albeit Linux kernel 5.7 added TRIM support for standalone
       dm-integrity devices, cryptsetup(8) can’t offer support for
       discards (TRIM) in authenticated encryption mode, because the
       underlying dm-crypt kernel module does not support this
       functionality when dm-integrity is used as auth tag space
       allocator (see --allow-discards in cryptsetup-open(8)).

       Some integrity modes require two independent keys (a key for
       encryption and authentication). Both these keys are stored in one
       LUKS keyslot.

       Support for authenticated modes is experimental, and only some
       modes are available now. Note that very few authenticated
       encryption algorithms are suitable for disk encryption. You also
       cannot use CRC32 or other non-cryptographic checksums (other than
       the special integrity mode "none"). If, for some reason, you want
       to have integrity control without using authentication mode, then
       you should separately configure dm-integrity independently of
       LUKS2.

   Notes on loopback device use
       Cryptsetup is usually used directly on a block device (disk
       partition or LVM volume). However, if the device argument is a
       file, cryptsetup tries to allocate a loopback device and map it
       into this file. Of course, you can always map a file to a loop
       device manually. See the cryptsetup FAQ for an example.

       When device mapping is active, you can see the loop backing file
       in the status command output. Also see losetup(8).

   LUKS2 header locking
       The LUKS2 on-disk metadata is updated in several steps, and to
       achieve a proper atomic update, there is a locking mechanism. For
       an image in a file, the code uses the flock(2) system call. For a
       block device, lock is performed over a special file stored in a
       locking directory (by default /run/cryptsetup). The locking
       directory should be created with the proper security context by
       the distribution during the boot-up phase. Only LUKS2 uses locks;
       other formats do not use this mechanism.

   LUKS on-disk format specification
       For LUKS on-disk metadata specification, see LUKS1
       <https://gitlab.com/cryptsetup/cryptsetup/wikis/Specification> and
       LUKS2 <https://gitlab.com/cryptsetup/LUKS2-docs>.

AUTHORS         top

       Cryptsetup was originally written by Jana Saout <jana@saout.de>.
       The LUKS extensions and original man page were written by Clemens
       Fruhwirth <clemens@endorphin.org>. Man page extensions by Milan
       Broz <gmazyland@gmail.com>. Man page rewrite and extension by Arno
       Wagner <arno@wagner.name>.

REPORTING BUGS         top

       Report bugs at cryptsetup mailing list
       <cryptsetup@lists.linux.dev> or in Issues project section
       <https://gitlab.com/cryptsetup/cryptsetup/-/issues/new>.

       Please attach the output of the failed command with --debug option
       added.

SEE ALSO         top

       Cryptsetup FAQ
       <https://gitlab.com/cryptsetup/cryptsetup/wikis/FrequentlyAskedQuestions>

       cryptsetup(8), integritysetup(8) and veritysetup(8)

CRYPTSETUP         top

       Part of cryptsetup project
       <https://gitlab.com/cryptsetup/cryptsetup/>. This page is part of
       the Cryptsetup ((open-source disk encryption)) project.
       Information about the project can be found at 
       ⟨https://gitlab.com/cryptsetup/cryptsetup⟩. If you have a bug
       report for this manual page, send it to dm-crypt@saout.de. This
       page was obtained from the project's upstream Git repository
       ⟨https://gitlab.com/cryptsetup/cryptsetup.git⟩ on 2025-08-11. (At
       that time, the date of the most recent commit that was found in
       the repository was 2025-08-01.) If you discover any rendering
       problems in this HTML version of the page, or you believe there is
       a better or more up-to-date source for the page, or you have
       corrections or improvements to the information in this COLOPHON
       (which is not part of the original manual page), send a mail to
       man-pages@man7.org

cryptsetup 2.8.1-git            2025-08-09                  CRYPTSETUP(8)

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