How to generate VAPID keys with Node.js

How to generate VAPID keys with Node.js

In this article, we will see how to generate VAPID keys using Node.js.

The VAPID (Voluntary Application Server Identification) keys are used to authenticate push messages sent from a server to a client. They are essential for sending push notifications via the Web Push protocol, as they provide a way to verify the identity of the message sender. In this article, we will see how to generate VAPID keys using Node.js.

Before you start, make sure you have:

  • Node.js installed on your machine. You can download it from nodejs.org.
  • A text editor such as Visual Studio Code.

To generate the VAPID keys, we will use the web-push package, which facilitates sending push notifications and managing VAPID keys.

Install web-push:


npm install web-push --save

Create a JavaScript file for your script, for example, generateVapidKeys.js, and open it with your text editor. Add the following code to generate the VAPID keys:


const webPush = require('web-push');

// Generate the VAPID keys
const vapidKeys = webPush.generateVAPIDKeys();

console.log('VAPID Public Key:');
console.log(vapidKeys.publicKey);

console.log('VAPID Private Key:');
console.log(vapidKeys.privateKey);

Now that you have generated your VAPID keys, you can use them to authenticate your push messages. For example, you can configure web-push to use these keys as follows:


const webPush = require('web-push');

const vapidKeys = {
  publicKey: 'BO1F2c3fghIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ1234567890abcdefg',
  privateKey: 'abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz1234567890ABCDEF'
};

webPush.setVapidDetails(
  'mailto:you@example.com',
  vapidKeys.publicKey,
  vapidKeys.privateKey
);

Conclusion

In this article, we saw how to generate VAPID keys using Node.js and the web-push package. These keys are essential for sending secure and authentic push notifications. You are now ready to use these keys in your push notification projects.