Moving the certification authority database to another directory or drive

In the operation of a certification authority, one may find that it is necessary to subsequently change the storage path for the certification authority database. For example, one may want to move the database to another partition/drive.

The implementation is very simple:

• The certification authority service is terminated.
• The database files are moved.
• The registration will be adjusted.
• The certification authority service is then restarted.

Adjusting the registry after moving the database

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The locations for the database files are in the following registry key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\CertSvc\Configuration

The following values must be adjusted:

• DBDirectory
• DBLogDirectory
• DBSystemDirectory
• DBTempDirectory

Related links:

External sources:

• Move the Certificate Server database and log files (Microsoft)