Brief instructions on using OpenSSL 0.9.8 FIPS test branch. To avoid any confusion that this might generate a validate library just supplying "fips" on the command line wont work. Additional options are needed... To build fipscanister and produce a usable distribution the configuration option "fipscanisterbuild" is used to either the config or Configure scripts. For example: ./config fipscanisterbuild This builds static libraries in a way similar to the FIPS 1.1.1 distro. To build the shared library fipscanister version use the configuration options "fipsdso". Note that the fipscanister.o file is totally incompatible with the version produced by the FIPS 1.1.1 distribution and cannot be made to work with it. Both options should also work under Windows and VC++. With this version the use of MinGW is unnecessary and the normal VC++ build procedure can be followed *except* the GNU linker "ld.exe" (for example from MinGW) must be accessible somewhere on the PATH. For example: perl Configure VC-WIN32 fipsdso ms\do_masm nmake -f ms\ntdll.mak Note that any warnings from a Windows version of "tar" about being unable to create symbolic links can be ignored.