Definition
Cipher Suite
A cipher suite is a named combination of four cryptographic mechanisms used in TLS:
- Key exchange algorithm
- Authentication mechanism for clients and servers
- Symmetric encryption algorithm (with key size and mode of operation)
- Hash function used for key derivation and, in some cases, HMAC computation
Examples
TLS_DHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA384
Component Value Purpose Key exchange DHE Ephemeral Diffie-Hellman Authentication RSA RSA-based authentication Symmetric encryption AES_256_CBC AES with 256-bit key in CBC mode Hash function SHA384 Hash and HMAC basis