diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
index a9e5f43..190bb1e 100644
--- a/CLAUDE.md
+++ b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -31,6 +31,7 @@ Edit the `SETTINGS` block at the top of `openvpncertupdate.py` before first run.
 | `--send-email` | Force email delivery |
 | `--no-send-email` | Skip email; print URL to stdout |
 | `--show-eml` | Print base64-encoded `.eml` to stdout (implies `--no-send-email` unless `--send-email` also given) |
+| `--config PATH` | External `.conf` file overriding `SETTINGS` (overrides `CONFIG_PATH`; missing file here is an error) |
 
 ## Tests
 
@@ -45,9 +46,10 @@ python3 -m pytest tests/test_pki.py::test_sorted_ascending -v  # single test
 | Section | Key symbols |
 |---|---|
 | SETTINGS | all-caps constants |
+| SETTINGS OVERRIDE | `ConfigError`, `load_settings_overrides()`, `_OVERRIDABLE_SETTINGS` |
 | PKI | `CertInfo`, `load_expiring_certs()`, `load_all_certs()`, `_parse_index_line()` |
 | PASSWORD | `generate_password()` |
-| EASYRSA | `EasyRSAError`, `revoke_issued()`, `build_client_full()`, `gen_crl()`, `copy_crl()` |
+| EASYRSA | `EasyRSAError`, `revoke_issued()`, `build_client_full()`, `gen_crl()`, `copy_crl()`, `is_ca_key_encrypted()`, `resolve_ca_passphrase()` |
 | METADATA | `load_metadata()`, `save_email()`, `get_email()` |
 | CONFIG | `build_ovpn()` → `vpn-configs/<CN>_<YYYY-MM-DD>_<NN>/CONFIG_NAME` |
 | CRYPTGEON | `CryptgeonError`, `create_note()` |
@@ -78,9 +80,11 @@ python3 -m pytest tests/test_pki.py::test_sorted_ascending -v  # single test
 
 ## Key constraints
 
+- External config file (`load_settings_overrides()`, run once in `main()` right after arg parsing, before dispatch): resolution order is `--config PATH` > `CONFIG_PATH` setting > `<this-script-path>.conf` next to the script. The CLI flag or `CONFIG_PATH` make the path explicit — a missing file there is a fatal `ConfigError`; the default `<script>.conf` path is optional and silently skipped if absent. The file is executed as Python (same syntax as the `SETTINGS` block, so only run trusted files) and only names listed in `_OVERRIDABLE_SETTINGS` are applied — `CONFIG_PATH` itself is deliberately not overridable this way
 - Email: set `SMTP_HOST` to use smtplib (SMTP_TLS: `"starttls"`/`"ssl"`/`""`); leave empty to use `MAIL_BINARY`. Auth skipped when `SMTP_USER=""`
-- EasyRSA called with `--batch`; `--passin=pass:<CA_PASSPHRASE>` omitted when `CA_PASSPHRASE=""`
-- Cryptgeon: `raw_key=os.urandom(32)`, `aes_key=SHA-256(raw_key)`, AES-256-GCM, URL fragment=`base64url(raw_key)`
+- EasyRSA called with `--batch`; `--passin=pass:<passphrase>` omitted when the resolved passphrase is empty
+- CA passphrase resolution (`resolve_ca_passphrase()`, run once in `main()` right after arg parsing, before dispatch): `CA_PASSPHRASE=""` → auto-detect via `is_ca_key_encrypted()` (checks `<PKI_DIR>/private/ca.key` PEM header for `ENCRYPTED`) and prompt only if encrypted; `"!empty"` → never check/prompt, passphrase is `""`; `"!ask"` → always prompt, skip detection; any other value → used literally
+- Cryptgeon: matches the `occulto` browser client — `key=os.urandom(32)` used directly (no derivation) for AES-256-GCM; `contents` = `base64(b"AES-GCM") + "--" + base64(nonce) + "--" + base64(ciphertext)`; `meta` = JSON string `{"type": "text"}`; URL = `<base>/note/<id>#<key.hex()>`
 - `copy_crl()` does `chmod 644` after copy
 - Password: pos 1=uppercase, pos 2=lowercase (no j), pos 3-27=alphanumeric, pos 28=lowercase (no j); `oO01lIQ5S2Z8B` banned everywhere
 - Inline file path: `<PKI_DIR>/inline/private/<CN>.inline`
diff --git a/openvpncertupdate.py b/openvpncertupdate.py
index 6d98e9a..9c78190 100644
--- a/openvpncertupdate.py
+++ b/openvpncertupdate.py
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ import email.encoders
 import email.mime.base
 import email.mime.multipart
 import email.mime.text
-import hashlib
+import getpass
 import json
 import os
 import secrets
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ from dataclasses import dataclass, field
 from datetime import date, datetime, timedelta, timezone
 from enum import Enum, auto
 from pathlib import Path
-from typing import Optional
+from typing import Callable, Optional
 
 try:
     from cryptography.hazmat.primitives.ciphers.aead import AESGCM
@@ -36,9 +36,18 @@ except ImportError:  # pragma: no cover
 # SETTINGS — edit these for your environment
 # ============================================================
 
+CONFIG_PATH = ""    # explicit path to an external .conf file overriding the settings
+                    # below (same syntax as this block). Overridden by --config.
+                    # Empty = look for "<this-script-path>.conf" next to the script;
+                    # if that default file is absent it is skipped silently. An
+                    # explicit CONFIG_PATH or --config that doesn't exist is an error.
+
 EASYRSA_DIR       = "/etc/easy-rsa"
 EASYRSA_PKI_DIR   = "/etc/easy-rsa/pki"
-CA_PASSPHRASE     = ""           # empty string = no passphrase
+CA_PASSPHRASE     = ""           # "" = auto-detect & prompt if the CA key is encrypted
+                                 # "!empty" = CA key is unencrypted, never check/prompt
+                                 # "!ask"   = always prompt, skip detection
+                                 # any other value = used as the literal passphrase
 
 OVPN_TEMPLATE_PATH = "./template.ovpn"
 CONFIG_NAME        = "client.ovpn"
@@ -62,6 +71,52 @@ SMTP_TLS      = "starttls"  # "starttls" | "ssl" | "" (plain)
 DAYS_PAST   = 30
 DAYS_AHEAD  = 14
 
+# Names an external .conf file is allowed to override — keep in sync with the
+# SETTINGS block above. Deliberately excludes CONFIG_PATH itself.
+_OVERRIDABLE_SETTINGS = frozenset({
+    "EASYRSA_DIR", "EASYRSA_PKI_DIR", "CA_PASSPHRASE",
+    "OVPN_TEMPLATE_PATH", "CONFIG_NAME", "VPN_CONFIGS_DIR",
+    "CRL_DEST_PATH",
+    "CRYPTGEON_URL",
+    "MAIL_FROM", "MAIL_SUBJECT", "EMAIL_TEMPLATE_PATH", "MAIL_BINARY",
+    "SMTP_HOST", "SMTP_PORT", "SMTP_USER", "SMTP_PASSWORD", "SMTP_TLS",
+    "DAYS_PAST", "DAYS_AHEAD",
+})
+
+
+# ============================================================
+# === SETTINGS OVERRIDE ===
+# ============================================================
+
+
+class ConfigError(Exception):
+    pass
+
+
+def load_settings_overrides(
+    cli_config: Optional[str], configured_path: str, script_path: str
+) -> dict:
+    """Load SETTINGS overrides from an external .conf file (same Python syntax
+    as the SETTINGS block above — it's executed, so only run trusted files).
+
+    Resolution order: --config CLI flag > CONFIG_PATH setting > "<script_path>.conf"
+    next to this script. A path from the CLI flag or CONFIG_PATH is explicit: a
+    missing file raises ConfigError. The default "<script_path>.conf" path is
+    optional: a missing file returns {} silently.
+    """
+    explicit = bool(cli_config or configured_path)
+    path = cli_config or configured_path or f"{script_path}.conf"
+
+    if not os.path.isfile(path):
+        if explicit:
+            raise ConfigError(f"config file not found: {path}")
+        return {}
+
+    namespace: dict = {}
+    exec(compile(Path(path).read_text(), path, "exec"), namespace)
+    return {name: value for name, value in namespace.items() if name in _OVERRIDABLE_SETTINGS}
+
+
 # ============================================================
 # === PKI ===
 # ============================================================
@@ -247,6 +302,37 @@ def copy_crl(pki_dir: str, dest_path: str) -> None:
     os.chmod(dest_path, 0o644)
 
 
+def is_ca_key_encrypted(pki_dir: str) -> bool:
+    """Best-effort check of the CA private key's PEM header. Missing/unreadable
+    key => False (let the normal EasyRSA flow surface any real problem)."""
+    try:
+        header = Path(f"{pki_dir}/private/ca.key").read_text()
+    except OSError:
+        return False
+    return "ENCRYPTED" in header
+
+
+def resolve_ca_passphrase(
+    configured: str, pki_dir: str, prompt: Callable[[str], str] = getpass.getpass
+) -> str:
+    """Resolve the SETTINGS CA_PASSPHRASE sentinel into an actual passphrase.
+
+      ""       → auto-detect: prompt only if the CA key is actually encrypted
+      "!empty" → explicitly unencrypted; never check, never prompt
+      "!ask"   → always prompt, without checking
+      other    → used as the literal passphrase
+    """
+    if configured == "!empty":
+        return ""
+    if configured == "!ask":
+        return prompt("CA passphrase: ")
+    if configured == "":
+        if is_ca_key_encrypted(pki_dir):
+            return prompt("CA key is encrypted; enter CA passphrase: ")
+        return ""
+    return configured
+
+
 # ============================================================
 # === METADATA ===
 # ============================================================
@@ -318,25 +404,28 @@ class CryptgeonError(Exception):
 def create_note(content: str, base_url: str) -> str:
     """AES-256-GCM encrypt content, POST to Cryptgeon, return one-time URL.
 
-    Encryption matches the Cryptgeon browser client:
-      raw_key (32 bytes) → URL fragment (base64url, no padding)
-      aes_key = SHA-256(raw_key) → AES-256-GCM
-      payload = list(nonce + ciphertext)
+    Encryption matches the Cryptgeon browser client (occulto's AES.encrypt +
+    API.create):
+      key (32 bytes, used directly, no derivation) → URL fragment (hex)
+      contents = base64(b"AES-GCM") + "--" + base64(nonce) + "--" + base64(ciphertext)
+      meta = JSON string '{"type": "text"}'
     """
     if AESGCM is None:
         raise CryptgeonError("cryptography package not installed (pip install cryptography)")
 
-    raw_key = os.urandom(32)
-    aes_key = hashlib.sha256(raw_key).digest()
-    nonce   = os.urandom(12)
-    aesgcm  = AESGCM(aes_key)
+    key    = os.urandom(32)
+    nonce  = os.urandom(12)
+    aesgcm = AESGCM(key)
     ciphertext = aesgcm.encrypt(nonce, content.encode("utf-8"), None)
 
+    contents = "--".join(
+        base64.b64encode(part).decode("ascii") for part in (b"AES-GCM", nonce, ciphertext)
+    )
+
     payload = json.dumps({
-        "contents": base64.b64encode(nonce + ciphertext).decode("ascii"),
-        "meta": "",
+        "contents": contents,
+        "meta": json.dumps({"type": "text"}),
         "views": 1,
-        "type": "text",
     }).encode("utf-8")
 
     api_url = base_url.rstrip("/") + "/api/notes/"
@@ -354,9 +443,8 @@ def create_note(content: str, base_url: str) -> str:
     except Exception as exc:
         raise CryptgeonError(f"Cryptgeon request failed: {exc}") from exc
 
-    note_id      = body["id"]
-    key_fragment = base64.urlsafe_b64encode(raw_key).rstrip(b"=").decode()
-    return f"{base_url.rstrip('/')}/#/note/{note_id}/{key_fragment}"
+    note_id = body["id"]
+    return f"{base_url.rstrip('/')}/note/{note_id}#{key.hex()}"
 
 
 # ============================================================
@@ -1296,6 +1384,9 @@ def _build_parser() -> argparse.ArgumentParser:
     parser.add_argument("--show-eml", action="store_true",
                         help="Print the generated email as base64-encoded .eml to stdout "
                              "(implies --no-send-email unless --send-email is also given)")
+    parser.add_argument("--config", metavar="PATH",
+                        help="External .conf file overriding SETTINGS (overrides CONFIG_PATH; "
+                             "a missing file here is an error)")
     return parser
 
 
@@ -1308,6 +1399,16 @@ def main() -> None:
     parser = _build_parser()
     args = parser.parse_args()
 
+    try:
+        overrides = load_settings_overrides(args.config, CONFIG_PATH, __file__)
+    except ConfigError as exc:
+        print(f"error: {exc}", file=sys.stderr)
+        sys.exit(1)
+    globals().update(overrides)
+
+    global CA_PASSPHRASE
+    CA_PASSPHRASE = resolve_ca_passphrase(CA_PASSPHRASE, EASYRSA_PKI_DIR)
+
     # --show-eml switches the default to --no-send-email; explicit --send-email overrides.
     send_email_flag = args.send_email if args.send_email is not None else (not args.show_eml)
 
diff --git a/tests/test_cli.py b/tests/test_cli.py
index ed4755e..391e717 100644
--- a/tests/test_cli.py
+++ b/tests/test_cli.py
@@ -200,6 +200,65 @@ def test_main_no_args_launches_tui(monkeypatch):
     app.run.assert_called_once_with()
 
 
+def test_main_resolves_ca_passphrase_before_dispatch(monkeypatch, tmp_path):
+    """The configured CA_PASSPHRASE sentinel must be resolved to an actual
+    passphrase before any EasyRSA call, and that resolved value (not the
+    sentinel) must be what reaches them."""
+    monkeypatch.setattr(sys, "argv", ["prog", "--gen-crl"])
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.CA_PASSPHRASE", "!ask")
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.EASYRSA_DIR", "/er")
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.EASYRSA_PKI_DIR", str(tmp_path))
+    mock_gen_crl = MagicMock()
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.gen_crl", mock_gen_crl)
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.copy_crl", MagicMock())
+    mock_resolve = MagicMock(return_value="typed-pass")
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.resolve_ca_passphrase", mock_resolve)
+
+    main()
+
+    mock_resolve.assert_called_once_with("!ask", str(tmp_path))
+
+
+def test_main_applies_config_overrides_before_dispatch(monkeypatch, tmp_path):
+    """Overrides returned by load_settings_overrides() must land in the module
+    globals before EasyRSA calls, so a config file can redirect EASYRSA_PKI_DIR etc."""
+    monkeypatch.setattr(sys, "argv", ["prog", "--gen-crl"])
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.EASYRSA_DIR", "/er")
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.EASYRSA_PKI_DIR", "/original/pki")
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.CA_PASSPHRASE", "!empty")
+    mock_gen_crl = MagicMock()
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.gen_crl", mock_gen_crl)
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.copy_crl", MagicMock())
+    mock_load = MagicMock(return_value={"EASYRSA_PKI_DIR": "/overridden/pki"})
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.load_settings_overrides", mock_load)
+
+    main()
+
+    mock_gen_crl.assert_called_once_with("/er", "/overridden/pki", "")
+
+
+def test_main_passes_config_flag_to_load_overrides(monkeypatch):
+    monkeypatch.setattr(sys, "argv", ["prog", "--gen-crl", "--config", "/explicit/path.conf"])
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.CA_PASSPHRASE", "!empty")
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.CliRunner", lambda: MagicMock())
+    mock_load = MagicMock(return_value={})
+    monkeypatch.setattr("openvpncertupdate.load_settings_overrides", mock_load)
+
+    main()
+
+    assert mock_load.call_args[0][0] == "/explicit/path.conf"
+
+
+def test_main_exits_with_error_when_explicit_config_missing(monkeypatch, capsys):
+    monkeypatch.setattr(sys, "argv", ["prog", "--gen-crl", "--config", "/does/not/exist.conf"])
+
+    with pytest.raises(SystemExit) as exc_info:
+        main()
+
+    assert exc_info.value.code != 0
+    assert "/does/not/exist.conf" in capsys.readouterr().err
+
+
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 # --send-email / --no-send-email
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/tests/test_config_file.py b/tests/test_config_file.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0e0d997
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_config_file.py
@@ -0,0 +1,62 @@
+import pytest
+from openvpncertupdate import load_settings_overrides, ConfigError
+
+
+def _script_path(tmp_path):
+    return str(tmp_path / "openvpncertupdate.py")
+
+
+def test_default_path_missing_returns_empty_silently(tmp_path):
+    overrides = load_settings_overrides(None, "", _script_path(tmp_path))
+    assert overrides == {}
+
+
+def test_default_path_found_loads_overrides(tmp_path):
+    conf = tmp_path / "openvpncertupdate.py.conf"
+    conf.write_text('EASYRSA_DIR = "/custom/easyrsa"\n')
+    overrides = load_settings_overrides(None, "", _script_path(tmp_path))
+    assert overrides == {"EASYRSA_DIR": "/custom/easyrsa"}
+
+
+def test_explicit_cli_path_missing_raises(tmp_path):
+    missing = str(tmp_path / "missing.conf")
+    with pytest.raises(ConfigError, match=missing):
+        load_settings_overrides(missing, "", _script_path(tmp_path))
+
+
+def test_explicit_configured_path_missing_raises(tmp_path):
+    missing = str(tmp_path / "missing2.conf")
+    with pytest.raises(ConfigError, match=missing):
+        load_settings_overrides(None, missing, _script_path(tmp_path))
+
+
+def test_cli_path_takes_priority_over_configured_path(tmp_path):
+    cli_conf = tmp_path / "from_cli.conf"
+    cli_conf.write_text('EASYRSA_DIR = "/from/cli"\n')
+    configured_conf = tmp_path / "from_configured.conf"
+    configured_conf.write_text('EASYRSA_DIR = "/from/configured"\n')
+
+    overrides = load_settings_overrides(str(cli_conf), str(configured_conf), _script_path(tmp_path))
+    assert overrides == {"EASYRSA_DIR": "/from/cli"}
+
+
+def test_unrecognized_and_config_path_names_are_filtered_out(tmp_path):
+    conf = tmp_path / "openvpncertupdate.py.conf"
+    conf.write_text(
+        'EASYRSA_DIR = "/custom/easyrsa"\n'
+        'SOME_RANDOM_NAME = "y"\n'
+        'CONFIG_PATH = "/should/not/apply"\n'
+    )
+    overrides = load_settings_overrides(None, "", _script_path(tmp_path))
+    assert overrides == {"EASYRSA_DIR": "/custom/easyrsa"}
+
+
+def test_comments_and_non_string_types_supported(tmp_path):
+    conf = tmp_path / "openvpncertupdate.py.conf"
+    conf.write_text(
+        "# a comment\n"
+        "SMTP_PORT = 2525\n"
+        'CA_PASSPHRASE = ""   # inline comment\n'
+    )
+    overrides = load_settings_overrides(None, "", _script_path(tmp_path))
+    assert overrides == {"SMTP_PORT": 2525, "CA_PASSPHRASE": ""}
diff --git a/tests/test_cryptgeon.py b/tests/test_cryptgeon.py
index 5781899..d74c5f6 100644
--- a/tests/test_cryptgeon.py
+++ b/tests/test_cryptgeon.py
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
+import base64
 import json
 import pytest
 from unittest.mock import patch, MagicMock
+from cryptography.hazmat.primitives.ciphers.aead import AESGCM
 from openvpncertupdate import create_note, CryptgeonError
 
 
@@ -13,11 +15,13 @@ def mock_response(body: bytes):
 
 
 @patch("openvpncertupdate.urllib.request.urlopen")
-def test_returns_url_with_id(mock_open):
+def test_url_uses_path_based_note_route_with_hex_key_fragment(mock_open):
     mock_open.return_value = mock_response(b'{"id":"abc-123"}')
     url = create_note("secret", "https://cg.example.com")
-    assert "abc-123" in url
-    assert url.startswith("https://cg.example.com/#/note/abc-123/")
+    assert url.startswith("https://cg.example.com/note/abc-123#")
+    fragment = url.split("#", 1)[1]
+    assert len(fragment) == 64
+    bytes.fromhex(fragment)  # must be valid hex, not base64url
 
 
 @patch("openvpncertupdate.urllib.request.urlopen")
@@ -26,11 +30,29 @@ def test_posts_to_correct_endpoint(mock_open):
     create_note("hello", "https://cg.example.com")
     req = mock_open.call_args[0][0]
     assert req.full_url == "https://cg.example.com/api/notes/"
+
+
+@patch("openvpncertupdate.urllib.request.urlopen")
+def test_meta_is_json_string_describing_text_note(mock_open):
+    mock_open.return_value = mock_response(b'{"id":"x"}')
+    create_note("hello", "https://cg.example.com")
+    req = mock_open.call_args[0][0]
     body = json.loads(req.data)
-    assert isinstance(body["contents"], str)
-    assert body["meta"] == ""
+    assert json.loads(body["meta"]) == {"type": "text"}
     assert body["views"] == 1
-    assert body["type"] == "text"
+
+
+@patch("openvpncertupdate.urllib.request.urlopen")
+def test_contents_is_three_part_dash_delimited_base64(mock_open):
+    mock_open.return_value = mock_response(b'{"id":"x"}')
+    create_note("hello", "https://cg.example.com")
+    req = mock_open.call_args[0][0]
+    body = json.loads(req.data)
+    parts = body["contents"].split("--")
+    assert len(parts) == 3
+    alg, nonce, ciphertext = (base64.b64decode(p) for p in parts)
+    assert alg == b"AES-GCM"
+    assert len(nonce) == 12
 
 
 @patch("openvpncertupdate.urllib.request.urlopen")
@@ -42,8 +64,28 @@ def test_raises_on_http_error(mock_open):
 
 
 @patch("openvpncertupdate.urllib.request.urlopen")
-def test_different_passwords_give_different_urls(mock_open):
+def test_different_contents_give_different_urls(mock_open):
     mock_open.return_value = mock_response(b'{"id":"same"}')
     url1 = create_note("pass1", "https://cg.example.com")
     url2 = create_note("pass2", "https://cg.example.com")
     assert url1 != url2
+
+
+@patch("openvpncertupdate.urllib.request.urlopen")
+def test_decrypts_like_the_browser_client(mock_open):
+    """Reproduces the note/[id] view: key from the URL fragment must be the
+    exact key used to encrypt (no extra hashing step), or GCM auth fails."""
+    mock_open.return_value = mock_response(b'{"id":"abc"}')
+    url = create_note("my secret password", "https://cg.example.com")
+    req = mock_open.call_args[0][0]
+    body = json.loads(req.data)
+
+    key_hex = url.split("#", 1)[1]
+    key = bytes.fromhex(key_hex)
+
+    alg_b64, nonce_b64, ciphertext_b64 = body["contents"].split("--")
+    nonce = base64.b64decode(nonce_b64)
+    ciphertext = base64.b64decode(ciphertext_b64)
+
+    plaintext = AESGCM(key).decrypt(nonce, ciphertext, None)
+    assert plaintext == b"my secret password"
diff --git a/tests/test_easyrsa.py b/tests/test_easyrsa.py
index 5e91b5d..156d4c2 100644
--- a/tests/test_easyrsa.py
+++ b/tests/test_easyrsa.py
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ import pytest
 from unittest.mock import patch, MagicMock
 from openvpncertupdate import (
     revoke_issued, build_client_full, gen_crl, copy_crl, EasyRSAError,
+    is_ca_key_encrypted, resolve_ca_passphrase,
 )
 
 
@@ -65,3 +66,75 @@ def test_copy_crl_copies_and_chmods(mock_chmod, mock_copy):
     copy_crl("/pki", "/etc/openvpn/crl.pem")
     mock_copy.assert_called_once_with("/pki/crl.pem", "/etc/openvpn/crl.pem")
     mock_chmod.assert_called_once_with("/etc/openvpn/crl.pem", 0o644)
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# is_ca_key_encrypted
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+def _write_ca_key(pki_dir, content):
+    private = pki_dir / "private"
+    private.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+    (private / "ca.key").write_text(content)
+
+
+def test_is_ca_key_encrypted_true_for_pkcs8_encrypted_header(tmp_path):
+    _write_ca_key(tmp_path, "-----BEGIN ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY-----\nAAA\n-----END ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY-----\n")
+    assert is_ca_key_encrypted(str(tmp_path)) is True
+
+
+def test_is_ca_key_encrypted_true_for_legacy_proc_type_header(tmp_path):
+    _write_ca_key(tmp_path, "-----BEGIN RSA PRIVATE KEY-----\nProc-Type: 4,ENCRYPTED\nDEK-Info: AES-256-CBC,...\n\nAAA\n-----END RSA PRIVATE KEY-----\n")
+    assert is_ca_key_encrypted(str(tmp_path)) is True
+
+
+def test_is_ca_key_encrypted_false_for_plain_key(tmp_path):
+    _write_ca_key(tmp_path, "-----BEGIN PRIVATE KEY-----\nAAA\n-----END PRIVATE KEY-----\n")
+    assert is_ca_key_encrypted(str(tmp_path)) is False
+
+
+def test_is_ca_key_encrypted_false_when_key_missing(tmp_path):
+    assert is_ca_key_encrypted(str(tmp_path)) is False
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# resolve_ca_passphrase
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+def test_resolve_empty_string_prompts_when_ca_is_encrypted(tmp_path):
+    _write_ca_key(tmp_path, "-----BEGIN ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY-----\nAAA\n-----END ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY-----\n")
+    prompt = MagicMock(return_value="typed-pass")
+    result = resolve_ca_passphrase("", str(tmp_path), prompt=prompt)
+    assert result == "typed-pass"
+    prompt.assert_called_once()
+
+
+def test_resolve_empty_string_skips_prompt_when_ca_not_encrypted(tmp_path):
+    _write_ca_key(tmp_path, "-----BEGIN PRIVATE KEY-----\nAAA\n-----END PRIVATE KEY-----\n")
+    prompt = MagicMock()
+    result = resolve_ca_passphrase("", str(tmp_path), prompt=prompt)
+    assert result == ""
+    prompt.assert_not_called()
+
+
+def test_resolve_empty_sentinel_never_checks_or_prompts(tmp_path):
+    _write_ca_key(tmp_path, "-----BEGIN ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY-----\nAAA\n-----END ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY-----\n")
+    prompt = MagicMock()
+    result = resolve_ca_passphrase("!empty", str(tmp_path), prompt=prompt)
+    assert result == ""
+    prompt.assert_not_called()
+
+
+def test_resolve_ask_sentinel_always_prompts_without_checking(tmp_path):
+    # no ca.key on disk at all -- must not be checked/read for "!ask"
+    prompt = MagicMock(return_value="typed-pass")
+    result = resolve_ca_passphrase("!ask", str(tmp_path), prompt=prompt)
+    assert result == "typed-pass"
+    prompt.assert_called_once()
+
+
+def test_resolve_literal_passphrase_passed_through_unchanged(tmp_path):
+    prompt = MagicMock()
+    result = resolve_ca_passphrase("mysecret", str(tmp_path), prompt=prompt)
+    assert result == "mysecret"
+    prompt.assert_not_called()