Sometimes it can happen that the browser does not detect the extraction or introduction of a smart card in the reader, so, if we have not introduced the card before Autofirma is booted, the certificate will not be found.

It may also happen that, once Autofirma is loaded, the card is extracted and, when performing a signature operation, the browser shows the certificates of the card even if it is no longer present. In this case, the signature will fail when attempting to use that certificate.

If you do not see your certificates in the selection dialog or if you still see them after removing the smart card from the reader, you can force the reload of the store by using the update button in the certificate selection dialog. If Autofirma still does not properly load your certificates, try inserting the card before starting the signing operation.

In case your smart card’s certificates don’t appear in the certificate selection dialog, check that you have your card driver installed on your computer. Make sure that you install a version of the driver with the same architecture as your Autofirma version since it is possible that, in case of having different architecture (one 32-bit and the other 64-bit), Java will not be able to load the driver.

Please also note that Autofirma or the web application requesting the signature may be filtering the certificates that are displayed to the user so that only those that are compatible are displayed. It is common to omit expired certificates and certificates not eligible for signature. You could also filter the certificates according to your provider.

Sometimes, when using smart cards, when signing in Windows, the operation ends in error and the message “Keyset does not exist” is displayed on the console.

This problem, which although it can occur in any version of Windows is more common in Windows XP, has no solution, and is due to an incompatibility of Java with CAPI drivers (CSP, MiniDriver, etc.) of your smart card.

Try upgrading both the Java execution environment and your card driver to the latest version available.

In case the problem persists, open an issue against the provider of this key store hardware/software.

Many smart cards do not have the drivers needed for use through the Apple keychain (store used by Autofirma when used through Safari, Chrome or as a desktop application). In the specific case of DNIe and CERES cards, Autofirma is able to use it through JMulticard, the Java controller that it incorporates, but with the rest of the cards it is not possible.

To use cryptographic cards on macOS, install your PKCS#11 drivers as security devices in Mozilla Firefox and use Autofirma through this browser.