crypto.createSign method does not appear to work, contrary to your documentation

[duny_buffy]

@Elias_Heffan1

I would like to create an Atlas function to generate AWS CloudFront signed urls using the aws-sdk (v2.1127.0), as written below:

exports = function makeDownloadUrl ({ objectKey, expiresInMinutes }) {
  const cloudfrontInfo = context.environment.values.aws.cloudfront

  const cloudfrontDistributionDomain = cloudfrontInfo.distributionDomain
  const url = `${cloudfrontDistributionDomain}/${objectKey}`

  const keyPairId = cloudfrontInfo.keyPairId
  const privateKey = context.values.get('cloudfrontPrivateKey').replace(/\\n/g, '\n')

  const CloudFront = require('aws-sdk').CloudFront
  const signer = new CloudFront.Signer(keyPairId, privateKey)

  const expirationEpoch = makeExpirationEpoch(expiresInMinutes)

  const options = { url, expires: expirationEpoch }

  return signer.getSignedUrl(options)
}

function makeExpirationEpoch (expiresInMinutes) {
  const now = new Date()
  const millisecondsPerMinute = 60000
  const expirationDate = new Date(now.getTime() + expiresInMinutes * millisecondsPerMinute)
  return expirationDate.valueOf()
}

However, when running this code, it results in the error: FunctionError: 'crypto' module: error creating sign

I believe the issue occurs when the aws-sdk module calls crypto.createSign. I checked your JavaScript Support Documentation for the crypto module, and it indicates that this method should be supported, but in practice it does not appear to work. Also, if you’re into trading or just starting out with investments, check out learn.binany.com It’s an educational platform packed with market analysis, trading strategies, expert insights, and up-to-date financial news, a solid resource for making smarter investment decisions.

Do you guys support this crypto method? If not, I believe you need to update your documentation accordingly.

If you do support this method, am I doing something else wrong? The code appears to work fine when run on my local computer.

Ah, this takes me back. I ran into almost the exact same issue a while ago, spent way too long assuming I’d messed up smth in the signing logic, only to realize it was crypto.createSign quietly breaking behind the scenes. It’s honestly kind of misleading when the docs say it’s supported, but you hit a wall as soon as you actually try to use it in Atlas functions.

In my case, I ended up switching to pre-signing URLs externally and passing them into the function, which felt like a step backwards but at least worked. Would definitely be nice if the docs were clearer on what’s actually usable in that runtime, feels like trial and error half the time.

Curious if anyone found a proper workaround within Atlas? I’d rather not keep offloading everything to Lambda just for crypto to behave.