Understanding error output when a subkey expires

[Ingo Klöcker]

On Dienstag, 20. Mai 2025 14:53:46 Mitteleuropäische Sommerzeit jman via 
Gnupg-users wrote:
> Specifically, I would like to understand these cryptic error messages:
> - [GNUPG:] KEY_CONSIDERED <fingerprint> 3 (what does the 3 stand for?)
> - [GNUPG:] INV_SGNR 9
> - [GNUPG:] FAILURE sign 54

These are not cryptic error messages, but machine readable status messages.

> is there any documentation?

Of course. The man page of gpg points you in the right direction when you 
search it for the --status-fd option that you seem to know about:
```
       For  scripted  or  other unattended use of gpg make sure to use the 
machine-parseable interface and not the default interface
       which is intended for direct use by humans.  The machine-parseable 
interface provides a stable and well documented API  inde‐
       pendent of the locale or future changes of gpg.  To enable this 
interface use the options --with-colons and --status-fd.  For
       certain  operations  the option --command-fd may come handy too.  See 
this man page and the file ‘DETAILS’ for the specifica‐
       tion of the interface.  [...]
```

You can find the DETAILS file at
https://dev.gnupg.org/source/gnupg/browse/master/doc/DETAILS

Regards,
Ingo
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