[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":97},["ShallowReactive",2],{"tool-guide:hash-generator":3},{"overview":4,"whatIs":5,"useCases":6,"steps":12,"commonMistakes":17,"relatedStandards":23,"comparison":36,"example":74,"limitations":78,"faq":81},"Hash Generator calculates deterministic MD5, SHA-1, SHA-256, or SHA-512 digests from the exact UTF-8 bytes entered in the browser.","A cryptographic hash function takes an input of any size and produces a fixed-length output (the digest or hash) that is deterministic, fast to compute, and practically impossible to reverse. The same input always produces the same hash, but even a single-bit change produces a completely different output (the avalanche effect). Hashes are fundamental to software engineering: Git uses SHA-1 (migrating to SHA-256) to identify every commit, tree, and blob; package managers verify downloads with SHA-256 checksums; CI\u002FCD pipelines use content hashes to skip unchanged build steps; and HMAC-based authentication signs API requests with a shared secret. MD5 (128-bit) and SHA-1 (160-bit) are provided for compatibility with legacy systems but are no longer collision-resistant — meaning two different inputs can produce the same hash. SHA-256 (256-bit) and SHA-512 (512-bit) from the SHA-2 family remain secure for all integrity and authentication use cases. This tool uses the browser's built-in SubtleCrypto API (the same implementation used for TLS) so your input text never leaves your device.",[7,8,9,10,11],"Verifying file integrity — compute the SHA-256 hash of a downloaded binary and compare it to the publisher's checksum to detect corruption or tampering.","Debugging Git objects — hash a file's content to confirm the blob SHA that Git stores, or verify that a commit hash matches expected content.","Comparing API payloads — hash the request body before and after serialization to confirm that encoding did not alter the content.","Generating cache keys — hash configuration or input data to create deterministic cache keys for build systems, CDN purge rules, or memoization.","Checking password breach databases — hash a password with SHA-1 and check the first 5 characters against the Have I Been Pwned k-anonymity API without exposing the full hash.",[13,14,15,16],"Enter the text whose exact UTF-8 digest you need.","Choose one or more hash algorithms: MD5, SHA-1, SHA-256, or SHA-512.","Generate the hash. The hexadecimal digest is displayed instantly.","Compare the result with a value from a trusted channel — matching hashes confirm identical input.",[18,19,20,21,22],"Using plain hashes for password storage — a fast hash like SHA-256 can be brute-forced at billions of attempts per second. Use bcrypt, scrypt, or Argon2 for password storage.","Relying on MD5 or SHA-1 for security — both algorithms have known collision attacks. Use them only for non-security checksums (legacy compatibility, content addressing).","Hashing different encodings — UTF-8, UTF-16, and Latin-1 encode the same text as different bytes, producing different hashes. Ensure both parties use the same encoding.","Confusing hashing with encryption — hashing is one-way (you cannot recover the input from the hash). Encryption is two-way (you can decrypt with the key).","Ignoring trailing whitespace — a space or newline at the end of the input changes the hash. Trim input consistently when comparing hashes across systems.",[24,27,30,33],{"title":25,"url":26},"RFC 6234 — SHA-256 and SHA-512 (SHA-2)","https:\u002F\u002Fdatatracker.ietf.org\u002Fdoc\u002Fhtml\u002Frfc6234",{"title":28,"url":29},"RFC 1321 — MD5 Message-Digest Algorithm","https:\u002F\u002Fdatatracker.ietf.org\u002Fdoc\u002Fhtml\u002Frfc1321",{"title":31,"url":32},"NIST FIPS 180-4 — Secure Hash Standard","https:\u002F\u002Fcsrc.nist.gov\u002Fpublications\u002Fdetail\u002Ffips\u002F180\u002F4\u002Ffinal",{"title":34,"url":35},"Web Crypto API — SubtleCrypto.digest()","https:\u002F\u002Fdeveloper.mozilla.org\u002Fen-US\u002Fdocs\u002FWeb\u002FAPI\u002FSubtleCrypto\u002Fdigest",{"heading":37,"columns":38,"rows":43},"Hash algorithm comparison",[39,40,41,42],"MD5","SHA-1","SHA-256","SHA-512",[44,51,56,62,67],{"label":45,"values":46},"Output size",[47,48,49,50],"128 bits (32 hex)","160 bits (40 hex)","256 bits (64 hex)","512 bits (128 hex)",{"label":52,"values":53},"Collision-resistant",[54,54,55,55],"No","Yes",{"label":57,"values":58},"Speed",[59,60,60,61],"Fastest","Fast","Slightly slower",{"label":63,"values":64},"Use in Git",[54,65,66,54],"Yes (legacy)","Yes (new default)",{"label":68,"values":69},"Recommended for",[70,71,72,73],"Checksums only","Legacy compat","General purpose","Extra security margin",{"label":75,"input":76,"output":77},"Hash a public sample","stackcache","SHA-256: deterministic 64-character hexadecimal digest",[79,80],"MD5 and SHA-1 are retained for compatibility checks, not collision-resistant security.","A plain hash is not a password-storage scheme; use a purpose-built password KDF.",[82,85,88,91,94],{"question":83,"answer":84},"Which hash algorithms are supported?","MD5, SHA-1, SHA-256, and SHA-512. SHA-256 and SHA-512 are recommended for integrity checks; MD5 and SHA-1 are provided for compatibility only.",{"question":86,"answer":87},"Is my input sent to a server?","No. Hashing uses the browser's built-in SubtleCrypto API and runs entirely on your device. Your text is never uploaded.",{"question":89,"answer":90},"Can I use this tool to hash passwords?","Plain hashing is not suitable for password storage. Use a dedicated key derivation function like bcrypt, scrypt, or Argon2 for storing passwords securely.",{"question":92,"answer":93},"Why do MD5 and SHA-1 produce different length outputs?","Each algorithm has a fixed output size: MD5 produces 128 bits (32 hex characters), SHA-1 produces 160 bits (40 hex characters), SHA-256 produces 256 bits (64 hex), and SHA-512 produces 512 bits (128 hex).",{"question":95,"answer":96},"What is the avalanche effect?","The avalanche effect means that changing even one bit of the input produces a completely different hash output. This property makes hashes useful for detecting any modification to data.",1788868140889]