Method and system for certificate delivery and management

A method and system for combining multiple access points and utilizing certificates as an access method to a system from multiple access points enables use of a certificate that is stored within a smart card to access a host system through a browser, such that when the user accesses the application on the server, the application requires that the card and certificate be present for authentication of the individual user, and concurrently allows an external system to access applications on a host server using a certificate stored on the external system for authenticating itself to the host server. A certificate for certificate-based authentication is created and distributed to a choice of storage methods, such as a microcomputer of an integrated chip card, a computer disk of a computing device disposed in a secure environment, or a Hardware Security Module (HSM) associated with the computing device. The certificate is managed over its life span at least partly via a Lightweight Directory Assistance protocol (LDAP) directory shared by a certificate authority (CA) and the host system. Access to the host system is allowed using the certificate for public key-based authentication to the host system.