First of all, an SSL certificate works in the following way:
A key is created that only the server knows.
With that key, a CSR certificate is created that You send it to the company that provides you with the final certificate. That CSR has the domain information to protect (all encrypted).
They return 2 things, on the one hand the certificate itself which can only be decoded with the key it has on the server and secondly a CA package (CABUNDLE).
The company that offers the certificate sends you a certificate which is encrypted and can only be decoded with the key that you have because it sent you that information within the CSR.
How do I configure an SSL certificate with CPANEL?
To To be able to do so, enter your Cpanel panel and from there to the SSL /TLS Administration option.
Within that section we select the Private Keys (KEY) option. Below everything there is a title that says Generate a new key. Right there we write the name of our domain (Host).
We recommend that if you want the site to be seen with www then include them, for example: www.yourdomain.com
If you want your domain to be left without the www then avoid placing them.
Next step select the key size to 2048 and click on generate.
It will show you two fields where the key is located, just in case it is better that you copy said key and paste it into a TXT text file.
Once the key is ready, return to the administration section and go to the Certificate Signing Requests (CSR) option. Below everything, several fields will appear to fill out:
Host: by default the host indicated when creating the key will appear, but if we have several keys, several options will appear; you select the host that I indicated when creating the key.
Country: it is more than clear
Status: nothing…
City: also more than clear
The name of the company: or the name of the website to be protected for example (Facebook Incs )
Company department: here you can invent something or put in 2 words what the company does…
And the email…
Then click Generate and it will show you the certificate CSR. That certificate, like the key, pastes it into the TXT text file, separating it from the key so as not to get confused.
Now you go to the service that will provide you with the certificate and in the configuration it will ask you to paste a CSR certificate that would be the one you just generated. In addition, you will be asked for other personal contact and administration information.
Once the data has been processed, the company will return the CRT certificate and a CA Package (CABUNDLE).
Of Go back to Cpanel and this time go to the option Activate SSL on your website (HTTPS).
Within this section, select the domain and paste the key that you created at the beginning, the CRT certificate (it would be the one returned to you by the company of the SSL service) and the CA package (CABUNDLE), it is not necessary but if you have it better!
Install certificate and finished!
All that remains is to enter your domain with https to check if everything is in order.
What happens if the certificate is not correct? For example in Google Chrome if the https appears in green it is perfect. If it is red with a crossed line or yellow, there are some problems on the website, which means:
- Check that all internal links have https, including images.
- Check that External elements such as Facebook buttons, Twitter boxes, everything has secure connections (https) and so on.
