Creating and Installing Free Self-signed SSL Certificate

If you do not feel like paying money for SSL certificates, but still need to secure a site, you can create a self-signed certificate and install it on your web server. This will provide data encryption; however, your customers' browsers will show warning messages telling that your certificate is not issued by a recognized authority. Thus, using self-signed certificates is not recommended as it will not instill confidence in customers, and is likely to adversely affect the online sales of your client.

To secure a site with a self-signed SSL certificate:

  1. Click the Domains shortcut in the navigation pane.
  2. Click the required domain name in the list.
  3. Click Certificates in the Services group. A list of SSL certificates that you have in your repository will be displayed.
  4. Click Add New Certificate.
  5. Specify the certificate properties:
    1. Click the Self-Signed button. Your certificate will be generated and stored in the repository.
  6. Return to the domain's administration screen (Domain > domain name) and click Setup in the Hosting group.
  7. Select the self-signed SSL certificate from the Certificate drop-down box.

    If there is no Certificate drop-down box on the screen, this means that you are on a shared hosting account; therefore, you need to upgrade your hosting package and purchase a dedicated IP address from your hosting provider.

  8. Select the SSL support check box and click OK.