How to choose your SSL certificate and get it up and running

Blog > Website & Hosting > Website Security

You can now get an SSL certificate from EuroDNS; a free one for every domain name you've got registered with us. We launched SSL certificates as part of our ongoing fight against Internet crime. They provide an easy and cost-effective way for website owners to secure online transactions. Here’s how to apply, and set them up!

Choose your SSL certificate

The following information applies to whichever SSL certificate you choose, free or purchased. First, decide which one is going to suit your online business. Every domain name registered or transferred with EuroDNS, comes with a free Alpha SSL certificate. If you need something stronger, you can choose to upgrade to Domain, Organisation, or Extended certificates.

Four-SSL-certificates.png#asset:8656

Getting an SSL certificate during domain name registration

  • Log in to your EuroDNS account, click on REGISTER A DOMAIN and enter the domain name you'd like to register, click SEARCH.
  • Add to your shopping cart, now CONFIGURE YOUR ORDER.
  • Click on CHANGE SETTINGS to select the contact and name server profiles, click on NEXT STEP.
  • Choose your SSL certificate type, duration (1, 2, 3 yrs.), and quantity.
  • Click the green shopping cart to add the SSL certificate to your purchases.
  • Confirm & pay.

Getting an SSL certificate from the product page

  • Log in to your EuroDNS account and in the blue menu click PRODUCTS, the underneath click SSL.
  • Choose Alpha, Domain, Organisation, or Extended SSL certificate. To certify all possible sub domains too, tick Wildcard, then ADD TO CART.
  • Choose your invoice profile and payment method, accept T&Cs, then PLACE ORDER.

Intermediate SSL certificate – what, why, how?

An intermediate certificate is an extra layer of security. It completes a ‘chain of trust’ between your certificate and our Certificate Authority, GlobalSign. Plus, it speeds up the delivery of your SSL certificate.

Because the applicant verification gets stronger with each SSL certificate, issuance takes longer. For an Extended Validation certificate which involves manual validation, it may exceed 3-4 days. GlobalSign screen all our SSL certificates for phishing, which again can slow down issuance - but it's a worthwhile delay.

There’re some techie bits you’ll need to do to get your SSL intermediate certificate, please give us a shout if you need any help.

Activating your SSL certificate

First you’ll need a Certificate Signing Request (CSR); it contains all your certificate application info. You can get one from your server administrator/hosting provider, or you can generate your own. If you’re going to do it yourself, all you need is in our SSL FAQs. To cover both the www and non-www version of your website, you must generate it for the www version.

Important: you must activate your free or purchased SSL certificates within 90 days, or it'll expire.

Activating a free Alpha SSL certificate

  • Log in to your EuroDNS account and go to DOMAIN NAMES > ACTIVE.
  • Hover over the domain name you’d like to certify and it’ll turn blue. On the right click manage, and then bottom right, under add ons, ACTIVATE FREE SSL.
  • Select the name from the dropdown menu, copy & paste the CSR, or upload the text file that holds it.
  • Click REGISTER CSR, confirm the details, and select your validation method: email, URL, or text record.
  • Confirm the contact details of the domain name owner and activate.

Activating your purchased SSL certificate

  • Log in to your EuroDNS account and go to the control panel dropdown menu. Click manage SSL certificates, activate next to the relevant SSL certificate.
  • For domain names registered with us, click Domain name with EuroDNS then select your domain name.
  • For domain names with another registrar, choose Domain name with another provider.
  • Copy & paste the CSR, or upload the text file that holds it.
  • Click on register CSR, confirm the details, and then select your validation method:
    Email - please select an email address in the dropdown menu
    URL - meta tag
    Text record - if the domain is registered with EuroDNS and uses our name servers, the TXT record will be automatically added to the DNS zone of the domain.
  • Confirm the contact details of the domain name owner and ACTIVATE YOUR SSL CERTIFICATE.

If you make a mistake, you can reissue your SSL certificate

If you make a mistake during activation, it’s not a biggie, just reissue it. After, you’ll need to manually revoke the old, incorrect SSL certificate once the new one’s been reissued. To reissue:

  • Log in to your EuroDNS account and go to PRODUCTS > SSL.
  • Under ACTIVE PRODUCTS move the cursor over the corresponding domain name and click on View to open the SSL certificate control panel.
  • Click on Reissue.
  • Copy & paste the CSR or upload the file containing it and click on REGISTER CSR.
  • Confirm the CSR information and click ACTIVATE YOUR SSL CERTIFICATE.

To revoke is as above but once you’re in the SSL control panel, click on REVOKE.

Talk to EuroDNS about which SSL certificate will work for you

We’re happy to discuss which SSL certificate will work best one for you and your business. If you take a look at these recent posts on SSL certificates, they may answer your questions:

If you sign up for our newsletter, you'll get useful tips, promos, industry news, and more!

Photo credit


Next article:
Local search - local domain: the perfect match!

Previous article:
GlobalSign - provider of our SSL certificates - talks online security

Related articles: