Verify an SSL Certificate Order

This applies to SSL renewals through our legacy cp.blacknight.com platform only. For how to validate newer SSL orders on cp.blacknighthosting.com please see here:

Validate SSL order in cp.blacknighthosting.com

When you renew or order an SSL cert you need to verify/validate the SSL Certificate to allow it to be issued to you.

To accomplish this, an email will be sent to you with a link to the Confirm Details Page for the order; the link will look similar to the following:

http://sslorder.blacknight.market/getinfo?domain_name=XX.XX&subscription_id=XXX

Confirm Details Page

Once you click that link you will be brought to a page which will look similar to the screenshot below, note that by default most of the details presented will be populated and cannot be changed.

It is key to note that the initial set of details - Account Information, simply reflects the Blacknight account that the SSL Certificate was ordered through and the Subscription ID of the SSL Certificate order; the information here does not have any major baring to the SSL Certificate itself.

The section below this - SSL Cert Information, does apply to the actual SSL Certificate itself and should be considered before ordering. Unless you are ordering an Extended Validation (EV) SSL Certificate, most of the fields are not really of concern for a standard/typical SSL Certificate and as such as long as the following are correct there should be no problem getting the SSL Certificate issued:

• Common Name
  • This would be the actual domain/hostname being secured.
  • If securing www.domain.com, this can list either www.domain.com, domain.com.
• Email Address
  • This should reflect the contact that is responsible party for the SSL Certificate.

If the details are not correct, and you would like to amend them for the issuance of the SSL Certificate, the simplest way to go about this is to supply a new Certificate Signing Request (CSR) via the verification page by clicking the option Provide CSR Now.

See the following for how to generate an CSR: "How to generate a CSR"

If you do supply your own CSR, ensure you keep the Private Key created with it as otherwise you will not be able to install the SSL Certificate and the SSL Certificate will need to be re-issued.

When you are ready, click the "Verify" Details button.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

You will also notice a drop-down labelled as Server Software.

This is the type of SSL Certificate that needs to be issued for installation on the server. In most cases, and for our Linux Shared Hosting servers, you can leave this set as Apache/ModSSL.

However, if you are installing the SSL Certificate for another operating system and/or control panel type - such as cPanel/Plesk, you should choose the type of SSL Certificate that matches that environment.

For Windows systems, you would typically choose the option:

Microsoft IIS x.x and later

Where for newer systems it would be Microsoft IIS 7.x and later and if you are installing the SSL Certificate directly to the windows system you must supply the Certificate Signing Request (CSR) which was generated from that system as the Private Key will be stored on that system. Note that we can have the SSL Certificate re-issued in the correct type after, however, this will delay the process overall.

If installing the SSL Certificate to our Windows Shared Hosting servers leave the option set as Apache/ModSSL.

CNAME Creation Page

There are a number of ways for the SSL Certificate Vendor to verify that you can install the SSL Certificate on your domain, once such way is via the creation of a CNAME DNS Record on your domain's DNS - and is what our system will use during the order process.

If you encounter an error, such as the below, that does not allow for us to create the CNAME DNS Record on the domain, we can go about validating the SSL Certificate in another manner; we will contact you once this is alerted to us after completion of the SSL Certificate order process.

If we can create the CNAME DNS Record for you, you will then see the following:

You will then see more information below including your Private Key - if we generated the CSR for you that is.

If the Private Key is shown you should take a copy of this and store it locally, and in a safe manner, as you may need it again for re-installation (or installation elsewhere). Note that we can obtain the Private Key also for you if required.

Once you have copied down any data required you must click Issue SSL Cert to complete the order - the SSL Certificate order WILL NOT be completed until this is carried out.

After this, if the SSL Certificate can be installed on the Webspace hosted with us by the system it will be installed automatically - you will then receive an email with further details that you may need to carry out to make the website use the SSL Certificate.

If the SSL Certificate cannot be installed, for whatever reason, we will receive an email regarding the same and as such our Support team will contact you (during normal business hours) to follow-up on the same.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

Installing an SSL Certificate is only part of the process of securing your website i.e. it presents the means of which you can secure the traffic to the server, and  does not automatically make your website secure nor does it automatically make your website use it either.

You will need to follow the instructions in the email you receive after the installation and also ensure website is free of vulnerabilities to start to use the SSL Certificate. If you are unsure of the process you can enquire with our Support team, however, chances are you will need to have a Web Developer make the required changes for you.

Further Queries

If you have any queries on this, please contact our Support team - see the following for our contact details:

• https://www.blacknight.com/contact-us.html