Renewing SSL Certificates With Namecheap

Activating and renewing the certificate

• Log in at namecheap.com
• Account > Dashboard > DOMAIN_NAME (will have SSL listed in the "Expiration" column) > Manage button
• Products tab > positivessl table item listed as "NEWRENEWAL" for the domain/subdomain in question > Activate button
• PositiveSSL Certificate
  • (1) CSR
    • Enter CSR: Paste the CSR generated in cPanel.
    • Primary Domain: Will be prefilled after a valid CSR is entered in the CSR field and focus leaves that field.
    • Server Type: Apache, Nginx, cPanel or other
    • Hashing Algorithm: SHA-2
    • Submit button
  • The following page displays the information that was read from the CSR. Confirm by clicking the Next button.
  • (2) Validation
    • DCV Method: Email
    • Approver Email Select an email address associated with the certificate that can be used to complete the validation.
    • Click Next button.
  • (3) Contacts
    • Company Contacts
      • Company Name
      • Address
      • City
      • State
      • Zip/Postal Code
      • Country
      • Other fields are optional.
    • Administrative Contacts
      • Email Address
    • Click Next button
  • (4) Confirm
    • Review the displayed domain and email address and click the Confirm button.
• An email is sent to the chosen email. A link is provided in the email to complete the process.
• Open the email, copy the provided code, and click on the link provided in the email.
• SSL Certificate Validation
  • Paste the validation code in the form field.
  • Click Next button.
• The certificate is then emailed to the chosen email address. At this point the new certificate is activated, but is not yet installed on the server.

Installing the SSL certificate

• Log in to cPanel.
• Security > SSL/TLS
• Install and Manage SSL for your site (HTTPS) > Manage SSL Sites
• Under Manage Installed SSL Websites > [ssl_domain] > Actions > Update Certificate
• Install an SSL Website
  • Copy the certificate code sent from the certificate authority into the Certificate (CRT) field.
    • The code is sent via email from the certificate authority. This is the last email sent in the SSL certificate activation process.
    • At the last renewal, the entity sending the code was "Comodo Security Services".
  • Click the Autofill by Certificate button above the CRT field.
    • The Domain and Private Key field values will be filled in.
    • If everything is ok, green checkmarks will be displayed next to all the fields.
    • Click Install Certificate
  • If all goes well, a SSL Certificate Successfully Updated modal dialog is displayed.
    • Click the OK button.
    • The page is refreshed.
    • The domain should be listed under Manage Installed SSL Websites without any errors or warnings.
• Immediately after submitting the certificate, navigating to the secure URL in a browser should not generate any errors.

Confirming a new/renewed certificate

Note that if the old cert has not yet expired, and is still installed on the server, testing the URL using https in a browser will not be a reliable indicator that the certificate is installed and active.

• Return to Namecheap Dashboard > Domain List > certificate domain
• The new certificate should be listed with an expiration date and a Manage button.
• Load the domain in question in a browser using https protocol.