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How to Install a Free SSL Certificate in DirectAdmin

An SSL certificate encrypts the connection between visitors and your website, and the browser shows a padlock next to the address. DirectAdmin has a built-in Let’s Encrypt tool that installs a free, auto-renewing certificate in a few minutes.

What you need before you start

  • A web hosting service with the DirectAdmin control panel.
  • A domain pointed to the server IP. More: How to point a domain to Redfox Cloud. If you changed DNS recently, wait a few hours.
  • A working website, as Let’s Encrypt verifies the domain by connecting to your server.

Installing the SSL certificate

  1. Open SSL Certificates

    Log in to DirectAdmin. In the Account Manager section, click SSL Certificates.

    In older DirectAdmin versions

    SSL Certificates may be under Advanced Features.

  2. Choose a Let’s Encrypt certificate

    In the window that opens, select:

    Get automatic certificate from ACME Provider

    The Common Name field must contain your main domain, e.g. example.com. Leave the key size and other settings at their defaults.

  3. Select domains and save

    In the list, select the addresses that need a certificate:

    • example.com (main domain)
    • www.example.com (www address)
    • mail.example.com (if you use email in Outlook or on your phone)

    Click Save. After a moment you should see “Certificate has been created successfully”.

    Don’t select Wildcard

    A wildcard certificate requires more complex DNS validation. A regular website doesn’t need it.

  4. Enable automatic HTTPS redirect

    To always send visitors to the secure version of your site, select in the same window:

    Force SSL with https redirect

    Click Save. Now even if someone types http://, the site opens over https://.

Did it work?

Open your website in a private browser window. You should see a padlock icon next to the address.

For a detailed report, use the SSL Labs Server Test.

Common errors

“Challenge verification failed”

Let’s Encrypt couldn’t reach your website. Check that the domain points to the server IP, e.g. with whatsmydns.net. Also unselect subdomains that don’t point to the server, as one such address makes the whole certificate fail.

The certificate fails because of .htaccess

Some .htaccess rules can block the validation file. Temporarily rename the file, generate the certificate and restore the name.

I use Cloudflare

Cloudflare protection sometimes blocks validation. Temporarily turn off the proxy (orange cloud) on the domain’s A record, generate the certificate and turn it back on.

There’s a padlock, but the browser says “not secure” or some elements don’t load

This is mixed content: the site still loads images or scripts over http://. On a WordPress site, change the address to https:// in the settings and update the links in the database.

“too many certificates already issued”

Let’s Encrypt limits how many identical certificates can be issued per week. If you tried many times, wait a few days and try again.

What’s next

The certificate renews automatically, so nothing else is needed. If you run into trouble, contact us via live chat or email.

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