How to Renew an SSL Certificate – The Ultimate Guide

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Step-by-step instructions on renewing your website’s SSL certificate.

It is necessary to renew SSL certificates regularly. Usually, SSL certificates need to be renewed or reissued every year. Shortly before the certificate expires, the user starts receiving notifications regarding its expiry. It’s necessary to renew SSL certificates before the expiration to prevent your website from being left unsecured.

Failure to renew SSL certificate in a timely manner will lead to the padlock sign or green address bar being removed from the website’s URL in the browser. Furthermore, Google will flash the “Not Secure” sign, which will deter other viewers from accessing the website, turning traffic away.

In this article, we’ll show you how to renew SSL certificates and answer some pertinent questions about SSL renewal.

How to Renew SSL Certificate And How to Renew Wildcard Certificate

Step 1: First, you must generate a new CSR. The only exception here is if you use an Apache server and if you haven’t changed your business details after purchasing your previous certificate.

Step 2: From your account, you need to select the Renew SSL link.

Step 3: Now select the specific SSL certificate you wish to renew.

Step 4: Your renewal request will be approved shortly. Following that, the certificate will be transferred to your registered email address.

Step 5: Backup the old certificate and then install and verify the new one. Be sure to uninstall the old certificate only after the new one has been verified so your site isn’t left without an SSL.

With these simple steps, you’ll have successfully renewed SSL certificate.

SSL Renewal FAQ

Can the expiration date of a certificate be extended?

All SSL certificates are hard-coded with the expiration date. As such, they cannot be changed. You simply have to “renew” the certificate — which essentially means getting a new certificate while using the same information used previously — and installing that.

When is it ideal to renew SSL certificate?

Users start receiving renewal reminders about 30 days prior to the certificate’s expiration. You should ideally renew the certificate any time before the certificate expires.

You won’t lose any time by renewing early–the certificate authority will add the unused time from your previous certificate to your new certificate.

What do I need to renew an SSL Certificate?

You will need a new CSR for the domain and your user name/password to access your account. If you don’t have username/password for your account, you can re-produce them from here.

Can I re-use my existing CSR or old CSR for SSL certificate renewal?

Some web servers will allow this, but we recommend a new CSR for every renewal.

Do I need to re-validate my company/organization details for EV SSL certificate renewal?

Yes, you need to re-validate your company/organization information If you are renewing an EV SSL certificate. However, in most cases the documents you previously supplied can be re-used for the validation process, so the process is often a lot quicker and easier.

Do I need to install the new SSL certificate after a complete renewal process?

Yes, you need to install the new certificate file on your web server. You cannot modify your previously installed certificate file – you have to install the new file.

If I renew before the expiration date, don’t I lose some of the time I paid for?

Nope! When renewing a certificate ahead of time, you’ll automatically get extra time added to your new certificate to make up for the “lost” time from your old certificate. In fact, you almost always get extra time, so it’s to your benefit to renew early.

As such, it’s beneficial to renew SSL certificates as soon as possible.

 

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