How to Setup HTTPS/SSL Certificates

Revision as of 11:54, 11 September 2026 by Wikiadmin (talk | contribs)

Please see this page for help with Purchasing an SSL Certificate. Of course, we do include support for you to add your SSL Certificates to your account and set them up with your hosted domains/sites.

Update: SSL Certificate Validity Changes (2026–2029)

Updated to reflect current CA/Browser Forum requirements

Beginning in February–March 2026, browser vendors and certificate authorities introduced new rules that significantly shorten the maximum validity period of publicly trusted SSL/TLS certificates. These changes affect all commercial SSL certificates issued worldwide and are designed to improve security by reducing the window of exposure if a certificate or private key is compromised.

Bravenet fully supports these new requirements and automatically manages re‑issuance and installation of certificates purchased through us.

Current Validity Rules (Effective February 24, 2026)

Newly purchased paid SSL certificates issued for Bravenet customers now have an initial validity of 199 days, in alignment with the industry’s new 200‑day maximum validity limit.

Although certificates are now shorter‑lived, Bravenet continues to sell SSL certificates on an annual basis. Before each certificate reaches its 199‑day expiry, we automatically re‑issue and install a replacement certificate to ensure uninterrupted coverage for the remainder of your one‑year term.

Upcoming Industry Reductions (2027 & 2029)

The 200‑day limit is only the first step. The CA/Browser Forum has announced additional reductions:

  • March 2027: Maximum validity decreases to 100 days
  • March 2029: Maximum validity decreases to 47 days

These changes apply to all commercial SSL certificates issued globally. As validity periods shorten, manual renewal becomes impractical. Bravenet’s automated renewal system ensures your certificate remains valid throughout your annual term—no action required on your part.

Domain Control Validation (DCV) Re‑Use Limits

Alongside shorter certificate lifetimes, the allowed reuse period for domain validation is also being reduced:

  • 2026: DCV reuse limited to 200 days
  • 2027: DCV reuse limited to 100 days
  • 2029: DCV reuse limited to 10 days

For Bravenet customers, DCV is handled automatically for both paid certificates and Let’s Encrypt certificates. No manual DNS updates are required unless you manage DNS externally.

Why Certificate Validity Is Being Shortened

Browsers and certificate authorities are reducing certificate lifetimes to strengthen overall web security. Shorter validity periods:

  • Reduce risk if a private key is compromised
  • Ensure domain ownership is verified more frequently
  • Improve ecosystem reliability, since revocation mechanisms are not consistently enforced across all clients

These changes apply to all publicly trusted SSL certificates, regardless of provider.

Let’s Encrypt Certificates

Let’s Encrypt certificates already use a 90‑day validity period, which is fully compliant with current and future rules. Bravenet automatically obtains, installs, and renews Let’s Encrypt certificates every two months using DNS‑based verification.

Multi‑Year Plans and Annual Purchases

Annual SSL plans remain available. However, each certificate issued during your plan must follow the industry’s validity limits (currently 199–200 days). Bravenet automatically re‑issues certificates as needed throughout the year to maintain continuous HTTPS coverage.

What This Means for Bravenet Customers

  • Your SSL certificate will be re‑issued automatically several times per year.
  • No action is required—Bravenet handles installation and renewal.
  • Your website remains fully secure and compliant with browser requirements.
  • Let’s Encrypt users are already aligned with the new rules.
  • Future reductions (100‑day and 47‑day validity) will be handled automatically.

Please note that Bravenet's email and file-based validation methods (not DNS) may require manual steps to validate the initial certificate and may also require manual installation. A second certificate may involve additional validation steps and could also require manual installation. We will contact you if this is needed.

For additional details, please see our SSL provider’s announcement: 2026 SSL/TLS Certificate Validity Lifecycle Changes

Specifications

Certificate Requirements

For SSL Certificates to be compatible with a Bravenet-hosted website, they must be x509 certificates, in the .pem format. This includes Let's Encrypt - Free SSL/TLS Certificates.

You will need to ensure that you have the domain registered (either with us, or as an external domain) before you can load the certificate. You will also want your certificates to cover both www.yourdomain.com and yourdomain.com (most SSL providers will include yourdomain.com if you certify www.yourdomain.com). You will also need a Bravenet Pro account to utilize SSL Certificates.

Server and User Considerations

On the server-side, Bravenet HTTPS protocols are facilitated/provided through a reverse proxy powered by Nginx.

End-user browsers must support SNI (Server Name Indication) to be compatible with SSL Certificates. By default, most browsers provide SNI support, but some do not.

Intermediate Certificates

SSL Certificates purchased through Bravenet include an appropriate intermediate certificate included in the SSL Certificate itself.

The implementation of intermediate certificates will vary between every certificate provider, and so it is difficult if not impossible to provide instructions that will work for configuring the intermediate certificate in every other circumstance. An intermediate certificate is only necessary for some end-users, yet the SSL Certificate itself can work fine without the intermediate component in many environments/browsers/configurations.

Of course, to ensure your site is as fully compatible with HTTPS protocol and possible end-user/browser configurations as possible, you should include the intermediate certificate if it is provided/encouraged by the certificate provider.

The intermediate certificate is appended to the SSL certificate itself, so that when end-users connect to the site they download both the certificate and the provider's intermediate certificate. The intermediate ticket is essentially a packet of additional certificate authentication that can be (optionally) included with the SSL certificate.

Setup the SSL Certificate

Bravesites Site Builder:

Purchasing a SSL Certificate:

  1. Log in to your Bravenet account.
  2. Click the "Site Builder" tab.
  3. Click "Add SSL" beside the website in question.
  4. If you have not yet purchased your SSL Certificate click "Purchase an SSL Certificate".

Installing a SSL Certificate:

  1. Log in to your Bravenet account.
  2. Click the "SSL" tab at the top of the page.
  3. Click "Download" next to your domain.
  4. Click "Download Certificate File" (*.pem) and "Download Key File" (*.key)
  5. Click the "SiteBuilder" tab at the top of the page.
  6. Click "Add SSL".
  7. This is where you upload your key (*.key) and certificate (*.pem) files.
  8. Click the button "Upload and Activate SSL"

Bravehost FTP Hosting:

  1. Click to the Web Hosting tab from the top of the page.
  2. Click on the SSL Certificates button.
  3. If you were provided the certificate as separate files, click the Upload Files radio button.
    1. Click Choose File by Certificate, and navigate to the certificate file (extension .pem or .crt usually).
    2. Click Choose File by Private Key, and navigate to the key file (extension .key usually).
  4. If instead you have the cert as plaintext, select the Paste Text radio button.
    1. Click into the Certificate text field, and paste the certificate code, including and starting at the line -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE----- and ending with and including -----END CERTIFICATE-----
      1. If you have an intermediate certificate, you will need to add this into the intermediate certificate text box. Copy your intermediate certificate code, including and starting at the BEGIN and END certificate lines.
      2. Paste this intermediate certificate code into the intermediate certificate text box.
    2. Click into the Private Key text field, and paste the key code, including and starting at the line -----BEGIN RSA PRIVATE KEY----- and ending with and including -----END RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
  5. Enter the certificates password if there is one. If not, leave the field empty.
  6. Click on Add Certificate to finalize the certificate.


Let's Encrypt Certificates

We now offer the ability to obtain and install an SSL certificate free of cost from Let's Encrypt. You can obtain and install a Let's Encrypt SSL certificate for a website in your Bravenet account using this guide. Let's Encrypt certificates are auto-renewed every two months. We will add a DNS entry to your domain for verification and auto-install the certificate once it's approved.

For more information about Let's Encrypt please see: https://letsencrypt.org/


Note: You must have your nameservers set to Bravenet in order to install a Let's Encrypt certificate with us using the steps below. Please note, if you have recently updated your nameservers to Bravenet, you may need to wait up to 24-72 hours for this change to fully propagate before attempting to install a Let's Encrypt certificate. Let's Encrypt certificates can be used on any Bravenet Site Builder or Web Hosting website and are not supported on any website configured for a third party host.

Setting up a Let's Encrypt SSL Certificate

Bravesites Site Builder:

If your website is found under the 'Site Builder' section in your account, please use the following instructions to obtain & install the certificate:

  1. Replace "example.com" with your domain name in the following link. https://manage.bravehost.com/lets_encrypt/new?domain_name=example.com
  2. While logged into Bravenet.com, paste this updated link into your browser.
  3. Click 'Continue' to proceed with the verification process (Note: You must have your nameservers set to Bravenet to continue. We will verify your domain via an automatic DNS verification method which requires access to your domain's DNS records).
  4. You may see a message advising you to refrain from altering your DNS records for the next 24 hours, click 'Proceed' if you agree and wish to continue. Your certificate status will be available on the SSL tab.
  5. Once it is installed, visit the "Site Builder" tab and click "Add SSL" in the options for your website. You will then be prompted to install the certificate on your website.

Bravehost FTP Hosting Websites:

If your website is found under the 'Web Hosting' section in your account, please use the following instructions to obtain & install the certificate:

  1. In your Bravenet account, click on the 'Web Hosting' tab.
  2. Click 'Manage' next to the website you would like to install an SSL certificate for.
  3. Under "Security", select 'Let's Encrypt'.
  4. Click 'Continue' to proceed with the verification process (Note: You must have your nameservers set to Bravenet to continue. We will verify your domain via an automatic DNS verification method which requires access to your domain's DNS records).
  5. You may see a message advising you to refrain from altering your DNS records for the next 24 hours, click 'Proceed' if you agree and wish to continue.


After following the steps above, your Let's Encrypt SSL certificate order is now created. Let's Encrypt certificates are auto-renewed every two months. We will add a DNS entry to your domain for verification and auto-install the certificate once it's approved. Please note this may take up to 24-48 hours to process due to DNS propagation delay times. You can view the status of your new SSL certificate from the 'SSL' tab found in your Bravenet account.

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