You need to create a Certificate Signing Request before you can purchase an SSL certificate. A CSR is a file that contains your public key, which is used by the certificate authority to generate your SSL certificate.
When you purchase an SSL certificate from a provider like Symantec, they will ask for some information so they can validate that you are who you say and not using the certificate for malicious purposes. This includes things like:
- Company name
- Address of company headquarters (physical address) in case of an emergency or legal action against them, etc…
Steps for Generating CSR for IIS:
- In the Connections menu in the main Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager window, locate and click on the server name.
- From there, you can manage your website settings, applications, and services.
- Under the “IIS” section, double-click on “Server Certificates”.
A new window will open.
- In the “Actions” menu, click on “Create Certificate Request…”.
- Click on “Create a Certificate Signing Request”.
- Click on “Next”.
- Click on Finish.
Enter all of the requested information for your Certificate Signing Request (CSR).
To create a Certificate Signing Request (CSR):
- Browse to the Microsoft IIS 7 certificate request page.
- Select the “Enter a Domain Name” option and type in your domain name for which you are requesting an SSL Certificate. For example: example.com
- Select the “Common Name of Server/Hostname” option and type in the name of your website. For example site1
- Select the “Email Address” option and type in your email address so that we can contact you if necessary.
- For Key Length, choose 2048 bits from the drop down menu.
- Enter all other requested information for your CSR, including Company Name (if applicable), City or Locality, State or Province, Country Code (ISO 3166-2) and Organization Unit Name; then click ‘Generate’ button to begin generating your CSR file! Once this is done navigate back over towards our order form where we will need to provide some additional info such as our company name & tax ID number before proceeding with payment information.”
Click “Next”.
- You will be prompted to provide your name, organization, and email address. Enter this information, then click “Next” again.
Set the proper bit length for your CSR.
Next, you’ll need to select the correct bit length for your CSR. Bit length refers to the number of bits that are used to represent your certificate.
- Choose a bit length between 512 and 2048 (the most secure option). A longer bit length is stronger than a shorter one, but also requires more processing power. If you’re not sure what to pick here, go with 2048.
Indicate where you would like to save your CSR. You can either paste it into a text file
If you want to save your CSR locally in a .txt file:
- In the “Save as” field, type a name for your CSR and choose a location where you’d like to save it.
- Click Save
Conclusion
- Once you’ve created your CSR, you can purchase an SSL certificate from the website. We offer a variety of options for different types of organizations and websites, so you can choose the one that works best for your needs.
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Last modified: January 31, 2024
