How to set up a CA SSL certificate

On production machines, the default self-signed SSL certificate will probably not be sufficient. Instead, a certificate issued by a certificate authority (CA) may be required. If the server will be accessed from HTTPS or FTPS clients external to the organization (e.g. across the Internet) then a CA certificate is essential. Many organizations already have CA certificates issued and centrally controlled. Otherwise, a CA certificate must be purchased and installed, as described below.

There are three steps in obtaining and installing a CA certificate:

1. Generate a Certificate Signing Request (CSR)
2. Purchase the CA certificate using your CSR
3. Download and install your CA certificate