How Do I Generate a CSR for Apache with mod_ssl and OpenSSL?

To generate your CSR, you will need to log into your server and use the OpenSSL software to generate a CSR and private key.

1. 1. Log into your server and enter the following command:
2. openssl req -nodes -newkey rsa:2048 -sha1 -keyout myser.key -out server.csr
3. This will generate two files:
4. • CSR called server.csr
   • 2048-bit private key called myserver.key
5. 2. You will be prompted to enter some information for your CSR:

6. Field	Example
   Country Name (2-letter code) [AU]	GB
   State or Province Name (full name) [Some-State]	Yorks
   Locality Name (city) []	York
   Organization Name (company) [Internet Widgits Pty Ltd]:	MyCompany Ltd
   Organizational Unit Name (section) [ ]	IT
   Common Name (domain name of website) [ ]	mysubdomain.mydomain.com
   Email Address [ ]	help@webmailhelp.com

7. Please also enter the following extra attributes to be sent with your certificate request:
   • A challenge password [ ]
   • An optional company name [ ]
   • The CN field or Common Name is where you should enter the fully qualified domain name of the website, which requires the certificate.

8. Note: For wildcard certificates, the Common Name should be in the format *.mydomain.com.

9. 3. Your CSR is now generated.
10. Open the server.csr file with a text-editor and copy and paste the contents into the enrollment form when requested.
11. You have generated your CSR for Apache with mod_ssl and OpenSSL.

12. Note: The myserver.key file should be kept secure, such as readable only by root on Linux systems. Removing the -nodes option from the openssl command will request a password and encrypt the private key. This can increase security, but note that the password will be required each time Apache is restarted.