{"id":2026,"date":"2021-06-10T15:21:20","date_gmt":"2021-06-10T12:21:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/?p=2026"},"modified":"2025-11-27T09:58:22","modified_gmt":"2025-11-27T07:58:22","slug":"generate-a-csr-certificate-signing-request","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/generate-a-csr-certificate-signing-request\/","title":{"rendered":"Generate CSR for SSL Certificate"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>Certificate Signing Request<\/b> <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(CSR<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) is a step necessary during the installation of a Secure <strong>Sockets<\/strong><\/span><b> L<span data-sheets-value=\"{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:&quot;layer&quot;}\" data-sheets-userformat=\"{&quot;2&quot;:636,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;6&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;7&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;8&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;9&quot;:0,&quot;12&quot;:0}\">ayer<\/span><\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0(SSL) certificate for your website. It contains information that is necessary for the Certificate Authority <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(CA)<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to build your <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/ssl-certificates.html\"><b>SSL certificate<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How you generate the CSR will depend on the web server in use. This guide covers CSR generation on <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/blog\/nginx-vs-apache\/\"><b>Apache, Nginx,<\/b><\/a><b> and Microsoft IIS.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>Note:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The process for Apache and Nginx is the same.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Generating CSR on Apache and Nginx<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2027\" src=\"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/CSR-on-Apache.jpg\" alt=\"Generate CSR for SSL Certificate, Generating CSR on Apache and Nginx\" width=\"1088\" height=\"455\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/CSR-on-Apache.jpg 1088w, https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/CSR-on-Apache-300x125.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/CSR-on-Apache-1024x428.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/CSR-on-Apache-768x321.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 361px) 660px, (max-width: 767px) 89vw, (max-width: 1000px) 54vw, (max-width: 1071px) 910px, 1140px\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Step 1.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Connect to your server using Secure Shell (SSH).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Step 2.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Enter the following command to begin CSR generation:<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">openssl req -new -newkey rsa<\/span><b>:2048 -nodes -keyout yourdomain.key -out yourdomain.csr<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Step 3.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Fill in the requested information (See \u201cGuide to CSR Information Required\u201d below). You can safely ignore the <\/span><b>\u201cOptional\u201d fields following \u201cEmail Address.\u201d<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Step 4. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Click on the \u201cGenerate\u201d button.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This step will complete the process and save your CSR information into the filenames specified in Step 2 above (<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">yourdomain.key and yourdomain.csr). <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can open the files with a plain text editor &#8211; the contained information is necessary to create your SSL certificate.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Generating CSR on Microsoft IIS<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-2028 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/CSR-on-IIS.jpg\" alt=\"Generate CSR for SSL Certificate, Generating CSR on Microsoft IIS\" width=\"1237\" height=\"643\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/CSR-on-IIS.jpg 1237w, https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/CSR-on-IIS-300x156.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/CSR-on-IIS-1024x532.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/CSR-on-IIS-768x399.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 361px) 660px, (max-width: 767px) 89vw, (max-width: 1000px) 54vw, (max-width: 1071px) 910px, 1140px\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Step 1.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Connect to your Microsoft Exchange Admin Center.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once logged in, select \u201cServers\u201d from the left navigation menu and choose the \u201cCertificates\u201d option.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Step 2. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Start the process by clicking the \u201c+\u201d or \u201c&gt;\u201d icon, which will launch the Exchange Certificate wizard.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Step 3. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0At the \u201cServer Certificates\u201d display, click on the \u201cCreate Certificate Request\u201d link on the right-hand navigation panel. This step launches the Request Certificate Wizard.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Step 4. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On the Distinguished Name Properties screen, complete the CSR information required (See \u201cGuide to CSR Information Required\u201d below). Click \u201cNext\u201d when done.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Step 5. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On the Cryptographic Service Provider Properties screen, select \u201cMicrosoft RSA SChannel Cryptographic Provider\u201d with a Bit Length of 2048. Click \u201cNext\u201d when done.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Step 6. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can now save the information in a filename and location of your choice. Click \u201cFinish\u201d to complete the process.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Guide to CSR Information Required<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">During the CSR generation process, you need to complete the information necessary for SSL certificate issuance. This information includes:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Country:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The country code should be a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_ISO_3166_country_codes\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">two-character ISO code<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for the location. For example, the code for the United States will be \u201cUS\u201d.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>State or Province: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The name of the state in which the business is (or registered). Complete the name in full, do not abbreviate the name.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>City or Locality: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The city name in which the business is <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(or registered)<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Complete the name in full, do not abbreviate the name.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Organization:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> For personal use, this should be the name of the person requesting the certificate. If an entity owns the website, it should be the legal business name.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Organization Unit: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is the trade name of the business or the name it operates under <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(if different from the legal business name).<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Common Name: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is the complete domain name you wish to cover with the SSL. For example<\/span><b>, <span data-sheets-value=\"{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:&quot;yourdomain&quot;}\" data-sheets-userformat=\"{&quot;2&quot;:636,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;6&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;7&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;8&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;9&quot;:0,&quot;12&quot;:0}\">yourdomain<\/span>.com, mail.yourdomain.com, or *.<span data-sheets-value=\"{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:&quot;yourdomain&quot;}\" data-sheets-userformat=\"{&quot;2&quot;:636,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;6&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;7&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;8&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:[{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;5&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}},{&quot;1&quot;:0,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;3&quot;:3},{&quot;1&quot;:1,&quot;2&quot;:0,&quot;4&quot;:1}]},&quot;9&quot;:0,&quot;12&quot;:0}\">yourdomain<\/span>.com<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. The use of an asterisk as part of the domain name is only for Wildcard SSL certificates.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Email Address<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Enter the email address for the administrator of the domain name.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Certificate Signing Request (CSR) is a step necessary during the installation of a Secure Sockets Layer\u00a0(SSL) certificate for your website. It contains information that is necessary for the Certificate Authority (CA) to build your SSL certificate. How you generate the CSR will depend on the web server in use. This guide covers CSR generation on [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"Generate CSR for SSL Certificate | ScalaHosting KB","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2026","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-web-hosting"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2026","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2026"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2026\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5817,"href":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2026\/revisions\/5817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2026"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2026"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scalahosting.com\/kb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2026"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}