HOWTO: Apache SSL in a nutshell

Using the stock RedHat Makefile setup:

1. Make sure you’ve cleared out older certificates (if any):

   # cd /etc/httpd/conf
   # rm ssl.key/server.key
   # rm ssl.crt/server.crt
   

2. Generate a passwordless server key:

   # /usr/bin/openssl genrsa 1024 > /etc/httpd/conf/ssl.key/server.key
   # chmod go-rwx /etc/httpd/conf/ssl.key/server.key
   

3. Generate your new certificate (you will be prompted for the usual certificate fields):

   # make testcert
   umask 77 ; \
   /usr/bin/openssl req -new -key /etc/httpd/conf/ssl.key/server.key
   -x509 -days 365 -out /etc/httpd/conf/ssl.crt/server.crt
   Using configuration from /usr/share/ssl/openssl.cnf
   
   You are about to be asked to enter information that will be incorporated
   into your certificate request.
   What you are about to enter is what is called a Distinguished Name or a
   DN.
   There are quite a few fields but you can leave some blank
   For some fields there will be a default value,
   If you enter ‘.’, the field will be left blank.
   —–
   Country Name (2 letter code) [GB]:.
   State or Province Name (full name) [Berkshire]:.
   Locality Name (eg, city) [Newbury]:.
   Organization Name (eg, company) [My Company Ltd]:.
   Organizational Unit Name (eg, section) []:.
   Common Name (your name or server’s hostname) []:web.local
   Email Address []:root@mail.local
   

4. Restart and test:

   # /sbin/service httpd restart