Simplify the certificate renewal instructions

This commit is contained in:
Bob Mottram 2015-04-03 18:39:04 +01:00
parent c15d4987e2
commit cedbc11e15
2 changed files with 27 additions and 165 deletions

View File

@ -274,91 +274,33 @@ Now go to [[startssl.com]] and click on the keys icon on the right hand side to
Once your email is validated then go to *Validations Wizard* and choose *Domain name validation*. Enter your domain name and select *postmaster@yourdomainname*. After a while you should receive a validation email and you can then enter the code.
Log into the Freedombone and become the root user. Now we can generate a new certificate request as follows.
Log in to the Freedombone, become the root user, then issue the renew command:
#+BEGIN_SRC bash
export HOSTNAME=mydomainname.com
openssl genrsa -out /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.new.key 2048
chown root:ssl-cert /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.new.key
chmod 440 /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.new.key
mkdir /etc/ssl/requests
ssh username@mydomainname -p 2222
su
freedombone-renew-cert -h mydomainname
#+END_SRC
Now make a certificate request as follows. You should copy and paste the whole of this, not just line by line.
#+BEGIN_SRC bash
openssl req -new -sha256 -key /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.new.key -out /etc/ssl/requests/$HOSTNAME.csr
#+END_SRC
For the email address it's a good idea to use postmaster@mydomainname.
For the email address it's a good idea to use /postmaster@mydomainname/.
Use a random 20 character password, and keep a note of it. We'll remove this later.
View the request with:
On the StartSSL site select *Certificates Wizard* then *Web server SSL/TLS Certificate*. You can then click on "skip" and then copy and paste the certificate request into the text entry box. You may now need to wait a few hours for a confirmation email indicating that the new certificate was created.
Select *Tool Box* and then *Retrieve Certificate* from the list. Make sure to choose the one with the correct expiration date. Copy the text, then on the Freedombone.
#+BEGIN_SRC bash
cat /etc/ssl/requests/$HOSTNAME.csr
editor /etc/ssl/certs/mydomainname.new.crt
#+END_SRC
On the StartSSL site select *Certificates Wizard* then *Web server SSL/TLS Certificate*. You can then click on "skip" and then copy and paste the encrypted request into the text entry box. You may now need to wait a few hours for a confirmation email indicating that the new certificate was created.
Select *Tool Box* and then *Retrieve Certificate* from the list. Make sure to choose the one with the correct expiration date. Copy the text.
Paste the public key from the StartSSL site. Save and exit. Then run the renew command again:
#+BEGIN_SRC bash
mv /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.new.key /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.key
editor /etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.crt
#+END_SRC
Delete any existing contents then paste the public key from the StartSSL site. Save and exit. Then run the following commands:
#+BEGIN_SRC bash
mkdir /etc/ssl/roots
mkdir /etc/ssl/chains
wget "http://www.startssl.com/certs/ca.pem" --output-document="/etc/ssl/roots/startssl-root.ca"
wget "http://www.startssl.com/certs/sub.class1.server.ca.pem" --output-document="/etc/ssl/chains/startssl-sub.class1.server.ca.pem"
wget "http://www.startssl.com/certs/sub.class2.server.ca.pem" --output-document="/etc/ssl/chains/startssl-sub.class2.server.ca.pem"
wget "http://www.startssl.com/certs/sub.class3.server.ca.pem" --output-document="/etc/ssl/chains/startssl-sub.class3.server.ca.pem"
ln -s "/etc/ssl/roots/startssl-root.ca" "/etc/ssl/roots/$HOSTNAME-root.ca"
ln -s "/etc/ssl/chains/startssl-sub.class1.server.ca.pem" "/etc/ssl/chains/$HOSTNAME.ca"
cp "/etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.crt" "/etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.crt+chain+root"
test -e "/etc/ssl/chains/$HOSTNAME.ca" && cat "/etc/ssl/chains/$HOSTNAME.ca" >> "/etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.crt+chain+root"
test -e "/etc/ssl/roots/$HOSTNAME-root.ca" && cat "/etc/ssl/roots/$HOSTNAME-root.ca" >> "/etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.crt+chain+root"
#+END_SRC
Remove the certificate password, so if the server is rebooted then it won't wait indefinitely for a non-existant keyboard user to type in a password.
#+BEGIN_SRC bash
openssl rsa -in /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.key -out /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.new.key
cp /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.new.key /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.key
shred -zu /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME.new.key
#+END_SRC
Create a bundled certificate which joins the certificate and chain file together.
#+BEGIN_SRC bash
cat /etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.crt /etc/ssl/chains/startssl-sub.class1.server.ca.pem > /etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.bundle.crt
#+END_SRC
And also add it to the overall bundle of certificates for the Freedombone. This will allow you to easily install the certificates onto other systems.
#+BEGIN_SRC bash
cp /etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.bundle.crt /etc/ssl/mycerts
cat /etc/ssl/mycerts/*.crt > /etc/ssl/freedombone-bundle.crt
tar -czvf /etc/ssl/freedombone-certs.tar.gz /etc/ssl/mycerts/*.crt
#+END_SRC
To avoid any possibility of the certificates being accidentally overwritten by self-signed ones at a later date you can create backups.
#+BEGIN_SRC bash
mkdir /etc/ssl/backups
mkdir /etc/ssl/backups/certs
mkdir /etc/ssl/backups/private
cp /etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME* /etc/ssl/backups/certs/
cp /etc/ssl/private/$HOSTNAME* /etc/ssl/backups/private/
chmod -R 400 /etc/ssl/backups/certs/*
chmod -R 400 /etc/ssl/backups/private/*
freedombone-renew-cert -h mydomainname
#+END_SRC
The new certificate will then be installed.
* Why use self-signed certificates?
Almost everywhere on the web you will read that self-signed certificates are worthless. They bring up scary looking browser warnings and gurus will advise you not to use them. Self-signed certificates are quite useful though. What the scary warnings mean - and it would be good if they explained this more clearly - is that you have an encrypted connection established but there is /no certainty about who that connection is with/. The usual solution to this is to get a "real" SSL certificate from one of the certificate authorities, but it's far from clear that such authorities can be trusted. There have been various scandals involving such organisations, and it does not seem plausible to assume that they are somehow immune to the sort of treatment which [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavabit][Lavabit]] received. So although most internet users have been trained to look for the lock icon as an indication that the connection is secured that belief may not always be well founded.

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@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" lang="en" xml:lang="en">
<head>
<title></title>
<!-- 2015-03-23 Mon 20:14 -->
<!-- 2015-04-03 Fri 18:38 -->
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" />
<meta name="generator" content="Org-mode" />
<meta name="author" content="Bob Mottram" />
@ -630,31 +630,19 @@ Once your email is validated then go to <b>Validations Wizard</b> and choose <b>
</p>
<p>
Log into the Freedombone and become the root user. Now we can generate a new certificate request as follows.
Log in to the Freedombone, become the root user, then issue the renew command:
</p>
<div class="org-src-container">
<pre class="src src-bash"><span class="org-builtin">export</span> <span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>=mydomainname.com
openssl genrsa -out /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.new.key 2048
chown root:ssl-cert /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.new.key
chmod 440 /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.new.key
mkdir /etc/ssl/requests
<pre class="src src-bash">ssh username@mydomainname -p 2222
su
freedombone-renew-cert -h mydomainname
</pre>
</div>
<p>
Now make a certificate request as follows. You should copy and paste the whole of this, not just line by line.
</p>
<div class="org-src-container">
<pre class="src src-bash">openssl req -new -sha256 -key /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.new.key -out /etc/ssl/requests/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.csr
</pre>
</div>
<p>
For the email address it's a good idea to use postmaster@mydomainname.
For the email address it's a good idea to use <i>postmaster@mydomainname</i>.
</p>
<p>
@ -662,102 +650,34 @@ Use a random 20 character password, and keep a note of it. We'll remove this la
</p>
<p>
View the request with:
On the StartSSL site select <b>Certificates Wizard</b> then <b>Web server SSL/TLS Certificate</b>. You can then click on "skip" and then copy and paste the certificate request into the text entry box. You may now need to wait a few hours for a confirmation email indicating that the new certificate was created.
</p>
<p>
Select <b>Tool Box</b> and then <b>Retrieve Certificate</b> from the list. Make sure to choose the one with the correct expiration date. Copy the text, then on the Freedombone.
</p>
<div class="org-src-container">
<pre class="src src-bash">cat /etc/ssl/requests/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.csr
<pre class="src src-bash">editor /etc/ssl/certs/mydomainname.new.crt
</pre>
</div>
<p>
On the StartSSL site select <b>Certificates Wizard</b> then <b>Web server SSL/TLS Certificate</b>. You can then click on "skip" and then copy and paste the encrypted request into the text entry box. You may now need to wait a few hours for a confirmation email indicating that the new certificate was created.
</p>
<p>
Select <b>Tool Box</b> and then <b>Retrieve Certificate</b> from the list. Make sure to choose the one with the correct expiration date. Copy the text.
Paste the public key from the StartSSL site. Save and exit. Then run the renew command again:
</p>
<div class="org-src-container">
<pre class="src src-bash">mv /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.new.key /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.key
editor /etc/ssl/certs/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.crt
<pre class="src src-bash">freedombone-renew-cert -h mydomainname
</pre>
</div>
<p>
Delete any existing contents then paste the public key from the StartSSL site. Save and exit. Then run the following commands:
The new certificate will then be installed.
</p>
<div class="org-src-container">
<pre class="src src-bash">mkdir /etc/ssl/roots
mkdir /etc/ssl/chains
wget <span class="org-string">"http://www.startssl.com/certs/ca.pem"</span> --output-document=<span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/roots/startssl-root.ca"</span>
wget <span class="org-string">"http://www.startssl.com/certs/sub.class1.server.ca.pem"</span> --output-document=<span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/chains/startssl-sub.class1.server.ca.pem"</span>
wget <span class="org-string">"http://www.startssl.com/certs/sub.class2.server.ca.pem"</span> --output-document=<span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/chains/startssl-sub.class2.server.ca.pem"</span>
wget <span class="org-string">"http://www.startssl.com/certs/sub.class3.server.ca.pem"</span> --output-document=<span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/chains/startssl-sub.class3.server.ca.pem"</span>
ln -s <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/roots/startssl-root.ca"</span> <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/roots/$HOSTNAME-root.ca"</span>
ln -s <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/chains/startssl-sub.class1.server.ca.pem"</span> <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/chains/$HOSTNAME.ca"</span>
cp <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.crt"</span> <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.crt+chain+root"</span>
<span class="org-builtin">test</span> -e <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/chains/$HOSTNAME.ca"</span> &amp;&amp; cat <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/chains/$HOSTNAME.ca"</span> &gt;&gt; <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.crt+chain+root"</span>
<span class="org-builtin">test</span> -e <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/roots/$HOSTNAME-root.ca"</span> &amp;&amp; cat <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/roots/$HOSTNAME-root.ca"</span> &gt;&gt; <span class="org-string">"/etc/ssl/certs/$HOSTNAME.crt+chain+root"</span>
</pre>
</div>
<p>
Remove the certificate password, so if the server is rebooted then it won't wait indefinitely for a non-existant keyboard user to type in a password.
</p>
<div class="org-src-container">
<pre class="src src-bash">openssl rsa -in /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.key -out /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.new.key
cp /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.new.key /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.key
shred -zu /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.new.key
</pre>
</div>
<p>
Create a bundled certificate which joins the certificate and chain file together.
</p>
<div class="org-src-container">
<pre class="src src-bash">cat /etc/ssl/certs/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.crt /etc/ssl/chains/startssl-sub.class1.server.ca.pem &gt; /etc/ssl/certs/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.bundle.crt
</pre>
</div>
<p>
And also add it to the overall bundle of certificates for the Freedombone. This will allow you to easily install the certificates onto other systems.
</p>
<div class="org-src-container">
<pre class="src src-bash">cp /etc/ssl/certs/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>.bundle.crt /etc/ssl/mycerts
cat /etc/ssl/mycerts/*.crt &gt; /etc/ssl/freedombone-bundle.crt
tar -czvf /etc/ssl/freedombone-certs.tar.gz /etc/ssl/mycerts/*.crt
</pre>
</div>
<p>
To avoid any possibility of the certificates being accidentally overwritten by self-signed ones at a later date you can create backups.
</p>
<div class="org-src-container">
<pre class="src src-bash">mkdir /etc/ssl/backups
mkdir /etc/ssl/backups/certs
mkdir /etc/ssl/backups/private
cp /etc/ssl/certs/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>* /etc/ssl/backups/certs/
cp /etc/ssl/private/$<span class="org-variable-name">HOSTNAME</span>* /etc/ssl/backups/private/
chmod -R 400 /etc/ssl/backups/certs/*
chmod -R 400 /etc/ssl/backups/private/*
</pre>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div id="outline-container-unnumbered-10" class="outline-2">
<h2 id="unnumbered-10">Why use self-signed certificates?</h2>
<div class="outline-text-2" id="text-unnumbered-10">