Install Let’s Encrypt SSL Certificate in Lighttpd

In today’s digital landscape, securing your website with SSL/TLS encryption has become essential. Let’s Encrypt, a free and open certificate authority, provides an easy and automated way to obtain and install SSL certificates. In this article, we will guide you through the process of installing a Let’s Encrypt certificate in Lighttpd, a lightweight and efficient web server.

Prerequisites

Before we begin, make sure you have the following prerequisites in place:

1. A running instance of Lighttpd on your server.
2. A domain name associated with your server’s IP address.
3. Shell access or SSH credentials to your server.

Now, let’s dive into the steps required to install a Let’s Encrypt certificate in Lighttpd:

Step 1: Install Certbot

Certbot is a command-line tool provided by Let’s Encrypt for obtaining and managing SSL certificates. We need to install Certbot on our server.

You can follow this Tutorial on How Setup Let’s Encrypt SSL on Ubuntu 20/18/16 LTS.

Step 2: Obtain SSL Certificate

Now that we have Certbot installed, we can proceed with obtaining the SSL certificate for your domain.

• Stop the Lighttpd service:

$ sudo systemctl stop lighttpd

• Run the following command to obtain the certificate:

$ sudo certbot certonly --standalone -d your-domain.com

Replace your-domain.com with your actual domain name. Make sure the command executes successfully, and the certificate files are generated.

• Start the Lighttpd service:

$ sudo systemctl start lighttpd

Step 3: Configure Lighttpd for SSL

With the SSL certificate in place, we need to configure Lighttpd to utilize the certificate for secure connections.

• Open the Lighttpd configuration file:

$ sudo nano /etc/lighttpd/lighttpd.conf

• Add the following lines to the configuration file:

$SERVER["socket"] == ":443" {
    ssl.engine = "enable"
    ssl.pemfile = "/etc/letsencrypt/live/your-domain.com/fullchain.pem"
    ssl.privkey = "/etc/letsencrypt/live/your-domain.com/privkey.pem"
}

Replace your-domain.com with your actual domain name.

• Save and exit the file.
• Restart the Lighttpd service for the changes to take effect:

$ sudo systemctl restart lighttpd

Step 4: Automate Certificate Renewal

Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates have a validity period of 90 days. To ensure uninterrupted SSL protection, we should automate the certificate renewal process.

• Open the crontab for editing:

$ sudo crontab -e

• Add the following line at the end of the file:

0 0 * * * certbot renew --quiet

This instructs the system to automatically renew the certificates daily at midnight.

• Save and exit the file.

Step 5: Test SSL Configuration

Now that everything is set up, it’s time to test our SSL configuration.

• Open your web browser and enter your domain name with https:// prefix (e.g., https://your-domain.com).
• If the SSL installation is successful, you should see a padlock icon or a similar indication of a secure connection in your browser’s address bar.

Congratulations! You have successfully installed a Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate in Lighttpd. Your website is now secured with encrypted communication.

Conclusion

Securing your website with SSL/TLS encryption is crucial for protecting sensitive data and gaining user trust. Let’s Encrypt simplifies the process by providing free and automated SSL certificates. By following the steps outlined in this article, you can easily install a Let’s Encrypt certificate in Lighttpd and enhance the security of your website. Enjoy the benefits of a secure and encrypted browsing experience!