SSL for N-able N-central - Chaining your certificate

Last Modified

Wed Jan 06 20:47 GMT 2021

Description

  • When applying an SSL certificate to N-able N-central, it must be chained correctly in order to properly apply.

Environment

  • N-able N-central

Solution

  • If you are renewing the N-able N-central certificate you will be required to create new CSR in N-able N-central and have it signed, CSR's cannot be renewed / resigned.
  • The certificate must be chained in the proper order, and use Linux/Unix line endings in order to be properly applied.
    • This order is Certificate > Intermediate(s) > Root.
      • If there are two or more intermediate certificate included, you must include both when chaining your certificate
  • Assembling the certificates into a chain is done with any plain text editor such as Notepad or Notepad++.
    • We strongly recommend verifying the format of the file to ensure it is using Linux/Unix line endings instead of Windows to prevent compatibility issues.
    • This can be done within most advanced text editors, an example using Notepad++.
  • When a certificate is issued by a provider like GoDaddy or Starfield, they will provide you with several files.
  • One of the files will be the Bundle, one will be Your Certificate and there may be additional files that should not be required in most cases.
  • You will want to open both Your Certificate and the Bundle file (usually identified by the word bundle in the filename) separately.
  • To chain your certificate, please do the following:
    1. Open the files provided from the signing authorities.
    2. Use https://www.sslshopper.com/certificate-decoder.html to determine which of the bundle sections are the root certificate and which are intermediates.
    3. Assemble the pieces of the bundle, and Your Certificate into the order: Your Certificate > Intermediate Certificate > Root Certificate using copy and paste.
      • If there are multiple Intermediate certificates provided by your CA, you must put them in the correct order to maintain the chain within the new file from Certificate through to the Root certificate. Your CA can also assist in identifying which order the Intermediates should be in.
    4. Save the chained certificate as a new file called BundledCertificate.crt.
    5. Log in to your N-able N-central using the Product Administrator. account
    6. Go to Administration > Certificate Management > Upload Certificate.
    7. Select SSL Certificate as your upload type.
    8. Select Choose File.
    9. Select your BundledCertificate.crt file.
    10. Click Save.