How to Generate a CSR and validate it using a CSR Hash

The following instructions will guide you through the CSR generation process. If you already generated the CSR and received your trusted SSL certificate, reference our SSL Installation Instructions and disregard the steps below.

1. Log in to your server’s terminal.

You will want to log in via Secure Shell (SSH).

2. Enter CSR and Private Key command

Generate a private key and CSR by running the following command:

openssl req -new -newkey rsa:2048 -nodes -keyout server.key -out server.csr

Note: Replace “server ” with the domain name you intend to secure.

3. Enter your CSR details

Enter the following CSR details when prompted:

• Common Name: The FQDN (fully-qualified domain name) you want to secure with the certificate such as www.google.com, secure.website.org, *.domain.net, etc.
• Organization: The full legal name of your organization including the corporate identifier.
• Organization Unit (OU): Your department such as ‘Information Technology’ or ‘Website Security.’
• City or Locality: The locality or city where your organization is legally incorporated. Do not abbreviate.
• State or Province: The state or province where your organization is legally incorporated. Do not abbreviate.
• Country: The official two-letter country code (i.e. US, CH) where your organization is legally incorporated.

Note: You are not required to enter a password or passphrase. This optional field is for applying additional security to your key pair. 

4. Generate the order

Locate and open the newly created CSR in a text editor such as Notepad and copy all the text including:

Now how to alidate it using a CSR Hash:

1. Generating a CSR Hash

1.1 Enter your CSR into the provided text area

1.2 Uncheck "Show Empty Fields", "Show Common Name" and "Show Address"

1.3 Check "Show CSR Hashes"

1.4 Click ’’Decode’’

Your CSR hashes will now be displayed in a new area underneath the “Decode’’ Button.

2. Generating the text file

Use a text editor to create the following text file:

File name: .txt (without brackets)

Contents:

 (without brackets) comodoca.com

3. Placing the hash file onto the web server

Place the hast file onto your server, so that it can be accessed via

example.com/.txt

4. Starting the validation

To start the validation, you just have to contact our support and tell us your domain name and billing number. We will then use the hash to validate the certificate.