RCL SSL CertificateBot for IIS

V7.0.0

RCL SSL CertificateBot for IIS runs as a Windows Service in a Windows hosting machine. The Windows Service will run every seven (7) days to automatically renew and save SSL/TLS certificates from a user’s subscription in the RCL SSL Portal to the Windows hosting machine.

Certificates will be automatically saved to the Local Machine certificate store in the Trusted People folder. Certificates will also be automatically bound to the IIS Web Server on the hosting machine.

Automatically Renew SSL/TLS Certificates

You can use RCL SSL CertificateBot for IIS to automatically renew SSL/TLS certificates created in the RCL SSL Portal using the the following creation options :

‘Stand Alone’ certificates are not supported by RCL SSL CertificateBot. Use the HTTP AutoRenew instead

Install RCL SSL CertificateBot for IIS

If you have an older version of the RCL CertificateBot for IIS installed in your hosting machine, you should delete it and install the new service.

Download the Files

  • The Windows Service files (certificatebot-iis-win-xx) are available in the GitHub Project page in the Releases section:

  • Download the zip file with bitness :

    to match your Windows bitness

  • Extract the zip file to a folder on your Windows hosting machine after it is downloaded

Configure the Service

Register an AAD Application

An Azure Active Directory (AAD) application must be registered to obtain permission to access a user’s Azure resources (DNS Zone).

Please refer to the following link to register an AAD application:

Set Access Control for the AAD Application

Access control must be set for the AAD application to access resources (DNS Zone) in a user’s Azure subscription. Please refer to the following link to set access control :

Get the AAD Application Credentials

To obtain the following credentials from the AAD application:

  • ClientId
  • ClientSecret
  • TenantId

follow the instructions in this link :

Get the SubscriptionId

Get the Subscription Id in the RCL SSL Portal.

install

  • Scroll down and copy the ‘Subscription Id’

install

Register the AAD Application’s Client Id in the RCL SSL Portal

The AAD Application must be associated with a user’s RCL SSL subscription. This is achieved by registering the AAD Application’s Client Id in the RCL SSL Portal.

To add the AAD Application’s Client Id to the portal, please follow the instructions in this link :

Add the Configuration variables

  • In the folder containing the files for the Windows Service that you extracted, find and open the appsettings.json file

  • Add the credentials for the AAD Application and SubscriptionId in the RCLSDK section :
    • ClientId
    • ClientSecret
    • TenantId
    • SubscriptionId

  • In the CertificateBot section, set a folder path to save the SSL/TLS certificates. Recommended path : C:/ssl

    • saveCertificatePath

  • Note : when setting the folder path , use forward slashes(/) in the path name, eg. C:/ssl. Failure to do this will result in inability to run the windows service.

  • Create the folder in the hosting machine and ensure it has read/write permissions so that the certificates can be saved to it.

  • Configure the site bindings for each website that you want to bind a SSL/TLS certificate. You can have a single or multiple bindings.

  • Example of multiple bindings :
"IISBindings": [
  {
    "siteName":"Home",
    "ip":"*",
    "port":"443",
    "host":"shopneur.com",
    "certificateName":"shopeneur.com,*.shopeneur.com"
  },
  {
    "siteName":"Home",
    "ip":"*",
    "port":"443",
    "host":"www.shopneur.com",
    "certificateName":"shopeneur.com,*.shopeneur.com"
  }
]
  • Example of a single binding :
"IISBindings": [
  {
    "siteName":"Home",
    "ip":"*",
    "port":"443",
    "host":"shopneur.com",
    "certificateName":"shopeneur.com,*.shopeneur.com"
  }
]
  • siteName - this is the Site name of the IIS website
  • ip - this is the IP Address of the IIS website (you can use any (*))
  • port - the is the Port number of the IIS website (you can use 443)
  • host - the the Host Name assigned to the IIS website
  • certificateName - this is the name of the certificate in the RCL SSL Portal to be installed in the IIS website

install

The image above illustrates a site hosted in IIS named ‘Home’ with multiple bindings. The site is bound to a naked apex domain, ‘shopeneur.com’, and a sub-domain ‘www.shopeneur.com’. The website can be accessed publicly on the web with either of these domains. The site uses the same multi-domain SAN certificate named : ‘shopeneur.com,*.shopeneur.com’ to provide SSL/TLS for both the domains.

Example of a configured appsettings.json file 

{
  "Logging": {
    "LogLevel": {
      "Default": "Information",
      "Microsoft": "Warning",
      "Microsoft.Hosting.Lifetime": "Information"
    },
    "EventLog": {
      "LogLevel": {
        "Default": "Information",
        "Microsoft.Hosting.Lifetime": "Information"
      }
    }
  },
  "RCLSDK": {
    "ApiBaseUrl": "https://rclapi.azure-api.net/public",
    "SourceApplication": "RCL SSL CertificateBot IIS",
    "ClientId": "35ca82aa-9ff3-5a67-bb7f-c3c71027eecf",
    "ClientSecret": "hdytev539dgw~_8-g4lNI84V01.yIDUMHh",
    "TenantId": "22cd4a8c-bc2c-3618-b1c3-4610c1b9b3e8",
    "SubscriptionId": "879"
  },
  "CertificateBot": {
    "IncludeCertificates":[],
    "SaveCertificatePath": "C:/ssl",
    "IISBindings": [
      {
        "siteName":"Home",
        "ip":"*",
        "port":"443",
        "host":"shopneur.com",
        "certificateName":"shopeneur.com,*.shopeneur.com"
      },
      {
        "siteName":"Home",
        "ip":"*",
        "port":"443",
        "host":"www.shopneur.com",
        "certificateName":"shopeneur.com,*.shopeneur.com"
      }
    ]
  }
}
  • Save the appsettings.json file when you are done.

Create the Windows Service

  • Open a Command Prompt in the Windows hosting machine as an Administrator

  • Run the following command to install the Windows Service. Replace the < file-path > placeholder with the actual path where your windows service zip files were extracted

sc.exe create CertificateBotIIS binpath= <file-path>\RCL.SSL.CertificateBot.IIS.exe
  • After the service in installed, open Services in Windows, look for the CertificateBot service and Start the service

image

  • Set the Properties of the service to start automatically when the hosting machine starts

image

View the Event Logs

  • Open Event Viewer, under ‘Windows Logs > Application’, look for the RCL.SSL.CertificateBot.IIS events

image

  • Ensure that there are no error events for the service. If there are error events, the service is misconfigured and will not function

  • Each time a certificate is downloaded and saved in the server or a certificate is scheduled for renewal, a log will be written

  • The service will run every seven (7) days to automatically renew certificates in the IIS web server

Fixing Errors

If you encounter error events for the service in the Event Viewer, please stop the service and delete it completely.

Ensure the appsettings configuration is correct for the AAD Application and the certificate save path settings point to a folder that exists.

Fix any other errors that are reported Then, re-install and restart the service.

Deleting the Windows Service

If you need to remove the Windows Service for any reason, first stop the service, then run the command to delete the service

sc.exe delete CertificateBotIIS

Updating the Service

If you need to update the service to include other IIS bindings and certificates, follow these steps:

  • Stop the service and delete it
  • Change the appsettings.json file to include updated IIS bindings and certificates
  • Re-create the service and start it

Reset the Service

If you need to reset the service because of a error or corrupted certificate renewal, follow these steps :

  • Stop the service and delete it
  • Delete all certificates and their folders in the directory in which certificates are saved
  • Re-create the service and start it