How to Add HTTPS to Your Website or Service

Prerequisites

A server
Nginx installed
A domain name

Steps

Domain Configuration

Generally, to set up HTTPS, you need a domain name. I got my current domain for free in 2023 from dynadot for one year—not sure if that offer is still available. If you need to purchase a domain, you can try dynadot‘s services, or consider using a free domain (usually a subdomain, though the experience isn’t as smooth).

In your domain registrar, locate the DNS settings.
If your primary domain is already in use, you can set up a subdomain instead. Here, I’ll use a subdomain as an example—the process is the same for a primary domain.

In the subdomain settings, add a record, select A, and point it to your server’s public IP.

After saving, it may take a few minutes for the changes to propagate.

Nginx Configuration

If Nginx isn’t installed, here’s how to install it on Ubuntu:

1 2	sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get install nginx

You can verify the installation with the following command:

nginx -v

You should see version information similar to this:

1	nginx version: nginx/1.22.0 (Ubuntu)

In the /etc/nginx/sites-available/ directory, create a new file (the name is up to you, but it’s best to keep it related to your website or service):

1	sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/<name>

Fill in the following content (replace the values inside <> with your own):

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name <your_domain>;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:<service_port>;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
    }
}

After saving, create a symlink with the following command:

1	sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/<name> /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/

Configuring Certbot

Install Certbot:

1 2	sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get install certbot python3-certbot-nginx

Request a free certificate:

1	sudo certbot --nginx -d <your_domain>

Upon success, you’ll see:

1
2
3

Deploying certificate
Successfully deployed certificate for openai.api.shiquda.link to /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/xxx
Congratulations! You have successfully enabled HTTPS on xxx

After the request succeeds, ~~if everything goes well~~, the certificate will renew automatically when it’s close to expiring.

To be safe, you can test a dry run of the renewal (it won’t actually renew anything):

1	sudo certbot renew --dry-run

Usage

Now, when you visit your domain, HTTPS should be working.