Topic: SSL Support

[naozumi]

I have a forum running under https however any connections made by SimplePortal for updates or news feed are requested over http and so not loaded. I tried to load the https version of the files but the server is not responding to https requests.

Is there anyway of getting this changed so that we can use the plugin on secure forums?

Thanks,

/Nao

[Chen Zhen]

naozumi,

  If I understand you correctly, the Simple Portal news & update info are from this site which is not ssl.
It can not be set to ssl (https) for this source to feed your SimplePortal admin area that information nor does it need to be if your site is ssl.
It is not your site that it is getting this data from, it is retrieving that information from this site.
Perhaps I am not clear on exactly what you are referring to. Please post some screen shots of the issue you are having.

Regards.

[naozumi]

Because my site is SSL enabled, browsers (eg: chrome) now refuse to load certain mixed content such as JavaScript files. As such I get these console errors logged:



And my SimplePortal shows:



As a result I cannot automatically install packages and I cannot ever use the auto upgrade options that are built into SimplePortal.

If you were to enable https for the site then this would remove the errors (and would also increase the security of the software) but right now it renders me unable to use these tools. For what it is worth I would be happy to assist with configuring SSL for the site if you wished assistance.

[Chen Zhen]

naozumi,

  We know how to configure ssl but do not currently have a valid registered certificate. That which you are requesting is not something that is mandatory as it does not effect the general function of your portal and you have the ability to check this site on occasion and peruse the downloads section. Please note that newer versions of the Simple Portal package now require you to uninstall & delete any older version prior to installing any new versions.

  Since we do not currently have a valid ssl certificate, your configuration may still block this source for that reason even if I enable ssl support.  Through a general browser query this would just post a warning and ask confirmation but your configuration for what you are specifying may actually still block it.

Regards.

[naozumi]

OK, I see. First off on the matter of the free SSL certificate, may I recommend hxxps://www.startssl.com/ as an option. It is free and plays nicely with browsers and servers.

However I understand your point that we would need to remove the SimplePortal before we can upgrade and this makes autoupdate scripts themselves a bit redundant. Hopefully one day will get the version notification back working but for the time being I will accept it as it is.

Thank you for your help with my query.

/Naozumi

Edit -> Hyperlink removal

[Chen Zhen]

naozumi,

  I am glad to hear that the information provided was helpful.  Thank you for the info regarding free ssl certificates and I will investigate that source whereas if it appears to be legitimate with supplying valid certificates I may indeed apply it.  Although at first glance it appears to only allow 1 year for free and then possibly requires a charge for extending its use.

Regards.

[naozumi]

Hi Chen Zhen, the SSL certificates are valid for 1 year at which point you simply have them reissue an updated certificate which you install the replace the existing. It remains free and it can be seen live at https://nordinvasion.com where I am using it if you like. Not trying to push my own site but just give an example. There are instructions on the usage of the certificates with the servers on their site and it has worked well. The system is all automated too so thats pretty nice though I did have a slight issue where it didn't seem to accept my openssl key I generated so instead I had their site generate one and its worked perfectly well since.

One other note is that each certificate will secure 2 domains. the first is always https://domain.com and the second is your choice. I have issued multiple certificates per domain and it is perfectly happy so I use the first to secure https://domain.com and https://www.domain.com and then a second certificate to secure https://forum.domain.com.

Hope this helps.

/Nao