How to install apache/openssl/mod_ssl

Many people including myself have wondered how to get SSL installed on their linux boxes. Here is a great wayt to do it.

all the trailing slashes ( \ ) are backslashes not pipes.

1) Download the latest version of apache (currently 1.3.19), and get the latest version of openssl (0.9.6a), finally download the latest mod_ssl module.

2) Place all of the *.tar.gz files or *.tgz files into the /tmp directory. Now untar and unzip them like so:

tar -xzvf apache_1.3.19.tar.gz ; tar -xzvf openssl_0.9.6a.tar.gz ; tar -xzvf mod_ssl-0.21.8-1.3.19

3) go into the mod_ssl directory first and configure it like so:

./configure --with-apache=/tmp/apache_1.3.19

4) Next change directory to the apache directory (/tmp/apache_1.3.19). configure the apache source:

SSL_BASE=/tmp/openssl-0.9.6a RSA_BASE=/tmp/rsaref-2.1 \ (optional)
./configure --prefix=/usr/local/apache --enable-module=most --enable-shared=max --enable-shared=ssl

5) when that completes, you should get a little ASCII that tells you to make a test certificate. Do it:

make certificate type=custom

Answer all the questions to complete installation of the test certificate.

6) Now you are ready to install the components. switch into the openssl directory and install it:

./config ; make ; make install

7) switch back into apache and install:

make install

8) You are basically done as poer the installation. Now you have to make a real certificate and/or setup the httpd.conf file for virtualhost/server settings.

NOTE: to make a certificate in openssl:
go to the /usr/local/ssl/bin directory and issue this command:

./openssl req -new -x509 -keyout /usr/local/ssl/private/serverkey.pem -out /usr/local/ssl/certs/servercert.pem -days 365

This command will create the private serverkey (ensure that this directory only allows root to have read/write access.), the server certificate to be shred with clients, all for the duration of one year (365 days).

Hope this FAQ helps everyone. I will write more in the future...

-------- 'Those who consume themselves with knowledge become the happiest in their own self worth' ----Rninja :-9