How to Set Up SSL and HTTPS for Your Website

Overview

HTTPS protects the connection between a visitor's browser and your website.

When HTTPS is working correctly, visitors will see a secure connection such as:

https://example.com

rather than:

http://example.com

HTTPS is provided through an SSL/TLS certificate.

Have Freedom Hosting offers free SSL certificates through Let's Encrypt, as well as paid SSL certificate options for customers who need or prefer a paid certificate.

For most websites, a free Let's Encrypt certificate provides everything needed to securely enable HTTPS.

What Is SSL?

SSL is the older term commonly used when discussing website certificates.

Modern websites actually use TLS (Transport Layer Security), but you'll still commonly see the term "SSL certificate."

For practical purposes, when someone says your website needs an SSL certificate, they're referring to the certificate that enables HTTPS.

Why Does My Website Need HTTPS?

HTTPS helps protect information exchanged between your website and its visitors.

This is particularly important for websites that handle:

• Login information

• Contact forms

• Customer accounts

• Personal information

• Payments

• Other sensitive information

Even if your website doesn't collect sensitive information, HTTPS is still recommended for normal websites.

Free SSL With Let's Encrypt

Have Freedom Hosting offers free SSL certificates through Let's Encrypt.

Let's Encrypt is a widely used certificate authority that provides SSL/TLS certificates at no charge.

For many customers, this is the simplest and most cost-effective way to secure a website.

A free Let's Encrypt certificate can provide the encryption needed for:

• Business websites

• Personal websites

• Blogs

• WordPress websites

• Portfolios

• Small websites

• Many other standard websites

You do not need to purchase an SSL certificate simply because you want HTTPS.

If your hosting plan supports automatic Let's Encrypt SSL provisioning, the certificate may be issued and renewed automatically once your domain is correctly configured.

Paid SSL Options

Have Freedom Hosting also offers paid SSL certificate options for customers who need or prefer a paid certificate.

Paid certificates may be appropriate for customers who:

• Require a specific certificate type

• Need particular validation or certificate features

• Have organizational requirements

• Prefer a paid certificate product

• Need certificate options beyond those provided by their free SSL configuration

The appropriate certificate depends on your website and requirements.

If you're unsure whether you need a paid certificate, contact Have Freedom Hosting before purchasing one. For most ordinary websites, a free Let's Encrypt certificate is sufficient.

Free vs. Paid SSL

Choosing between free and paid SSL is generally about your requirements rather than whether one provides "real" encryption.

Both can provide secure HTTPS connections when configured correctly.

Checking Whether HTTPS Works

Open your website using:

https://example.com

If the site loads without a certificate warning, HTTPS may already be configured correctly.

You can also check the address bar in your browser for the browser's security indicator.

If you see a certificate warning, don't ignore it. The certificate may be expired, incorrectly configured, issued for a different domain, or otherwise unavailable.

SSL and Your Have Freedom Hosting Account

If SSL is available for your hosting account, certificate management may be handled automatically by the hosting environment.

Have Freedom Hosting's free Let's Encrypt SSL is intended to make HTTPS setup as simple as possible for customers.

The exact SSL tools available in cPanel depend on your hosting plan and server configuration.

You may see SSL-related features under:

cPanel → Security

or other sections of cPanel depending on your configuration.

If automatic SSL provisioning is enabled, you may not need to manually install a certificate.

Before SSL Can Be Issued

Your domain generally needs to be correctly configured before an SSL certificate can be issued.

Make sure:

• The domain exists in your hosting account.

• DNS points to the appropriate hosting service.

• The website can be reached.

• The domain is not pointing to a different server.

• Any required DNS verification can be completed.

If you recently changed nameservers or DNS records, allow time for those changes to become active.

Using HTTPS on Your Website

Once your SSL certificate is active, your website should be accessible through:

https://example.com

You may also want visitors who use the unsecured HTTP version to automatically be sent to HTTPS:

http://example.com
        ↓
https://example.com

This is commonly called an HTTP-to-HTTPS redirect.

Redirecting HTTP to HTTPS

If your website is ready for HTTPS, you can configure a redirect so visitors using HTTP are sent to the secure version.

Depending on your setup, this may be handled by:

• Your website application

• cPanel

• .htaccess

• A WordPress plugin

• A CDN or proxy service

Avoid configuring the same redirect in multiple places without understanding how they interact.

Multiple HTTPS redirects can cause a redirect loop.

WordPress and HTTPS

If you're using WordPress, your site's URL settings should normally use HTTPS once the certificate is active.

For example:

https://example.com

rather than:

http://example.com

If WordPress continues trying to use HTTP after HTTPS has been configured, you may need to update the site's URL configuration.

WordPress plugins or themes may also contain old HTTP references.

Mixed Content

A website can have a valid SSL certificate and still display warnings if some website resources are loaded over HTTP.

This is known as mixed content.

For example:

https://example.com

but an image is loaded from:

http://example.com/image.jpg

The browser may block the insecure resource or display a warning.

Fixing Mixed Content

If your website has mixed content:

1. Confirm that HTTPS works.

2. Check the browser's security information for the affected resource.

3. Update old HTTP URLs to HTTPS where appropriate.

4. Check your website's configuration.

5. Check plugins and themes if you're using WordPress.

6. Clear caches and test again.

Do not blindly replace every URL in a database without first creating a backup.

HTTPS and Your Domain's DNS

SSL and DNS are related, but they are not the same thing.

DNS determines where your domain points.

SSL establishes a secure connection once the visitor reaches the website.

For example:

Domain
   ↓
DNS
   ↓
Hosting Server
   ↓
SSL/TLS
   ↓
HTTPS Website

If DNS points to the wrong server, the correct SSL certificate may not be available there.

Common SSL Problems

"My Website Says the Connection Isn't Secure"

Possible causes include:

• The SSL certificate hasn't been issued.

• The certificate has expired.

• The certificate doesn't cover the domain.

• DNS points somewhere unexpected.

• The website is using mixed content.

• The certificate configuration is incorrect.

If you're using free Let's Encrypt SSL through Have Freedom Hosting, check whether the certificate has been successfully provisioned before purchasing another certificate.

"HTTPS Works but HTTP Doesn't Redirect"

Your SSL certificate may be working correctly while the HTTP-to-HTTPS redirect hasn't been configured.

Check your website or cPanel redirect configuration.

Make sure you don't have another rule creating a redirect conflict.

"I Get a Certificate Warning"

Check that you're visiting the correct domain.

For example, a certificate for:

example.com

may not necessarily cover every other hostname you might try to access.

Also check whether the certificate is expired or otherwise invalid.

If the certificate should be valid but your browser still reports a problem, contact Have Freedom Hosting Support.

"My Free SSL Certificate Isn't Being Issued"

Check:

• DNS configuration

• Nameservers

• The domain's hosting configuration

• Whether the domain resolves to the expected server

• Whether there are any DNS or validation errors

If you recently connected the domain, give DNS changes time to propagate.

If automatic Let's Encrypt provisioning continues to fail, contact Have Freedom Hosting Support rather than purchasing an SSL certificate unnecessarily.

"Do I Need to Buy an SSL Certificate?"

Probably not.

For most standard websites, Have Freedom Hosting's free Let's Encrypt SSL provides the HTTPS encryption you need.

A paid SSL certificate may be appropriate if you have a specific requirement that isn't met by the free certificate.

If you're unsure, ask Have Freedom Hosting Support before purchasing one.

SSL for Subdomains

Subdomains also need appropriate SSL coverage.

For example:

blog.example.com

must be covered if you want visitors to use:

https://blog.example.com

If you're creating a new subdomain, make sure it is correctly configured and resolving before troubleshooting its SSL certificate.

SSL for Additional Domains

If you host multiple domains under one account, each domain needs appropriate SSL coverage for HTTPS.

For example:

example.com
anotherexample.com
blog.example.com

Each hostname needs to be covered appropriately.

If your hosting environment provides automatic Let's Encrypt SSL provisioning, certificates may be handled automatically once the domains are configured correctly.

Don't Disable HTTPS Warnings

If your browser reports that a website's certificate is invalid, don't simply bypass the warning—especially when entering passwords, payment information, or other sensitive data.

A certificate warning can indicate a configuration problem or that you're connecting to an unexpected server.

Fix the underlying issue instead.

Testing Your Website After Enabling HTTPS

Once HTTPS is configured, test:

• https://yourdomain.com

• https://www.yourdomain.com if you use www

• Important pages

• Contact forms

• Login pages

• Images

• CSS and JavaScript

• WordPress administration, if applicable

• Any subdomains you use

Make sure everything still works after enabling HTTPS.

Need Help?

If your website isn't working correctly over HTTPS, contact Have Freedom Hosting Support.

Include:

• Your domain

• Whether HTTP works

• Whether HTTPS works

• The exact browser warning or error

• Whether you recently changed DNS

• Whether the website uses WordPress or another application

• Whether you're using free Let's Encrypt SSL or a paid SSL certificate

If possible, include a screenshot of the error without exposing passwords, private information, or other sensitive data.