Complete a CSR in IIS

This article explains how to complete a Certificate Signing Request (CSR) with Internet Information Services (IIS) on a Windows® server.

Before completing the steps in this article, you must create a CSR by using the following instructions:
How to generate a CSR.

What is a CSR, and when do you need one?

A CSR is required when purchasing an Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate for a website. You can generate and CSR on a server
or use CSR generators provided by various third parties and SSL vendors. The CSR contains information regarding the domain names
that the certificate secures, as well as the respective organization or company details. A CSR is typically a .txt file that
requires a CSR decoder to read its contents. You can find various CSR decoders online.

If you want to renew an existing certificate, a new CSR isn't always needed. You only have to generate a new CSR if
the domain names or the organization information changes. If there are no changes, the existing CSR is renewable.

Verify that you created the CSR on the server

To complete the CSR with IIS on your Windows server, you must create the CSR on the server. Use the following steps to verify
you did this correctly:

1. Open Microsoft Management Console (MMC) by clicking on the Windows icon in your taskbar and typing mmc.

2. At the top of the window, select File and Add/Remove Snap-in.

3. Click Certificates and then click Add.

4. Select Computer Account, Next, and Finish.

5. Expand the menu in the left-hand pane and navigate to Certificate Enrollment Requests -> Certificates.

   • If the CSR was created on the server, you can see it listed here, and you can move on to the next section.
   • If you don't see the CSR listed, the CSR was not created on the server, and you need to obtain the private
     key from your certificate vendor to proceed with the SSL installation.

Complete the CSR in IIS

When you complete the CSR request in IIS, you are installing the SSL certificate so that it is ready for use with your site.

1. Upload the .crt or .cer file from your SSL vendor to your Windows server.

2. Open IIS by clicking on the Windows icon in your taskbar and typing IIS.

3. On the dashboard, double-click Server Certificates.

4. In the right-hand pane, select Complete Certificate Request.

5. Select the location of the certificate file.

6. Provide an easily recognizable name for your certificate under Friendly Name.

7. Select Personal under Certificate Store and click OK.

The certificate is now ready for use, and you can bind it to the respective site.