Browser showing certificate expired despite certificate being active/new

My domain is: www.scalefinx.com

Problem I'm facing: If you visit my website, you'll see the browser showing a Not Secure error and the reason it shows is that the certificate is expired. However, when I run "sudo certbot certificates", I can see my certificate is still valid until September (output below).

What I have done so far:

  1. I have ensured all my .conf files reference the correct / latest certificate in /etc/letsencrypt/live/www.scalefinx.com/ directory.
  2. I ran certbot install and it returned the message:
Deploying Certificate to VirtualHost /etc/httpd/conf/httpd-le-ssl.conf
Enhancement redirect was already set.
  1. I have stopped and restarted both my Apache server and EC2 instance (even verifying process ID of httpd service changing to ensure that the restart actually happened).

Output of certbot certificates:

Saving debug log to /var/log/letsencrypt/letsencrypt.log

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Found the following certs:
  Certificate Name: www.scalefinx.com
    Serial Number: <HIDDEN>
    Key Type: RSA
    Domains: www.scalefinx.com
    Expiry Date: 2023-09-27 05:12:42+00:00 (VALID: 73 days)
    Certificate Path: /etc/letsencrypt/live/www.scalefinx.com/fullchain.pem
    Private Key Path: /etc/letsencrypt/live/www.scalefinx.com/privkey.pem

My web server is (include version): Apache2 running on AWS EC2

The version of my client is (e.g. output of certbot --version or certbot-auto --version if you're using Certbot): certbot 1.11.0

Probably a duplicate virtualhost, what shows the output of:

sudo apachectl -t -D DUMP_VHOSTS

(Note that the serial number of a certificate is part of the certificate itself and is public information in CT logs, so no requirement to hide it.)

Also, please don't remove any of the questions. We often need more info, so please answer them in the future even if you don't think it's necessary to answer them. It might not be the first time someone misjudged the situation. Thank you.

4 Likes

Output of sudo apachectl -t -D DUMP_VHOSTS:

VirtualHost configuration:
*:80                   www.scalefinx.com (/etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf:46)
*:443                  www.scalefinx.com (/etc/httpd/conf/httpd-le-ssl.conf:2)

Thank you for letting me know on the serial number and other questions, let me add the remaining questions answers below as well:

My web server is (include version): Apache 2.4.56
The operating system my web server runs on is (include version): Amazon Linux 2
My hosting provider, if applicable, is: AWS (EC2 server)
I can login to a root shell on my machine (yes or no, or I don't know): Yes
I'm using a control panel to manage my site (no, or provide the name and version of the control panel): No

That's the entire output? :thinking: Weird.. If so, can you show both files?

3 Likes

Amazon Linux 2?

3 Likes

Yes, probably. EPEL on that has Certbot 1.11.0 which they are using.

@scalefinx

The DNS for www.scalefinx.com points to AWS ELB. That's where the expired cert is. In fact, the expired cert has both the scalefinx.com and the www subdomain.

But, the certbot certificates newer cert you show only has the www name.

I would think you could use an AWS ACM cert in the ELB. But, it looks like someone uploaded a custom cert at one point (like back in Apr).

5 Likes

Hi @Osiris here are the two files:

httpd.conf:

#
# This is the main Apache HTTP server configuration file.  It contains the
# configuration directives that give the server its instructions.
# See <URL:http://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.4/> for detailed information.
# In particular, see 
# <URL:http://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.4/mod/directives.html>
# for a discussion of each configuration directive.
#
# Do NOT simply read the instructions in here without understanding
# what they do.  They're here only as hints or reminders.  If you are unsure
# consult the online docs. You have been warned.  
#
# Configuration and logfile names: If the filenames you specify for many
# of the server's control files begin with "/" (or "drive:/" for Win32), the
# server will use that explicit path.  If the filenames do *not* begin
# with "/", the value of ServerRoot is prepended -- so 'log/access_log'
# with ServerRoot set to '/www' will be interpreted by the
# server as '/www/log/access_log', where as '/log/access_log' will be
# interpreted as '/log/access_log'.

#
# ServerRoot: The top of the directory tree under which the server's
# configuration, error, and log files are kept.
#
# Do not add a slash at the end of the directory path.  If you point
# ServerRoot at a non-local disk, be sure to specify a local disk on the
# Mutex directive, if file-based mutexes are used.  If you wish to share the
# same ServerRoot for multiple httpd daemons, you will need to change at
# least PidFile.
#
ServerRoot "/etc/httpd"

#
# Listen: Allows you to bind Apache to specific IP addresses and/or
# ports, instead of the default. See also the <VirtualHost>
# directive.
#
# Change this to Listen on specific IP addresses as shown below to 
# prevent Apache from glomming onto all bound IP addresses.
#
#Listen 12.34.56.78:80

Listen 443
#Listen 80

<VirtualHost *:80>
    DocumentRoot "/var/www/html"
    ServerName "www.scalefinx.com"
    ServerAlias "www.scalefinx.com"
    Redirect permanent "/" "https://scalefinx.com/"

    RewriteEngine On
    RewriteCond %{HTTPS} off
    RewriteRule (.*) https://%{HTTP_HOST}%{REQUEST_URI} [R=301,L]
    Header set Strict-Transport-Security "max-age=31536000"

RewriteCond %{SERVER_NAME} =www.scalefinx.com [OR]
RewriteCond %{SERVER_NAME} =scalefinx.com
RewriteRule ^ https://%{SERVER_NAME}%{REQUEST_URI} [END,NE,R=permanent]
</VirtualHost>

#
# Dynamic Shared Object (DSO) Support
#
# To be able to use the functionality of a module which was built as a DSO you
# have to place corresponding `LoadModule' lines at this location so the
# directives contained in it are actually available _before_ they are used.
# Statically compiled modules (those listed by `httpd -l') do not need
# to be loaded here.
#
# Example:
# LoadModule foo_module modules/mod_foo.so
#
Include conf.modules.d/*.conf

#
# If you wish httpd to run as a different user or group, you must run
# httpd as root initially and it will switch.  
#
# User/Group: The name (or #number) of the user/group to run httpd as.
# It is usually good practice to create a dedicated user and group for
# running httpd, as with most system services.
#
User apache
Group apache

# 'Main' server configuration
#
# The directives in this section set up the values used by the 'main'
# server, which responds to any requests that aren't handled by a
# <VirtualHost> definition.  These values also provide defaults for
# any <VirtualHost> containers you may define later in the file.
#
# All of these directives may appear inside <VirtualHost> containers,
# in which case these default settings will be overridden for the
# virtual host being defined.
#

#
# ServerAdmin: Your address, where problems with the server should be
# e-mailed.  This address appears on some server-generated pages, such
# as error documents.  e.g. admin@your-domain.com
#
ServerAdmin root@localhost
#
# ServerName gives the name and port that the server uses to identify itself.
# This can often be determined automatically, but we recommend you specify
# it explicitly to prevent problems during startup.
#
# If your host doesn't have a registered DNS name, enter its IP address here.
#
#ServerName www.example.com:80

#
# Deny access to the entirety of your server's filesystem. You must
# explicitly permit access to web content directories in other 
# <Directory> blocks below.
#
<Directory />
    AllowOverride none
    Require all denied
</Directory>

#
# Note that from this point forward you must specifically allow
# particular features to be enabled - so if something's not working as
# you might expect, make sure that you have specifically enabled it
# below.
#
# DocumentRoot: The directory out of which you will serve your
# documents. By default, all requests are taken from this directory, but
# symbolic links and aliases may be used to point to other locations.
#
DocumentRoot "/var/www/html"

#
# Relax access to content within /var/www.
#
<Directory "/var/www">
    AllowOverride All
    # Allow open access:
    Require all granted
</Directory>

# Further relax access to the default document root:
<Directory "/var/www/html">
    #
    # Possible values for the Options directive are "None", "All",
    # or any combination of:
    #   Indexes Includes FollowSymLinks SymLinksifOwnerMatch ExecCGI MultiViews
    #
    # Note that "MultiViews" must be named *explicitly* --- "Options All"
    # doesn't give it to you.
    #
    # The Options directive is both complicated and important.  Please see
    # http://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.4/mod/core.html#options
    # for more information.
    #
    Options Indexes FollowSymLinks

    #
    # AllowOverride controls what directives may be placed in .htaccess files.
    # It can be "All", "None", or any combination of the keywords:
    #   Options FileInfo AuthConfig Limit
    #
    AllowOverride All

    #
    # Controls who can get stuff from this server.
    #
    Require all granted
</Directory>

<Directory "/var/www/html/blog">
        AllowOverride All
        Require all granted
</Directory>

#
# DirectoryIndex: sets the file that Apache will serve if a directory
# is requested.
<IfModule dir_module>
    DirectoryIndex index.html
</IfModule>

#
# The following lines prevent .htaccess and .htpasswd files from being 
# viewed by Web clients. 
#
<Files ".ht*">
    Require all denied
</Files>

#
# ErrorLog: The location of the error log file.
# If you do not specify an ErrorLog directive within a <VirtualHost>
# container, error messages relating to that virtual host will be
# logged here.  If you *do* define an error logfile for a <VirtualHost>
# container, that host's errors will be logged there and not here.
#
ErrorLog "logs/error_log"

#
# LogLevel: Control the number of messages logged to the error_log.
# Possible values include: debug, info, notice, warn, error, crit,
# alert, emerg.
#
LogLevel warn

<IfModule log_config_module>
    #
    # The following directives define some format nicknames for use with
    # a CustomLog directive (see below).
    #
    LogFormat "%h %l %u %t \"%r\" %>s %b \"%{Referer}i\" \"%{User-Agent}i\"" combined
    LogFormat "%h %l %u %t \"%r\" %>s %b" common

    <IfModule logio_module>
      # You need to enable mod_logio.c to use %I and %O
      LogFormat "%h %l %u %t \"%r\" %>s %b \"%{Referer}i\" \"%{User-Agent}i\" %I %O" combinedio
    </IfModule>

    #
    # The location and format of the access logfile (Common Logfile Format).
    # If you do not define any access logfiles within a <VirtualHost>
    # container, they will be logged here.  Contrariwise, if you *do*
    # define per-<VirtualHost> access logfiles, transactions will be
    # logged therein and *not* in this file.
    #CustomLog "logs/access_log" common

    #
    # If you prefer a logfile with access, agent, and referer information
    # (Combined Logfile Format) you can use the following directive.
    #
    CustomLog "logs/access_log" combined
</IfModule>

<IfModule alias_module>
    #
    # Redirect: Allows you to tell clients about documents that used to 
    # exist in your server's namespace, but do not anymore. The client 
    # will make a new request for the document at its new location.
    # Example:
    # Redirect permanent /foo http://www.example.com/bar

    #
    # Alias: Maps web paths into filesystem paths and is used to
    # access content that does not live under the DocumentRoot.
    # Example:
    # Alias /webpath /full/filesystem/path
    #
    # If you include a trailing / on /webpath then the server will
    # require it to be present in the URL.  You will also likely
    # need to provide a <Directory> section to allow access to
    #
    # ScriptAlias: This controls which directories contain server scripts. 
    # ScriptAliases are essentially the same as Aliases, except that
    # documents in the target directory are treated as applications and
    # run by the server when requested rather than as documents sent to the
    # client.  The same rules about trailing "/" apply to ScriptAlias
    # directives as to Alias.
    #
    ScriptAlias /cgi-bin/ "/var/www/cgi-bin/"

</IfModule>

#
# "/var/www/cgi-bin" should be changed to whatever your ScriptAliased
# CGI directory exists, if you have that configured.
#
<Directory "/var/www/cgi-bin">
    AllowOverride None
    Options None
    Require all granted
</Directory>

<IfModule mime_module>
    #
    # TypesConfig points to the file containing the list of mappings from
    # filename extension to MIME-type.
    #
    TypesConfig /etc/mime.types

    #
    # AddType allows you to add to or override the MIME configuration
    # file specified in TypesConfig for specific file types.
    #
    #AddType application/x-gzip .tgz
    #
    # AddEncoding allows you to have certain browsers uncompress
    # information on the fly. Note: Not all browsers support this.
    #
    #AddEncoding x-compress .Z
    #AddEncoding x-gzip .gz .tgz
    #
    # If the AddEncoding directives above are commented-out, then you
    # probably should define those extensions to indicate media types:
    #
    AddType application/x-compress .Z
    AddType application/x-gzip .gz .tgz

    #
    # AddHandler allows you to map certain file extensions to "handlers":
    # actions unrelated to filetype. These can be either built into the server
    # or added with the Action directive (see below)
    #
    # To use CGI scripts outside of ScriptAliased directories:
    # (You will also need to add "ExecCGI" to the "Options" directive.)
    #
    #AddHandler cgi-script .cgi

    # For type maps (negotiated resources):
    #AddHandler type-map var

    #
    # Filters allow you to process content before it is sent to the client.
    #
    # To parse .shtml files for server-side includes (SSI):
    # (You will also need to add "Includes" to the "Options" directive.)
    #
    AddType text/html .shtml
    AddOutputFilter INCLUDES .shtml
</IfModule>

#
# Specify a default charset for all content served; this enables
# interpretation of all content as UTF-8 by default.  To use the 
# default browser choice (ISO-8859-1), or to allow the META tags
# in HTML content to override this choice, comment out this
# directive:
#
AddDefaultCharset UTF-8

<IfModule mime_magic_module>
    #
    # The mod_mime_magic module allows the server to use various hints from the
    # contents of the file itself to determine its type.  The MIMEMagicFile
    # directive tells the module where the hint definitions are located.
    #
    MIMEMagicFile conf/magic
</IfModule>

#
# Customizable error responses come in three flavors:
# 1) plain text 2) local redirects 3) external redirects
#
# Some examples:
#ErrorDocument 500 "The server made a boo boo."
#ErrorDocument 404 /missing.html
#ErrorDocument 404 "/cgi-bin/missing_handler.pl"

# EnableMMAP and EnableSendfile: On systems that support it, 
# memory-mapping or the sendfile syscall may be used to deliver
# files.  This usually improves server performance, but must
# be turned off when serving from networked-mounted 
# filesystems or if support for these functions is otherwise
# broken on your system.
# Defaults if commented: EnableMMAP On, EnableSendfile Off
#
#EnableMMAP off
EnableSendfile on

# Enable HTTP/2 by default
#
# https://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.4/mod/core.html#protocols

<IfModule mod_http2.c>
    Protocols h2 h2c http/1.1
</IfModule>

# Supplemental configuration
#
# Load config files in the "/etc/httpd/conf.d" directory, if any.
IncludeOptional conf.d/*.conf
Include /etc/httpd/conf/httpd-le-ssl.conf

httpd-le-ssl.conf:

<IfModule mod_ssl.c>
<VirtualHost *:443>
    DocumentRoot "/var/www/html"
    ServerName "www.scalefinx.com"
    ServerAlias "www.scalefinx.com"
Include /etc/letsencrypt/options-ssl-apache.conf
SSLCertificateFile /etc/letsencrypt/live/www.scalefinx.com/fullchain.pem
SSLCertificateKeyFile /etc/letsencrypt/live/www.scalefinx.com/privkey.pem
</VirtualHost>
</IfModule>

@linkp Yes, apologies for not mentioning it correctly, it is an Amazon Linux 2 OS. Updated my original post.

@MikeMcQ yes, I had earlier tried using a custom cert which if I remember correctly didn't work as expected, so I aborted that and used Certbot. This worked absolutely fine until I probably messed something up in the recent renewal.

1 Like

How many ways can you redirect HTTP to HTTPS???
Let me count the ways...

I see 1, 2, 3!
You've used HTTP to HTTPS redirection three times in the same vhost!
Was it NOT working?
What made you continue adding more code?
Does it redirect now?
Do you really still need all those lines?

4 Likes

I did this a long time back when I was facing issues with redirection. Finally I used the load balancer in EC2 to redirect http to https (works perfectly fine now) but forgot to clean it up here. I should probably delete or comment this out, hope nothing breaks. Will do so now. But I doubt if this is the reason for the old certificate issue

UPDATE: cleaned up now. Redirection works as before (load balancer is still setup as-is, no changes there) but my certificate issue still is as before

3 Likes

Another finding just now, I hope this helps troubleshoot my case: my public IP address shows the correct certificate expiry date (Sep 27). Even though it still says insecure (maybe because of the domain name vs IP mismatch). Really unsure where things are going wrong!

Guys.. resolved. Sorry for all the trouble. After closer inspection I realized I had to manually update the certificate being served by the load balancer also, it was still serving my old certificate :person_facepalming:

2 Likes

The certificate chain may not be configured correctly in your web server configuration.
Make sure you have included the full certificate chain (certificate + intermediate certificates) in the SSLCertificateFile directive in your Apache configuration file.
The SSLCertificateFile directive should point to the fullchain.pem file.

In this case they are using an AWS ELB (load balancer). Yes, they have misconfigured their custom cert in the ELB. I still think an AWS ACM cert is a better way to go if possible. But, otherwise they did not follow the AWS instructions

If you have a certificate to import but ACM is not available in your Region, select Upload a new SSL Certificate to AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM). Type the name of the certificate. In Private Key, copy and paste the contents of the private key file (PEM-encoded). In Public Key Certificate, copy and paste the contents of the public key certificate file (PEM-encoded). In Certificate Chain, copy and paste the contents of the certificate chain file (PEM-encoded), unless you are using a self-signed certificate and it's not important that browsers implicitly accept the certificate.

For Certbot, this Certificate Chain is the chain.pem file

4 Likes

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