.PEM SSL Creation Instructions

SSL .pem files (for our purposes, concatenated certificate files), are frequently required for certificate installations when multiple certificates are being imported as one file.

The following sets of instructions walk through creating some of the various files that could be called for if your server requires a .pem ssl certificate.

Creating a .pem with the Entire SSL Certificate Trust Chain

Open a text editor (such as wordpad) and paste the entire body of each certificate into one text file in the following order:

1. The Primary Certificate - your_domain_name.crt
2. The Intermediate Certificate 
3. The Root Certificate

Make sure to include the beginning and end tags on each certificate. The result should look like this:

      -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
      (Your Primary SSL certificate: your_domain_name.crt)
      -----END CERTIFICATE-----
      -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
      (Your Intermediate certificate: intermediate_certificate.crt)
      -----END CERTIFICATE-----
      -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
      (Your Root certificate: root_certificate.crt)
      -----END CERTIFICATE-----

Save the combined file as your_domain_name.pem. Your .pem file is now ready for use.

Creating a .pem with the Server and Intermediate Certificates

With a text editor (such as wordpad), copy and paste the entire body of each certificate into one text file in the following order:

1. The Primary Certificate - your_domain_name.crt
2. The Intermediate Certificate

Make sure to include the beginning and end tags on each certificate. The result should look like this:

      -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
      (Your Primary SSL certificate: your_domain_name.crt)
      -----END CERTIFICATE-----
      -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
      (Your Intermediate certificate: intermediate_certificate.crt)
      -----END CERTIFICATE-----

      Save the combined file as your_domain_name.pem. Your .pem file should be ready for use.

Creating a .pem to include your private key and entire trust chain

With a text editor (such as wordpad), copy and paste the entire body of each certificate into one text file in the following order:

1. The Private Key - your_domain_name.key
2. The Primary Certificate - your_domain_name.crt
3. The Intermediate Certificate
4. The Root Certificate

Make sure to include the beginning and end tags on each certificate. The result should look like this:
      -----BEGIN RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
      (Your Private Key: your_domain_name.key)
      -----END RSA PRIVATE KEY-----

      -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
      (Your Primary SSL certificate: your_domain_name.crt)
      -----END CERTIFICATE-----
      -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
      (Your Intermediate certificate: intermediate_certificate.crt)
      -----END CERTIFICATE-----
      -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
      (Your Root certificate: root_certificate.crt)
      -----END CERTIFICATE-----

      Save the combined file as your_domain_name.pem. Your .pem file should be ready for use.

Creating your .pem file