Mastering ArcGIS Enterprise Administration

Using a CA-signed SSL certificate

ArcGIS Server installs with a preconfigured self-signed SSL certificate that can work to initially get your deployment up and running. Using an SSL certificate from a certifying authority (CA) is important for a couple of reasons:

• Encryption: Yes, a self-signed certificate encrypts traffic just the same
• Trust: When your end users see the little green lock in their browser address bar, they get a nice, warm, fuzzy feeling knowing that since the CA trusts you, they can trust you

With Portal, we are required to use a CA-signed certificate. We'll discuss more about that in this chapter.