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Webservers and Load Balancers

Web servers and load balancers are primary endpoints for TLS termination and are among the most certificate-dependent components in enterprise infrastructure. CERTInext enables automated discovery, issuance, deployment, renewal, and monitoring of certificates used by web servers and load balancers across on-prem, cloud, and hybrid environments.

By integrating provisioning bots and CA connectors, CERTInext ensures uninterrupted HTTPS availability and policy-compliant cryptographic configuration.

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Purpose

Managing certificates on web servers and load balancers allows organizations to:

  • Prevent service outages caused by expired certificates

  • Automate TLS certificate deployment

  • Maintain standardized key sizes and algorithms

  • Enforce approved CA usage

  • Centralize visibility across distributed infrastructure

  • Reduce manual configuration errors

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Supported Platforms

CERTInext provisioning supports common server and load balancer platforms, including:

  • Apache HTTP Server

  • Nginx

  • Microsoft IIS

  • Tomcat and other Java-based servers

  • F5 BIG-IP

  • Palo Alto

  • FortiGate

  • Cloud-based load balancers

Additional platforms can be supported through SSH, WinRM, or API-based integrations.

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Discovery

Using Discovery Bots, CERTInext can scan:

  • Public-facing HTTPS endpoints

  • Internal web services

  • Custom ports (e.g., 443, 8443, 9443)

  • IP ranges or FQDNs

Discovered certificates appear in the centralized inventory along with:

  • Expiration date

  • Issuer CA

  • Key algorithm

  • Protocol support

  • Cipher strength

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Automated Provisioning

Provisioning Bots can:

  • Submit CSR to configured CA

  • Retrieve issued certificate

  • Install certificate into server keystore

  • Update bindings (e.g., IIS site bindings)

  • Restart or reload services where required

Deployment timing can be configured to occur:

  • Immediately after issuance

  • During scheduled maintenance windows

Rollback protection can revert to the previous certificate if deployment fails.

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Renewal Automation

Renewal is triggered based on:

  • Days before expiry (e.g., 30–45 days)

  • Specific scheduled date

Once renewed, the certificate is automatically redeployed to the configured web server or load balancer.

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Common Use Cases

Public-Facing Websites Automate issuance and renewal of publicly trusted certificates.

Internal Applications Use Private CA certificates for internal portals and services.

Load Balancer TLS Termination Manage certificates centrally for multi-node traffic distribution.

Multi-Environment Deployment Maintain separate certificates for Dev, QA, and Production environments.

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Monitoring and Alerts

Certificates deployed to web servers and load balancers are monitored for:

  • Expiry

  • Policy violations

  • Weak cryptographic parameters

  • Deployment failures

Alerts are triggered based on configured thresholds.

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Security Best Practices

  • Use minimum RSA 2048 or stronger key sizes

  • Prefer SHA-256 or stronger signature algorithms

  • Enable automated renewal 30–45 days before expiry

  • Restrict provisioning bot permissions to required scope

  • Regularly validate load balancer bindings

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Important Notes

  • Ensure required ports are accessible for deployment (e.g., SSH, WinRM, API ports).

  • Confirm keystore paths and permissions are correctly configured.

  • Validate certificate chain installation to avoid trust errors.

  • For clustered environments, ensure all nodes receive updated certificates.

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