Domain Validation (DV) SSL certificates are our fastest-issued security products. In most cases, your certificate is issued within 5 minutes after completing domain verification.
No paperwork or manual documentation is required, all you need to do is complete Domain Control Validation (DCV) using one of three supported methods.
Step 1: Complete Domain Control Validation (DCV)
DCV verifies that you own or control the domain name. You can validate ownership using any of the following methods:
1. Email Validation (Most Popular)
The Certification Authority (CA) sends an email containing a unique validation code and a verification link to your domain's administrative contact.
You can receive this email using any of the standard administrative addresses:
- admin@<yourdomain>
- administrator@<yourdomain>
- hostmaster@<yourdomain>
- webmaster@<yourdomain>
- postmaster@<yourdomain>
2. DNS CNAME Record
This method uses cryptographic hashes extracted from your submitted CSR code.
- How it works:
1. The CA provides a unique CNAME record name and value.
2. You create this CNAME record in your DNS control panel (e.g., Cloudflare, GoDaddy, Namecheap).
3. The CA automatically queries your domain's DNS to confirm the record exists. - Timeline: Takes anywhere from 10 minutes to 24 hours, depending on your DNS provider's TTL (Time-To-Live) and propagation speed.
3. HTTP / HTTPS File Upload
Upload a lightweight text file (.txt) containing your CSR hashes to your web server's root directory.
- How it works:
1. The CA generates a text file containing unique hashes derived from your CSR.
2. You upload this file to a specific directory on your server (usually /.well-known/pki-validation/ ).
3. The CA sends a web crawler to fetch the file via http:// or https://. If it finds the exact file content, verification completes.
- Note: Use the HTTPS option if your site already has an active SSL certificate.